Published on January 28, 2026 9:12 am
Last Updated on January 28, 2026 9:13 am
BY MILLIE LANGE
It’s always a big rivalry when the Effingham and Teutopolis girls basketball teams meet and last night was no exception.
The Hearts, ranked No. 6 in last week’s Class 2A AP poll, trailed Teutopolis 18-9 at the end of the opening quarter. The Wooden Shoes were ranked No. 4 in the 2A poll.
The Hearts led 9-4 after four possessions on threes from Tessa Raddatz, Averie Wolfe and a traditional three-point play from Alyssa Martin.
But T-town proceeded to go on a 19-0 run that went from 5:43 remaining in the first quarter until 3:57 left before halftime. Kelsey Niemerg scored seven points in the opening quarter while Allie Ruholl tallied three baskets, also in the opening quarter for six. Anna Probst hit a three and Sophia Martin scored five in the second period.
Alyssa Martin’s one for two trip to the line at 3:57 was the beginning of Effingham’s own 11-0 run. T-town scored just one more bucket in the quarter as Jersey Gaddis hit a layup in the final minute and the Shoes led 25-20 at halftime.
Then in the third quarter, Effingham came back as A. Martin connected on two baskets and Wolfe hit a three and two free throws for an 11-9 run but T-town still held a 34-31 lead going into the final period as S. Martin scored on a three and Niemerg and A. Ruholl were two-of-two at the line.
Effingham then had an 8-5 final quarter run as A. Martin scored five points and McKenzie Love three and the Hearts knotted the score at 39-39, sending the contest into overtime.
In the overtime period, Raddatz, who hadn’t scored in the second half, put in four free throws while Wolfe hit two free throws, Martin a basket and Weis a fre throw as the Hearts had a 10-3 run to claim the 49-43 victory.
Martin finished with 17 points on six field goals and five free throws while Wolfe added 12 and Raddatz 10.
T-town was led by Niemerg with four field goals, one a three-pointer, and two free throws for 11 while A. Ruholl hit three field goals and five of six at the line, also for 11. Malea Helmink pulled down a whopping 20 rebounds. Kelsey Niemerg had two steals.
The Shoes are in the middle of a three-game losing streak but competed in the always tough Highland Tournament last week.
It was a matchup of 500-win coaches as Jeff Schafer is now at 511-145 (.779) while Laurie Thompson is at 544-274 (.718).
At Effingham
Overtime
TEUTOPOLIS (43)
J. Gaddis 3-0 — 6, Helmink 2-0 — 4, Martin 3-0 — 8, Niemerg 4-2 — 11, An. Probst 1-0 — 3, Ruholl 3-5 — 11, Tegeler 0-0 — 0, Will 0-0 — 0. TOTALS 16 FG, 7 FT.
EFFINGHAM (49)
Engel 0-0 — 0, Martin 6-5 — 17, Raddatz 2-5 — 10, Wolfe 3-4 — 12, Hayes 0-2 — 2, Weis 1-3 — 5, Love 1-1 — 3. TOTALS 13 FG, 20 FT.
Teutopolis 18 7 9 5 4 — 43
Effingham 9 11 11 8 10 — 49
3-point FG — Teutopolis 4 (Martin 2, Niemerg 1, An. Probst 1), Effingham 3 (Wolfe 2, Raddatz 1).