After a close first quarter, the Effingham Lady Hearts gradually pulled away and posted a 49-31 victory at home Saturday afternoon over Mahomet-Seymour in an Apollo Conference contest.

The Lady Hearts held a slim 17-15 lead after the first eight minutes. But they increased the margin to 26-17 at halftime, and 33-23 after three quarters before outscoring the Lady Bulldogs 16-8 in the final period to secure the win.

After a disappointing performance the day before against Mattoon, EHS bounced back to get its first conference win of the season.

Bria Beals and Alyssa Martin led the Effingham scoring attack, finishing with 13 and 10 points respectively. Sidney Donaldson scored nine and Saige Althoff added eight.

The Lady Hearts improved to 8-2 overall and are now 1-2 in the Apollo. They will play another league game Monday, traveling to Charleston.