The Effingham Lady Hearts began tournament play in impressive fashion Monday morning.

EHS built an early lead and then cruised to a 62-23 victory over Greenville in an opening-round game of the Vandalia Invitational Tournament.

The Lady Hearts led 17-8 after the first eight minutes and expanded their advantage to 37-11 at halftime. An 18-7 scoring edge in the third period ballooned the margin to 35 points. Heading into the final quarter, EHS owned a lopsided 55-18 lead.

Sidney Donaldson led all scorers with 15 points and Alyssa Martin added 10.

The Lady Hearts, now 16-5 for the season, will return to tournament action Thursday. They will face Salem at 7:30 p.m.

The Teutopolis Lady Shoes outscored Troy Triad 18-3 in the fourth quarter Saturday night to pull away and post a 52-36 victory in an opening-round game of the 38th annual Apex Network Physical Therapy Highland Girls Basketball Tournament.

The Lady Shoes held a slim 34-33 lead heading into the final eight minutes. But Anna Probst knocked down a pair of three-pointers and teammates Chloe Probst, Mollie Ruholl and Kelsey Niemerg each scored four, helping T-Town take control and secure the win.

Until the fourth period, the game had been a tight one from the beginning. Teutopolis led 12-11 after the opening quarter, but trailed 26-22 at intermission. The Lady Shoes then got eight points from Chloe Probst in the third period and regained the lead, 34-33.

Following her 30-point performance against Flora just two days earlier, Chloe Probst followed that up with a double-double. She pumped in a game-high 21 points and pulled down 12 rebounds. Anna Probst was also in double figures, finishing with 12.

McKenna Witham had 16 points for the Lady Knights, who had their five-game winning streak snapped and dropped to 17-4 on the season.

The Lady Shoes improved to 17-4. They will return to Highland on Tuesday night and face another tough opponent in Nashville. The Lady Hornets defeated Collinsville on Saturday to improve to 17-2.

The Warrensburg-Latham Cardinals jumped out to an early lead and were never headed Saturday, posting a 47-40 victory at Teutopolis.

The Cardinals built an 11-point spread, 16-5, after the opening eight minutes. The Shoes trimmed it to 18-13 at halftime, but the guests were able to stay on top in the second half.

It was the third straight game T-Town was limited to 40 or fewer total points and the second straight game the Shoes didn’t have a player in double figures. Henry Thompson and Drew Hoene both scored eight points, while Mick Niebrugge and Gavin Addis had seven.

Kaiden Gardner and Brayden Hickey scored 15 and 12 points, respectively, for Warrensburg-Latham. The Cardinals, who won their first 14 games of the season, but dropped four of their last six, improved to 17-4.

The Shoes are now 12-6. They will return to action Thursday when they face Charleston in a first-round game at the Salem Invitational Basketball Tournament. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.

The Mt. Zion Braves outscored Effingham 41-12 in the middle two quarters Saturday afternoon to pull away for a 58-24 Apollo Conference road victory.

The Hearts were within 12-7 after the first eight minutes, but the game wasn’t close after that. The Braves led 31-14 at halftime and 53-19 heading into the fourth period.

Mt. Zion, which improved to 14-4 overall and 5-0 in conference play, had three players in double figures. Jacob Harvey led the way with 13 points, while JC Anderson scored 11 and Lyncoln Koester added 10.

Nolan Fearday and Brady McDaniel both had six for Effingham.

The Hearts fell to 6-13 overall and 2-4 in the Apollo. They will return to action Tuesday at home against Dieterich. EHS will then play again Wednesday night at the Salem Invitational Tournament, facing Centralia at 7:30 p.m.

The St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs will carry the No. 1 seed into the National Trail Girls Basketball Tournament.

Games are scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 18, through Saturday, Jan. 25.

Here is the tournament schedule:

Saturday, Jan. 18

Game 1 – 10 a.m. – Dieterich (#8) vs. South Central (#9)

Monday, Jan. 20

Game 2 – 11:30 a.m. – Brownstown-St. Elmo (#2) vs. Cowden-Herrick/Beecher City (#7)

Game 3 – 1 p.m. – Altamont (#3) vs. Neoga (#6)

Game 4 – 2:30 p.m. – Windsor-Stew Stras (#4) vs. North Clay (#5)

Tuesday, Jan. 21

Game 5 – 6 p.m. -- St. Anthony (#1) vs. Winner of Game 1

Game 6 – 7:30 p.m. – Loser Game 2 vs. Loser Game 1

The Effingham Hearts and Teutopolis Wooden Shoes are two of eight teams that will compete in the 73rd Salem Invitational Basketball Tournament.

The tourney will be played Wednesday through Saturday, Jan. 22-25.

The other seven teams in the field include Champaign Central, Carbondale, Centralia, Charleston, Mt. Vernon and Salem.

The Hearts will face Centralia at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.

The Shoes will open play on Thursday, playing Charleston at 6 p.m.

Every team is guaranteed three games.

The final games will be played on Saturday, beginning at 3 p.m.

The Effingham Lady Hearts are the No. 1 seed next week in the Vandalia Invitational Tournament.

Other teams competing include Greenville, Salem, Vandalia, Wesclin, Mascoutah, Hillsboro and Mattoon.

The Lady Hearts will open play at 10 a.m. Monday. They will face No. 8 Greenville. Win or lose, they will play on Thursday, Jan. 23. If they win, they will play at 7:30 p.m. If they lose, they will play at 6 p.m.

The final games are scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 25.

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