The Effingham Lady Hearts turned in a strong performance Thursday, but still fell at Mattoon, 56-48, in an Apollo Conference contest.

The Lady Green Wave got 32 points from their standout, Mallory Ramage, and stayed atop the conference standings. But the win didn’t come easily.

The Lady Hearts kept the game close throughout. And midway through the fourth quarter, they had the ball with a chance to tie the game. But Ramage hit a three-pointer and went 6-for-6 from the foul line down the stretch to help Mattoon secure the win and improve to 8-1 in league play and 22-2 overall.

The Lady Green Wave led all the way. They were on top 13-9 after the first eight minutes, 26-22 at halftime and 40-34 after three periods.

Meredith Schaefer knocked down five shots from behind the arc and finished with 18 points to lead Effingham in scoring. Sawyer Althoff scored seven and Coralin Ohnesorge added six.

Effingham dipped to 16-8 on the season and also fell to 3-5 in the Apollo Conference. The Lady Hearts will be back in action tonight (Friday) at home against Teutopolis and will then travel to Mahomet-Seymour on Saturday.