Basketball

Luke Bonstetter made a strong drive to the bucket and scored with four seconds to play, giving the Charleston Trojans a come-from-behind 57-56 win Tuesday night at Effingham.

Jude Traub turned in a three-point play just 12 seconds earlier that put the Hearts up by one, 56-55. After Bonstetter’s bucket, Effingham did get off a three-point shot at the buzzer, but it was off the mark.

This was a close game throughout.

The Hearts were on top, 16-13, after the opening eight minutes. But Bonstetter and Burk Anderson both scored seven points in the second quarter, helping the Trojans take a 27-24 advantage to the locker room at halftime.

Freshman Jenner Pals connected on three shots from behind the arc in the third period, sparking EHS to a 19-11 scoring surge. Heading into the final period, the hosts led, 43-38.

Bonstetter then scored six points, including the game-winner, to help Charleston rally down the stretch, outscoring the Hearts 19-13 to get the victory.

Bonstetter finished with a game-high 21 points for the Trojans.

The Hearts had three players in double figures. Traub led the way with 14 points, while Pals scored 12 and Jake Niebrugge added 10.

Effingham dipped to 2-7 in the Apollo Conference and is now 6-22 overall. They will return to action Saturday at the Wooden Shoes Shootout in Teutopolis. The Hearts will play Sullivan at 2 p.m.

The Mahomet-Seymour Bulldogs jumped out to a quick lead and went on to defeat the Effingham Hearts, 73-37, at home Saturday.

The Bulldogs built an 18-9 lead after the first eight minutes. They increased it to 34-15 at halftime and 56-28 heading into the final quarter.

Freshman Jenner Pals led the EHS scoring attack with 14 points.

The Hearts are now 2-6 in the Apollo Conference and 6-21 for the season. They will return home Tuesday for another league game against Charleston.

The Effingham Lady Hearts placed five players in double figures Tuesday night, en route to an easy 70-17 win at Charleston.

Effingham built an 18-7 lead after the opening eight minutes and then put the game out of reach by outscoring the Lady Trojans 25-0 in the second period to take a 43-7 advantage to the locker room at intermission.

Averie Wolfe scored 12 points, while Alyssa Martin, Tessa Raddatz, Sidney Donaldson and Bella Austin each had 10.

The victory keeps the Lady Hearts’ conference title hopes alive. They are now 7-2, while Mahomet-Seymour stands at 8-1. The Lady Bulldogs play at Taylorville on Friday night. If Mahomet-Seymour wins, they will clinch the Apollo Conference.

If they lose, the Lady Hearts will have a chance to share the league championship if they can beat Mt. Zion on Thursday, Feb. 13. That game will be played at Effingham High School.

The Lady Hearts are now 21-7 overall. They will return to action next Wednesday at Olney.

The Mattoon Green Wave outscored Effingham 33-14 in the middle two quarters Thursday night, en route to a 57-40 Apollo Conference victory at home.

Mattoon held a slim 15-14 lead after the opening eight minutes, but began to expand it after that. It was 35-21 at halftime and 48-28 heading into the fourth period.

Lincoln Hayes led the Green Wave with 18 points, while Jayvien Middleton added 11.

Freshman Jenner Pals was the only player to reach double figures, finishing with 12. Cole Phillips scored six.

The Hearts have now dropped nine games in a row and stand at 6-20 for the season. They will be on the road again Saturday, traveling to Mahomet-Seymour.

The Olney Tigers used a big third quarter to build a double-digit lead, en route to a 52-32 win at home over Effingham.

The Hearts kept within striking distance in the first half. They trailed 11-5 after the first period and 21-13 at intermission.

Arjay Keller, Rex Hallam and Casey Thomann then combined to score 14 points for Olney in the third quarter, sparking a 16-4 run that expanded the gap to 20 points, 37-17.

All three of those players scored in double figures. Hallam led the way with 17 points, while Thomann had 15 and Keller added 13 for the Tigers, who improved to 14-9.

KJ Kellams led Effingham with nine points and Cannon Bockhorn added seven.

The Hearts have now dropped eight games in a row and stand at 6-19 for the season. They will play an Apollo Conference contest Thursday night at Mattoon.