HERCHER — After enduring a fourth quarter in which the Herscher Tigers missed seven free throws, it looked as though senior guard Austin Mendell helped his team atone for their struggles. Mendell hit a clutch three-point field goal with one second left in regulation, after which the hosts and Coalers were headed to overtime.

Though Coal City would go on to miss eight free throws in two overtimes, the locals were able to close the game out to record a 52-50 win over Herscher in the opening round of the Herscher Class 3A Regional on Monday.

"It says a lot about these guys," Coal City coach Brad Boresi said. "I just can't say enough about how they responded tonight. We won and we moved on."