Sullivan did not seem too rusty in their first game since Dec. 20.

Photo by Extra Innings Photography

In the opening round of the 23rd annual Owensville Tournament Monday, the Eagles (4-5) advanced to the semifinals with a 60-49 win over fifth-seeded St. Louis Christian Academy.

A balanced scoring attack helped the Eagles over their opponents from St. Louis, who came into the game as something of a mystery team.

The Cougars did not surprise the Eagles, though they kept the game from getting out of hand.

Sullivan built up multiple double-digit leads, only to watch the Cougars come back and cut it close.

But behind a big scoring night from four different players, the Eagles put themselves in a position to win their third Owensville Tournament championship in four seasons.

Sullivan faces Pacific on Friday night in the semifinals.

Patrick Moody scored 16 points for the Eagles, while Justin Biermann and Uriah Heady added 14 apiece.

It was a season-high for Heady, who was averaging around five points per game after putting in almost 10 last season.

Adam Weiland added another 12 points for the Eagles.

Sullivan held a 12-11 advantage after one quarter and led by as many as 10 in the second quarter, but St. Louis Christian went on a 14-4 run over the last few minutes to cut Sullivan’s lead down to 31-29.

JC Beckett rescued the Eagles with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to send Sullivan into halftime with a 34-29 lead.

Sullivan was able to bully the Cougars around with a full-court press that led to easy points. St. Louis Christian was unable to handle the pressure for most of the game.

In earlier action that night, Pacific (7-5) disposed of Owensville (0-8) with a 76-24 win.

Sullivan and Pacific meet up on Friday at 6 p.m. The winner advances to the championship game on Saturday.