Hearts Fall to Charleston in Apollo Action

The Effingham Hearts fell to the Charleston Trojans 21-17 in Apollo Conference football action Friday night. The game in Charleston was heard on 979XFM.

Effingham drew first blood, scoring at the end of a 10-play, 67-yard drive when Weldon Dunston scored from eight yards out with 7:02 left in the first quarter.

Charleston tied the game 7-7 at the end of a nine-play, 74-yard drive with 2:33 left in the first period when Brett Spour scored on a three-yard run.

Charleston went ahead with 1:48 left in the first half when Spour scored on a 53-yard sideline run. The extra point made it 14-7 Trojans.

The Hearts drew closer with three seconds left before halftime when Maicol Sefton kicked a 30-yard field goal at the end of an eight-play, 72-yard drive to pull within 14-10.

Effingham took its last lead of the game 17-14 with 10:11 left in the third quarter when quarterback Gaige Gillum scored from eight yards out to complete a seven-play, 65-yard drive. 

Charleston scored the last points of the game, though, staging a nine-play, 42-yard drive with 1:40 left in the third quarter that ended when Ben Coffey scored from inside the one. The extra point made it 21-17 and, despite many exciting back and forths by both teams, the final points of the game had been scored.

Wtih the win, Charleston improved to 4-1 on the season and 1-1 in Apollo Conference action, while Effingham slipped to 2-3 on the season and 1-1 in the conference.

Effingham picked up 299 total net yards to 256 for Charleston. 200 yards of that offense for Effingham was gained on the ground. Charleston picked up 256 yards, 155 through the air, 101 on the ground. Effingham amassed 19 first downs to 14 for the Trojans.

Weldon Dunston had another big night for Effingham, rushing 30 times for 120 yards and a touchdown. Gaige Gillum rushed 14 times for 76 yards and a touchdown. 

Gillum was 7 of 14 passing for 99 yards and a game-ending interception. Andrew Lotz caught four passes for 61 yards, and Brodie Belcher caught three passes for 38 yards.

Also for Effingham, Maicol Sefton punted four times for 118 yards, Wade Bushur had an interception, Sefton had three kickoffs for 160 yards, Jacob Weaver had a 59-yard kickoff return and Weldon Dunston had a 17-yard kickoff return.

Here's the tackle sheet: Zach Donaldson 10, Charlie Ring seven, Kaden Koeberlein six, Logan Kessler one, Hayden Wendling one, Eli Middendorff two, Spencer Fox three, Kayden Mietzner three, Michael Love three, Wade Bushur two, Nick Martin one.

The Hearts will be home next Friday to host Taylorville in Effingham's Homecoming Game. Kickoff will be at 7pm with the pre-game show at 6:45pm on 979XFM.