After a close first quarter, the Effingham Lady Hearts gradually pulled away and posted a 49-31 victory at home Saturday afternoon over Mahomet-Seymour in an Apollo Conference contest.
The Lady Hearts held a slim 17-15 lead after the first eight minutes. But they increased the margin to 26-17 at halftime, and 33-23 after three quarters before outscoring the Lady Bulldogs 16-8 in the final period to secure the win.
After a disappointing performance the day before against Mattoon, EHS bounced back to get its first conference win of the season.
Bria Beals and Alyssa Martin led the Effingham scoring attack, finishing with 13 and 10 points respectively. Sidney Donaldson scored nine and Saige Althoff added eight.
The Lady Hearts improved to 8-2 overall and are now 1-2 in the Apollo. They will play another league game Monday, traveling to Charleston.
Mahomet-Seymour outscored Effingham 23-10 in the third quarter Friday night to build a sizeable lead, en route to a 59-37 road win.
The Bulldogs held an 18-10 advantage in a low-scoring first half. But the third quarter run expanded the lead to 41-20.
KJ Kellams and Nolan Fearday were in double figures for the Hearts, both scoring 11 points.
The Hearts are now 2-7 overall and 1-2 in the Apollo Conference. They will be back in action today (Saturday), traveling to Mt. Vernon.
Andrew Wetzel scored 12 points in the fourth quarter, helping Mattoon go on a 21-3 scoring spree and pull away from Effingham, finishing with a 71-46 victory at home in an Apollo Conference contest.
The Green Wave jumped out to a 21-11 lead after the first eight minutes, but the Hearts battled back. They trailed 32-29 at halftime and 50-43 heading into the fourth period.
But Wetzel knocked down a pair of three-pointers to help the hosts seize control down the stretch. He finished with a game-high 19 points, while teammate Bryce Jean added 17.
KJ Kellams led Effingham with 12 points and Hayden Wendling scored 10.
The Hearts are now 2-6 overall and 1-1 in conference play. They will face another Apollo Conference opponent Friday night when they travel to Mahomet-Seymour.
Too many early turnovers put the Effingham Lady Hearts in a deficit they were never able to recover from.
The Mattoon Green Wave led by as many as 16 points in the first half and then withstood a second half rally to post a 63-52 victory on Effingham’s home court in an Apollo Conference match-up Thursday night.
“We just broke down defensively and didn’t take care of the basketball,” EHS coach Jeff Schafer said. “We had too much individual play and we just let them push us around, especially in that first quarter. That set the tone for the whole game.”
Emily Maple hit back-to-back shots, Ella Conyers connected on a three-pointer and Teygen Sewell converted an EHS turnover into a short jumper, capping a 9-0 run that put Mattoon on top, 15-5, at the 1:48 mark of the opening period.
Three-pointers by Maple and Conyers extended the lead to 21-8 early in the second quarter. Yet another three by Conyers and a basket by Ava Larson after another turnover gave the Green Wave their largest lead of the contest, 28-12, with 2:47 to play in the first half.
It was a 14-point cushion, 31-17, at intermission.
“I don’t understand,” Schafer admitted. “Everything they did we worked on for three days in practice. Then we didn’t come out and execute. Defensively, we just weren’t very good.”
This one was over early.
The Effingham Lady Hearts raced to a 21-3 lead and were never threatened, rolling to a 62-14 victory Saturday over North Clay in Louisville.
Alyssa Martin pumped in 12 points in that opening quarter, helping EHS take control. It was 37-9 at halftime and 59-12 after three quarters.
Martin finished with a game-high 20 points, while Saige Althoff added 11.
The Lady Hearts, now 7-1, will return to action Thursday. They will host Mattoon in an Apollo Conference contest.
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