“We had just taken four crappy shots in a row,” Schafer said. “I knew we could get better shots than that. We have been working on getting the ball inside and then passing it back out to one of our shooters.”

Which is exactly what they did on their next possession. Bria Beals then broke the string of missed shots with a three-pointer that proved to be the spark the EHS squad needed.

The Lady Hearts made their next four shots – two by Sydney Donaldson and one each by Alyssa Martin and Saige Althoff – to outscore Taylorville 11-2 over the final two minutes and take a 32-23 advantage into the final quarter.

“We were too passive to start the third quarter,” Schafer noted. “But after that timeout, we started executing our offense much better. That two-minute stretch gave us a cushion again. It was all us after that.”

A bucket by Kyleigh Heimsness got Taylorville to within 36-29 with 5:29 to play, but Effingham responded with an 8-0 spurt that put the game out reach. Althoff started the run with a pair of free throws, Martin hit back-to-back jumpers and Averie Wolfe added two foul shots to provide the largest lead of the game, 44-29.

The Lady Hearts only trailed for 69 seconds in the contest after Taylorville scored the opening basket. They were up 9-4 after the first eight minutes. It was still a five-point spread midway through the second quarter when Beals hit a three. Another three-pointer, this time by Althoff, followed by a short jumper from Althoff, gave EHS an 11-point edge, 21-10.

Taylorville was playing without its top player, Addison Tarr, who is out with an injury. Tarr, who has already committed to playing at Southeast Missouri State, averages about 15 points a game. But the Lady Tornadoes still put a talented – and tall – team on the floor. That included 6’4” senior Mazie Fleming. They have other starters that are 5’10”.

Bella Austin was given the major responsibility of guarding Fleming. At times, Donaldson and Mya Harvey also defended her. Fleming did have six rebounds and four blocked shots, but was limited to just four points.

“I thought our defense was wonderful,” Schafer said. “Bella, Sydney and Mya contained No. 32 (Fleming) the whole game. We wanted to control the tempo and put pressure on them without fouling. We hoped to wear them down and I thought we definitely did that.”

Both teams played well defensively, and as a result, neither team shot the ball very well. The Lady Hearts made 15-of-45 shots overall, a 33 percent clip, while Taylorville shot 36 percent, making 15-of-42 attempts. The Lady Tornadoes made just 1-of-8 shots from long range and Effingham was 3-for-16 from behind the arc.

The Lady Hearts had three players in double figures. Althoff led the way with 11 points, while Donaldson scored 10 and Martin had a double-double, finishing with 10 points and 11 rebounds.

“I thought we executed tonight when we needed to execute,” Schafer said. “We need to be more consistent, especially on offense, but I was proud of the way the girls fought.

“This was a huge game,” Schafer added. “We’re the two favorites to win the conference. You have to win on your home court. Now we control our own destiny.”

The Lady Hearts improved to 6-0 on the season and are now 1-0 in the Apollo Conference. They will play at home again Thursday night and face a tough Mt. Vernon squad.