By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
Pleasant Plains scored the first 10 points in the overtime period Friday night to post a hard-fought 52-43 victory over St. Anthony in the third place game of the Effingham-Teutopolis Christmas Classic.
The Bulldogs only lead of the game came at 2-0. They had difficulty getting and then making shots in the first half and trailed by as many as 12 points.
But behind the hot shooting of Collin Westendorf in the third quarter, the Bulldogs came charging back. St. Anthony’s junior guard knocked down a trio of shots from behind the arc and scored 12 points to ignite the rally.
The Cardinals were up 24-16 when Westendorf first completed a three-point play and then drained a three. After a Pleasant Plains turnover, Brock Fearday converted that into a basket and the game was tied, 24-24. Pleasant Plains scored the next five points, but Westendorf knocked down another shot from long range to get the Bulldogs within 29-27 heading into the final eight minutes.
“We just needed to see the ball go in and Collin got us started,” St. Anthony coach Cody Rincker said. “At halftime, we discussed that we needed more heart. Our game plan wasn’t working, so we tried to pressure them and get more energy. We needed to get back into the game and that helped.”
Twice Pleasant Plains had four-point leads in the fourth period. Adam Rudibaugh hit a three and Ryan Schmidt made a free throw to tie the game at 31-31. After the Cardinals stretched the lead to four again, Max Koenig hit a pair of short jumpers, the final one at the 2:09 mark, to knot the game at 37-37.
Neither team scored in the final two minutes, although the Bulldogs had a good look on the final shot. Griffin Sehy had an open three-pointer from the top of the key at the buzzer, but it was off the mark.
Lucy Fearday poured in 28 points Thursday afternoon, helping the St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs to a 69-56 victory over Richland County (Olney) in the consolation championship game of the Mattoon Holiday Tournament.
Anna Faber scored eight points and Stacie Vonderheide added five more, as St. Anthony jumped out to a 19-10 lead after the opening eight minutes. The Lady Bulldogs stretched that to 38-21 at halftime and it stayed a double-digit margin the rest of the way. Fearday pumped in 19 of her points in the second half.
In addition to Fearday, three other St. Anthony players reached double figures. Vonderheide and Faber both scored 13 points and Nancy Ruholl added 11.
Fearday was named to the all-tournament team.
St. Anthony finished tourney play 3-2 and is now 14-4 on the season. The Lady Bulldogs will return to action Thursday, Jan. 5, with a game at Shelbyville.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
Max Koenig returned to the starting lineup because his defensive play has improved.
But in crunch time Wednesday, it was his offense that made the difference.
Koenig hit the shot of the game, a three-pointer from the wing, with just 31 seconds to play that put St. Anthony on top to stay. The junior guard then hit a pair of pressure-packed free throws eight seconds later that provided some breathing room.
When the final horn sounded, the Bulldogs had posted a 55-49 victory over Lutheran North in an opening-round game of the Effingham-Teutopolis Christmas Classic, played at J.H. Griffin Gymnasium in T-Town.
“It’s never been about Max’s offense,” St. Anthony coach Cody Rincker said. “He has to play good defense and guard. His ability to guard and stay out of foul trouble has improved. That’s why he was back in the starting lineup. But he did knock down a big shot for us.”
The Bulldogs trailed the Crusaders for much of the game. Back-to-back buckets by Griffin Sehy and Koenig gave SAHS a 39-37 lead 2½ minutes into the final quarter. But a three by Bryce Spiller put Lutheran North, a school from St. Louis with an enrollment of 360, back on top.
By Steve Raymond
ET Sports Report
For the second game in a row, when it got to crunch time, the St. Anthony Bulldogs responded in a big way.
On Wednesday, St. Anthony scored seven points in the final 31 seconds to rally for a 55-49 victory over Lutheran North.
On Thursday afternoon, the Bulldogs closed the game on a 13-2 run over the final six minutes to post a 54-44 win over Oak Lawn and earn a berth in the semifinals of the Effingham-Teutopolis Christmas Classic.
That semifinal should be a quite game. Arch rivals – St. Anthony and T-Town – will square off at 6:30 p.m. later today (Thursday) at J.H. Griffin Gymnasium in Teutopolis.
With 6:03 left in the game, SAHS trailed 42-41. But Griffin Sehy responded with a jumper in the lane just eight seconds later to ignite a 13-0 run and give the Bulldogs a lead they never relinquished.
Collin Westendorf and Max Koenig had buckets and Sehy, Westendorf and Brock Fearday went 7-for-8 at the foul line down the stretch as St. Anthony first expanded the lead and then secured the victory.
“This team has a good sense of game and time,” St. Anthony coach Cody Rincker said. “They know when to cut to the ball and get to the basket. Plus, we work a ton on rebounding and free throws and both of those things have really paid off the last two games.”
About 90 seconds before the end of the first half, it looked like the Bulldogs might pull away for an easy win. They hit six shots in a row and scored 13 unanswered points to start the second period. Westendorf had seven points during the run, including a three-pointer, and Ryan Schmidt hit a short jumper to make it 21-8.
For the second day in a row, the St. Anthony Lady Bulldogs played a pair of games at the Mattoon Holiday Tournament.
And for the second day in a row, they split the two games.
St. Anthony dropped a 65-38 decision to Galesburg Wednesday morning, but then bounced back to defeat Altamont 61-29.
The Lady Bulldogs will play for fifth place at 4:30 p.m. Thursday.
In the first game, Galesburg opened a 17-10 lead after the first period, but then built on that throughout. They led 29-16 at halftime and 45-25 after three quarters.
Lucy Fearday led SAHS with 14 points.
In the second contest, St. Anthony raced to a 24-7 lead and never looked back, rolling to the 32-point victory over Altamont. It was 44-19 at intermission.
Fearday led three players in double figures with 23 points. Nancy Ruholl scored 14 points and Stacie Vonderheide added 13.
St. Anthony is now 13-4 on the season.
Page 33 of 72
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