The Effingham Lady Hearts battled Olney all the way in the regular season finale Saturday afternoon, before dropping a 53-42 decision.

It was a close game throughout until the Lady Tigers went on a 23-11 scoring surge in the fourth period to come away with win and improve to 26-4 on the season.

The Lady Hearts held a slim one-point lead after each of the first three periods – 11-10 after the opening eight minutes, 22-21 at intermission and 31-30 heading into the fourth quarter.

Taylor Armstrong turned in a strong performance and scored 17 points for EHS. Annie Frost added eight.

The Lady Hearts, now 12-18, will open postseason play Monday in the Olney Class 3A Regional. They will face Mt. Vernon at 7:30 p.m. Charleston and Olney are the other two teams in the regional. The championship game is set for 7 p.m. Thursday.