The 8th annual Effingham-Teutopolis Christmas Classic should be a great one.
The field includes 16 quality teams that should provide plenty of competitive games over three days.
This year’s tournament will be played Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, Dec. 28-30. Games will be played in Effingham and Teutopolis.
The full schedule is listed below:
Tuesday, Dec. 28
At Teutopolis
Game 1 – 3 p.m. – Pleasant Plains vs. Lincoln-Way East
Game 5 – 4:30 p.m. – Champaign Centennial vs. St. Anthony
Game 3 – 6 p.m. – Newton vs. Charleston
Game 7 – 7:30 p.m. – Lutheran North vs. Teutopolis
At Effingham
Game 2 – 3 p.m. – Mattoon vs. Knoxville
Game 4 – 4:30 p.m. – Oak Lawn vs. Horizon SW
Game 6 – 6 p.m. – Chicago Brooks vs. Belvidere
Game 8 – 7:30 p.m. – Effingham vs. Dixon
Wednesday, Dec. 29
At Teutopolis
Game 9 – 9 a.m. – Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 3
Game 11 – 10:30 a.m. – Loser Game 5 vs. Loser Game 7
Game 13 – Noon – Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 3
Game 15 – 1:30 p.m. – Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 7
Game 17 – 4:30 p.m. – Winner Game 9 vs. Winner Game 11
Game 20 – 6 p.m. – Loser Game 13 vs. Loser Game 15
Game 23 – 7:30 p.m. – Winner Game 13 vs. Winner Game 15
At Effingham (Main Gym)
Game 10 – 9 a.m. – Loser Game 2 vs. Loser Game 4
Game 12 – 10:30 a.m. – Loser Game 6 vs. Loser Game 8
Game 14 – Noon p.m. – Winner Game 2 vs. Winner Game 4
Game 16 – 1:30 p.m. – Winner Game 6 vs. Winner Game 8
Game 18 – 4:30 p.m. – Winner Game 10 vs. Winner Game 12
Game 22 – 6 p.m. – Loser Game 14 vs. Loser Game 16
Game 24 – 7:30 p.m. – Winner Game 14 vs. Winner Game 16
At Effingham (Auxiliary Gym)
Game 19 – 4:30 p.m. – Loser Game 9 vs. Loser Game 11
Game 21 – 6 p.m. – Loser Game 10 vs. Loser Game 12
Thursday, Dec. 30
At Effingham (Auxiliary Gym)
Game 25 – 10 a.m. – Loser Game 19 vs. Loser Game 21 (15th place game)
At Effingham (Main Gym)
Game 27 – 10 a.m. – Winner Game 19 vs. Winner Game 21 (13th place game)
Game 26 – 11:30 a.m. – Loser Game 17 vs. Loser Game 18 (11th place game)
Game 28 – 1 p.m. – Loser Game 20 vs. Loser Game 22 (7th place game)
Game 29 – 3 p.m. – Winner Game 20 vs. Winner Game 22 (5th place game)
Game 30 – 4:30 p.m. – Winner Game 17 vs. Winner Game 18 (consolation championship game)
Game 31 – 6 p.m. – Loser Game 23 vs. Loser Game 24 (3rd place)
Game 32 – 7:30 p.m. – Winner Game 23 vs. Winner Game 24 (championship game)
The Effingham Lady Hearts and Teutopolis Lady Shoes will both be participating in the Charleston Holiday Tournament.
The tournament is scheduled for Monday through Wednesday, Dec. 27-29.
There are five teams entered in this year’s round robin event – Effingham, Teutopolis, Tri-County, Danville and Charleston.
Each team will play four games and all games will be played at Charleston High School.
The full schedule is listed below:
Monday, Dec. 27:
2 p.m. – Tri-County vs. Danville
4 p.m. – Charleston vs. Teutopolis
6 p.m. – Effingham vs. Danville
Tuesday, Dec. 28:
2 p.m. – Charleston vs. Tri-County
4 p.m. – Teutopolis vs. Danville
6 p.m. – Tri-County vs. Effingham
Wednesday, Dec. 29:
Noon – Teutopolis vs. Effingham
2 p.m. – Charleston vs. Danville
4 p.m. – Teutopolis vs. Tri-County
6 p.m. – Charleston vs. Effingham
Effingham girls basketball coach Jeff Schafer summed up Friday night’s game in Lincoln pretty simply.
“They played good and we didn’t.”
And it doesn’t hurt to have a standout player like Kloe Froebe.
The Lincoln sophomore pumped in 33 points, including 21 in the second half, helping the Lady Railsplitters pull away for a 57-29 victory at home over the Lady Hearts.
Effingham was in it for the first eight minutes. Froebe scored just three points and the Lady Hearts were within 13-9. But Lincoln went on a 19-2 scoring spree in the second period to build a 32-11 halftime lead and were never threatened.
Froebe knocked down three shots from behind the arc in the third quarter and the hosts maintained their 21-point cushion, 46-25.
Ella Niebrugge paced EHS with 11 points, while Meredith Schaefer added eight.
The Lady Hearts dipped to 9-3 overall and 2-3 in the Apollo Conference. Their next game will be in the Charleston Holiday Tournament. Effingham will play at 6 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 27, against Danville. The Lady Hearts will play four games in three days in the five-team round robin format.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
This is one that got away.
Effingham held a four-point lead late in the fourth quarter and a three-point edge in the final seconds of the first overtime.
But the combination of struggles against a zone press, untimely turnovers and some crucial missed free throws prevented the Hearts from snapping their losing streak.
Instead, Taylorville got a couple three-pointers to open the second overtime and made those stand up, finishing with a 53-46 win in Effingham.
“This is one I thought we’d get,” said EHS coach Obie Farmer. “But we had too many missed opportunities. We eliminate one turnover, one missed layup or one missed free throw and we win. You just can’t have those things, especially in a tight game – and this was as tight as it gets.”
With 2:44 to play in regulation, the Hearts had just completed an 11-0 run. Ethan Ritz had a three-pointer and a three-point play, Dalton Fox knocked down a three and Armando Estrada made two free throws to put EHS up 37-33 – their first lead of the game.
But that momentum quickly changed. Bryce Friedrich responded with a three-point play. Effingham then turned the ball over on consecutive possessions and the Tornadoes converted both into baskets by Will Turvey and Friedrich to take a 40-37 lead with only 11 seconds remaining.
Estrada was fouled three seconds later. He made the first free throw, missed the second, but Effingham regained control. Jett Volpi was then fouled with just six ticks remaining and calmly made both free throws to tie the game, 40-40, and send it into overtime.
In the first overtime period, Volpi made a free throw just 37 seconds in, but neither team scored again until the final seconds. The Hearts missed three free throws after that, but Fox made a pair of foul shots with eight seconds to go, which appeared to seal the win for the Hearts. But Taylorville’s Will Bitschenauer literally heaved in a three-pointer from the corner to force a second OT.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
Just 4½ minutes into the second half, three Effingham starters were saddled with three fouls and another had four.
On top of that, the team was not shooting well and trailed 23-21 to the host St. Anthony team.
No problem.
EHS coach Jeff Schafer put a freshman on the court and she went to work.
Twenty-nine seconds later, young Saige Althoff buried a three-pointer from the corner. It was just the first of her 13 points over the final 11 minutes of the game, sparking the Lady Hearts to a 49-34 victory over the Lady Bulldogs at The Enlow Center.
“They brought in that freshman and we had trouble guarding her,” St. Anthony coach Aaron Rios admitted. “She was the difference in the game.”
“Saige came in and made some huge shots for us,” Schafer added. “When she hit that three, I think our bench gave the loudest cheer. Saige is very athletic and can do a lot of things. Tonight, she just came in and played well. She was certainly the difference.”
Up to that point in the third period, the Lady Bulldogs had only trailed twice in the game for a total of 54 seconds.
St. Anthony actually tried to take control at the beginning. The Lady Hearts missed their first three shots, their first two free throws and turned the ball over three times. The Lady Bulldogs responded with two baskets from Lucy Fearday, three points from Abbi Hatton and a free throw by Grace Karolewicz to take an 8-0 lead four minutes into the game.
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