The Sacred Heart Knights dispatched the Ell-Saline Cardinals 77-25 Tuesday night in the quarterfinal round of sub-state action in Class 2A.

Sacred Heart (18-3) entered play as the top seed in the eight-team Herington sub-state, and the Knights lived up to the billing, pouring 30 points onto the scoreboard in the game’s first eight minutes to take a 19-point lead over the 8th-seeded Cardinals after the first quarter.

In the second quarter, the Knights featured a suffocating full-court press, forcing nine Ell-Saline (0-21) turnovers in the period to extend their lead to 4o by halftime.

Neither team added much to their respective tallies in a running-clock second half, with the Knights outscoring the Cardinals 21-9 after the break.

Sacred Heart received contributions from up and down the lineup in the win, with three Knights finishing in double digits.  Junior Caleb Gilliland led the charge with a game-high 23 points, while senior Ethan Buckner added 17 points, with junior Jacob Gormley chipping in ten.

Junior Trevor Peterson claimed team-high honors for Ell-Saline, finishing with nine points in the loss.

While the Cardinals saw their season draw to a close, the Knights will continue their quest to return to the 2A State Tournament on Friday night in Herington, facing the winner of the 4 vs. 5 matchup between Canton-Galva and Bennington.

SCORE BY QUARTERS:

Ell-Saline         11       5     4    5  –  25

Sacred Heart   30   26   17   4  –  77