SALEM, ILL. • Mater Dei's foul trouble played right into the hands of Effingham senior guard Carsyn Fearday on Thursday.
With Shannon Lampe, Claire Tonnies and Sally Albers shackled by fouls, the Knights employed a zone defense that helped Fearday score 18 of her 20 points in the second half of Effingham's 42-40 victory in the title game of the Class 3A Salem Sectional.
The 5-foot-7 Fearday also had nine rebounds and was 10-for-10 from the free-throw line as the Flaming Hearts (27-6) overcame a one-point second quarter that led to a 20-11 halftime deficit.
"I definitely struggled in the first half," Fearday said. "But they switched to a zone in the second half and my teammates found me in the low block. A lot of teams this year have played us zone, so I think we were definitely comfortable in our offense, cutting through the zone. They did a good job finding me."
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Fearday said she grew up playing basketball on her driveway, and it showed as she cut and weaved through the openings in the Knights' zone. After going 0-for-7 from the field in the first half, Fearday was 5-for-7 in the second half.
"She did a good job," said Mater Dei coach Dave Kohnen, whose team finished 23-8. "We had some kids in foul trouble and we had to adjust. We knew they were going to come out hard in the second half because they have nine seniors. They were going to leave it all on the line, and I think we did, too."
Kohnen said Fearday "started filtering into the middle of that zone."
"We had to go to the zone because we were in foul trouble," he said. "Otherwise, they would just keep coming at us and we would foul out. To me, it was a great high-school basketball game."
It's the Flaming Hearts' second consecutive sectional crown under coach Jeff Schafer. Effingham will meet Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin in the Springfield Super-Sectional at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the University of Illinois-Springfield.
Schafer said his players were on eggshells at halftime.
"I saw them at halftime and I just said, 'By your eyes, we might as well not even go back out there. Unless you guys are going to believe that we're going to come back and win this basketball game, there's no need to go back out there,'" Schafer said.
"It was probably the best halftime speech I ever gave. No cussing. I just looked them in the eyes and told them how much I loved them. It was their destiny. They had to come out and do it against a great basketball team, and they did."
Senior Abby Weis had 15 points and nine rebounds for Effingham, going 7-for-9 from the line. The Flaming Hearts made 18 of 22 free throws, helping them negate 30-percent shooting (10-for-33).
Lampe, a junior, topped the Knights with 11 points, six rebounds and seven assists. Senior Abby Braundmeier scored eight points and junior Madi Strieker had seven. Senior Kierra Winkeler was limited to six points, 10 points under her average.
The Knights shot 36 percent from the field (16-for-44).
Mater Dei had the ball with 14 seconds to play, but Winkeler was whistled for an offensive foul 35 feet from the basket, giving Effingham the ball with 3.5 seconds left. The Flaming Hearts threw the ball into their end and dribbled out the clock.
"We were going for the win," Kohnen said, explaining that the Knights were looking for a 3-pointer. "It was set up for it, but it didn't happen. ... It just wasn't meant to be. It's a game of breaks. They got a few and we didn't. Give them credit."
The Flaming Hearts took just their third lead of the game when Fearday connected on back-to-back baskets to make it 26-25 with 3:30 to play in the third quarter.
Mater Dei, however, took a 32-31 lead when Winkeler hit a tough shot from the baseline as time expired in the third quarter.
Lampe's basket put the Knights ahead 36-34 with 5:12 left in the game. Fearday, however, put Effingham ahead to stay at 38-36 when she scored in the lane with 3:53 left. Mater Dei was no closer than two the rest of the game.
"Coach said he didn't like the look in our eyes in the locker room (at halftime)," Fearday said. "That put a little fire in us. We knew coming out (in the second half) that we could do it. Once one person started hitting, it was contagious."