The Teutopolis Wooden Shoes turned in a solid road effort Friday night and came home with a 54-41 victory over Breese Central.

The game was tied 10-10 after the first quarter, but the Shoes then outscored the Cougars 14-4 in the second period to build a 24-14 halftime lead. They followed that with a 12-5 scoring edge in the third quarter to expand their lead to 36-19 heading into the final eight minutes.

Breese Central scored 22 points in the final period, but Mitch Hardiek, Luke Ungrund and Evan Wermert combined for 13 points in the fourth quarter to help the Shoes maintain their lead.

Hardiek finished with 13, while Wermert scored 11. Wermert also had eight rebounds, while Ungrund had five steals and 4 assists.

“Our defense was tremendous for 3½ quarters,” said THS coach Chet Reeder. “We came down to a hostile atmosphere and played great team basketball. Our rebounding and finishing needs to be get better, but I’m proud of our guys tonight.”

The Shoes improved to 4-1. They will travel to Paris on Tuesday and then celebrate their home opener Friday. It will be Homecoming at THS and the Shoes will host Bloomington Central Catholic.

The Teutopolis Lady Shoes used a 20-8 scoring spree in the third quarter to break the game open, en route to a 52-36 victory over Centralia Saturday afternoon on the final day of the 19th annual Lady Wildcat Thanksgiving Tournament in Salem.

Still playing shorthand, with at least three girls out due to injury, the Lady Shoes built a 23-13 halftime lead. Olivia Niemerg then scored nine of her game-high 20 points in the third period, helping THS expand the gap to 43-21 heading into the final eight minutes.

Niemerg was the only Lady Shoe in double figures, but Karsyn Mette and Izzy Hardiek both scored eight. Mette led the team with five rebounds and Niemerg came up with four steals.

T-Town went 3-1 in the tourney and is now 4-1 on the young season. The Lady Shoes will return to action tonight (Monday) at home against Sullivan.

Welcome back Lexie Niebrugge.

T-Town’s leading scorer, who has been sidelined with a leg injury since the season opened, returned to the lineup Monday night and made her presence felt immediately.

She hit a 3-pointer and scored seven first-quarter points, helping the Lady Shoes grab an early double-digit lead, en route to a 68-37 decision at home over Sullivan.

Niebrugge, who made 4-of-6 from behind the arc, led THS with 17 points. Hope Bueker, who has also been out due to an injury, saw action, as well, and contributed four points to the win.

The Lady Shoes built a 19-9 lead after eight minutes and then expanded it to 29-19 at intermission. THS then went on a 21-10 scoring spree in the third quarter to build the margin to 50-29.

T-Town had three players in double figures. Olivia Niemerg scored 14 points and Ciara Roepke added 10. Niemerg led the team with five steals and Kaitlyn Schumacher pulled down a game-high nine rebounds.

The Lady Shoes improved to 5-1 on the season. They will play Monday at Pana.

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

They say practice makes perfect.

And Jordan Hardiek proved it Friday night.

T-Town’s junior guard put on quite a shooting display, pumping in 30 points to lead the Wooden Shoes to a whopping 82-44 victory over Mattoon.

But THS coach Chet Reeder was not surprised.

“Jordan made 11,000 shots this summer,” Reeder noted. “Tonight showed you what that did for him. I hope the kids in the stands noticed that. To be a good shooter or a good player, you have to put in the time and work.

“Going into this season, I told Jordan if he was open and had his feet set to shoot it and keep shooting it,” Reeder added. “That’s the confidence I have in him.”

Jordan Hardiek did exactly that. He shot it and then he kept shooting it. And he shot it very well.

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