Basketball

The Effingham Lady Hearts used a 29-12 scoring surge in the middle two quarters Tuesday night to pull away for a 51-26 win at Newton.

EHS held a 12-6 lead after the opening period, but then built leads of 22-9 at halftime and 41-18 at the end of the third quarter.

Averie Wolfe connected on four shots from behind the arc and scored 14 points to lead the Lady Hearts in scoring. Olivia Moser was also in double figures with 10 points.

Effingham improved to 15-3 on the season. The Lady Hearts will return to action Saturday at home. They will host Mt. Zion in an Apollo Conference contest.

Belvidere jumped out to a double-digit lead Saturday morning and went on to defeat Effingham, 59-46, in the tournament finale for both teams.

Belvidere finished 1-3, while the Hearts were 0-4 during the three days of the Effingham-Teutopolis Christmas Classic.

The Bucs built a 20-7 lead after the opening eight minutes. It was 30-16 at halftime and 46-26 heading into the fourth quarter.

Jason Dean led Belvidere with 13 points, while Demetrious Taborn added 11.

Effingham’s Nolan Fearday had game-high scoring honors with 14 points and Hayden Wendling chipped in with 12.

The Hearts are now 2-14 on the season. They will return to action on January 2 with a home game against Olney.

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

The Mattoon Green Wave used a 2½-minute stretch to take control of the game.

Mattoon and Effingham battled for almost three full quarters. But a rebound basket in the closing seconds of the third period ignited a decisive 9-0 run that allowed the Green Wave to open a 17-point lead.

The Hearts continued to battle, but dropped a 66-53 decision Saturday morning in the Effingham-Teutopolis Christmas Classic.

“Until we play four quarters, we’re going to have a difficult time putting a notch in the win column,” EHS coach Obie Farmer said. “The kids are doing a lot of things right. We have to fill in the cracks and fix some things. But I thought we played pretty well for three quarters.”

After a three-pointer by Effingham’s KJ Kellams, the Hearts were within four points, 31-27, three minutes into the second half. The Green Wave expanded the lead to 41-28 before Hayden Wendling scored seven straight points to get EHS back to within 41-35.

After a three-pointer by Wade Bushur, it was an eight-point spread. But Mattoon’s Bryce Jean got a bucket after grabbing a rebound to close out the third quarter.

Then, in the first two minutes of the final period, Cole Larson scored five points and Colton Smith added a short jumper to give the Green Wave a much more comfortable 55-38 advantage at the 5:54 mark.

The Hearts managed to get within 13 points on three occasions, but were unable to get any closer.

Mattoon knocked down three shots from behind the arc in the first four minutes of the game and jumped out to an 11-2 lead. But Wendling scored four points and Cannon Bockhorn drilled a three-pointer, helping Effingham get within 16-11 after the first eight minutes.

The Green Wave led 20-14 early in the second period, before another three by Bockhorn started an 8-2 surge that helped the Hearts tie the game, 22-22. But Mattoon scored the final four points to take a 26-22 advantage to the locker room at halftime.

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

The Effingham Lady Hearts saved their best for last.

After what coach Jeff Schafer described as three “so-so” performances, the Lady Hearts turned in a near-flawless first half performance Friday night, built a sizeable lead and rolled to a 59-34 victory over Mattoon in the championship game of the Coles County Holiday Tournament.

Within three minutes to the opening tip, EHS was in control of the game.

Sidney Donaldson sparked the 22-5 run with a three-pointer from the wing. She added a free and another shot from long range, plus Averie Wolfe, after being fouled on a three-point attempt, made all three free throws, giving Effingham a 14-6 lead midway through the first period.

After a Mattoon free throw, Alyssa Martin hit back-to-back jumpers Olivia Moser grabbed an offensive rebound and scored and Bria Beals knocked down a three to make it 23-7.

Bella Masse and Kameron Lathrop both scored for the Lady Green Wave, but Beals drilled a three at the buzzer, giving the Lady Hearts a 26-11 advantage after the first eight minutes.

“We got off to a great start,” Schafer admitted. “I think we were focused and ready to compete. During our pre-game talk, we discussed competing. Mattoon plays with a little chip and likes to compete. I didn’t think we competed very well the first time we played them this year (a 63-52 loss early in December).

“We moved the ball, got everybody involved, got good shots and knocked them down,” Schafer added. “And we had different people making those shots. We were patient, made good decisions and made the right plays.”

The Lady Hearts didn’t let up in the second quarter. Baskets by Bella Austin and Donaldson made it a 20-point spread, 33-13. Saige Althoff and Beals scored on back-to-back possessions to make it a 21-point lead before Mattoon’s Ava Larson scored in the final seconds to make it a 39-20 score at halftime.

“That’s one of the best halves of basketball we’ve played this year,” Schafer said.