It wasn’t pretty.
But as Obie Farmer says, “An ugly win is better than a pretty loss.”
Ugly or not, Effingham returned home Thursday night with a 60-57 road victory over Taylorville in the Apollo Conference opener for both teams.
Garrett Wolfe hit a pair of free throws to put the Hearts ahead by five with just 10 seconds to play. The Tornados got a late basket, but the clock then ran out to secure the EHS win.
The game was close throughout. It was 13-13 after the first period and the Hearts had a slim 31-28 advantage at halftime. It was just a one-point EHS lead, 40-39, heading into the final eight minutes.
Effingham led by as many as six in the final period, but three-pointers by Will Turvey and Drake Howard got Taylorville close. Wolfe scored seven points in the fourth quarter and Logan Heil added six to help the Hearts stay on top.
Wolfe scored 11 of team’s first 13 points in the game and had 17 by intermission. He finished with a game-high 24. Heil scored 15, with 13 of those coming in the second half, and Andrew Donaldson added 10.
“We didn’t play well at all. It certainly wasn’t a clean game,” Farmer said. “We made a lot of mistakes and did just enough to a win. I’m looking forward to fixing a lot of those mistakes and growing from this game.”
Effingham, now 2-3, will play Mascoutah Saturday at the Marion Shootout. The game is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
Ella Niebrugge and Bria Beals combined to score 33 points Tuesday night, helping the Effingham Lady Hearts open Apollo Conference play in impressive style, posting a 54-45 victory at Taylorville.
The Lady Tornados led the entire first half. They opened a 15-7 lead in the second period, but Beals then connected on back-to-back threes to get EHS within one. Taylorville then scored the final four points to take a 26-21 lead at intermission.
“It was just an incredible effort,” EHS coach Jeff Schafer said. “The first half was a real struggle. We turned the ball over 15 times, and most of the time, for no reason.”
Niebrugge then went to work in the third quarter. She knocked down a three, added another jumper and scored seven points. Beals scored five points and freshman Averie Wolfe trained a shot from behind the arc late in the quarter to send the Lady Hearts into the final eight minutes with a 38-35 advantage.
In the fourth period, Niebrugge scored six, including 4-for-4 from the foul line, and Beals added another shot from long range. EHS made 9-of-11 foul shots down the stretch to secure the win.
Niebrugge finished with 17 points, Beal scored 16 and Madison Mapes added eight.
“This was a great win for us,” EHS coach Jeff Schafer said. “Taylorville was picked second in the preseason Apollo poll by the coaches, so this was a really good start for us. The Apollo is so good this year, it’s going to be a great test every night out.”
The Lady Hearts are now 4-1 overall and 1-0 in the league. They will have two home games this week – Thursday against Mt. Vernon and Saturday against North Clay.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
Everybody in the gym figured Grace Nelson would take the shot.
The Effingham Lady Hearts were bound and determined not to let that happen.
The Lady Hearts defense was successful in stopping Nelson, but that left someone else open.
That someone was Claire Boehm and the junior guard knocked down a 12-foot jumper with just 17 seconds to play, which proved to be the game-winner.
The Lady Hearts got off a last-second shot, but it was off the mark, clinching the 53-51 victory for the Altamont Lady Indians in the championship game of the Bob Kerans Thanksgiving Tournament in Newton.
“On that last possession, we went to a box-and-1,” EHS coach Jeff Schafer explained. “We wanted to make sure that someone other that Nelson made the shot. We didn’t rotate defensively like we needed to,but hats off to her (Boehm). She made it.”
No wonder Schafer wanted to keep the ball out of Nelson’s hands at the end. Altamont’s standout junior – just one game after setting the school’s all-time scoring record – chalked up 36 points against EHS.
“She is good; real good,” Schafer said. “We wanted to force her to take tough shots, but she made a lot of them.”
Garrett Wolfe poured in 32 points Saturday afternoon, helping the Effingham Hearts notch their first win of the season, a 75-59 decision over Mattoon.
It earned Effingham a seventh place finish in the St. Anthony Thanksgiving Tournament.
Andrew Splechter scored nine points, and Logan Heil and Wolfe both added six, as the Hearts built a 21-12 lead after the opening eight minutes. Andrew Donaldson knocked down a pair of three-pointers in the second quarter and Heil added six more points, and EHS took a 37-27 advantage at halftime.
Wolfe connected on three shots from behind the arc in the third period and the Hearts went on a 19-11 surge to increase the margin to 56-38. Wolfe then netted 13 more points in the final quarter, helping EHS maintain a comfortable lead to the end.
Splechter finished with 17 points and Heil added 14 in the win.
Effingham, now 1-3, will play two games this week – Thursday at Taylorville in the Apollo Conference opener; and Saturday at the Marion Shootout. They will play Mascoutah at 3:30 p.m.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
It took just one game for Obie Farmer to realize changes needed to be made.
Effingham’s season-opening performance – a 58-32 loss to Breese Central -- was, quite honestly, brutal.
Game 2 resulted in another setback, but the Hearts played with more energy and a lot more pace, and scored twice as many points.
Robinson used an impressive 6½-minute spurt in the second half to pull away for an 81-66 victory Wednesday night at the St. Anthony Thanksgiving Tournament.
But coaches, players and fans had to come away much more encouraged and optimistic about the season ahead.
“It was back to the drawing board after that first game,” Farmer admitted. “Part of being a coach is finding what works best for the kids. We didn’t feel comfortable with how we played Tuesday night. We tried to slow it down and I should have known better.
“After that first game, I was at a bit of a loss,” Farmer added. “It helped a lot to meet with the coaching staff and the team. We talked things out. The kids need to have input, too. As a coach, sometimes we have to adjust. I think the changes we made worked. I feel we’re moving in the right direction now.”
Effingham’s up-tempo approach against Robinson was in direct contrast to the game just 24 hours earlier. The Hearts came out in much more of an attack mode at both ends of the floor.
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