By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

Free throw shooting.

How many games are won or lost down the stretch due to the ability or inability to make a foul shot?

Pana can chalk one up in the win column thanks to its ability at the charity stripe.

The Lady Panthers made 16-of-19 free throws in the fourth period Tuesday night, including eight straight in the final 90 seconds, to help them secure a 59-52 victory over Teutopolis in a semifinal game of the Class 2A Pana Sectional.

Pana, now 27-5, will face Paris for the sectional championship. That game is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday.

The host Lady Panthers scored the final seven points of the third period, including a three-pointer by Aryn Alde at the buzzer, to take a double-digit, 39-27 lead, into the final eight minutes.

But the Lady Shoes made a nice comeback. Behind Kaylee Niebrugge, they cut into that margin quickly. Emily Konkel converted a turnover into a basket, Niebrugge then scored seven straight points and Chloe Prost knocked down a free throw to cap a 10-1 run and get T-Town to within 40-37 at the 5:02 mark.

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The Teutopolis Wooden Shoes closed out their regular season in impressive fashion Thursday night, posting a 53-23 victory at home over Olney on Senior Night.

The Shoes jumped out to a 13-2 lead after the opening eight minutes and were never threatened. By halftime, THS was up 31-9 and increased that to 47-14 after three quarters.

James Niebrugge led T-Town with a game-high 20 points, while Brendan Niebrugge added 16. Caleb Siemer had a solid all-around game, finishing with 8 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists.

THS improved to 23-7 on the season. They will now enter the postseason as the No. 1 seed in the Teutopolis Regional. The Shoes will play Wednesday against either Paris or Shelbyville. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

There were two big questions going into Thursday night’s game.

How would the Teutopolis Lady Shoes do against Mt. Carmel’s size? The Lady Aces were the tallest team T-Town played all season.

And would Emily Konkel be able to play? The Lady Shoes lost their final two regular season games with Konkel out of the lineup nursing a foot injury.

Both questions were answered emphatically.

T-Town’s defensive effort put the clamps on Mt. Carmel’s inside game.

And Konkel played virtually the entire contest, showed no effects of the injury and played effectively.

The result?

A 13^th straight regional title for the Lady Shoes program.

That was solidified with the convincing 45-25 victory in the championship game of the Class 2A Carmi Regional.

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James Niebrugge and Caleb Siemer both scored 19 points Tuesday night, helping the Teutopolis Wooden Shoes notch a 61-45 victory at Mattoon.

The first half was a close one. The Shoes had a 14-10 lead after the opening eight minutes but held a slim 23-21 advantage at halftime.

In the third quarter, Siemer scored eight points and both James Niebrugge and Brendan Niebrugge added five, as the Shoes went on a 20-12 run to open a double-digit lead, 43-33. T-Town then outscored the Green Wave 18-12 in the final period to secure the win.

Brendan Niebrugge was also in double figures, finishing with 13 points.

THS improved to 22-7 on the season. They will play their regular season finale at home Thursday night against Olney. It will be Senior Night for the Wooden Shoes.