Aberdeen Roncalli flexed its No. 1 billing Thursday night.

The Cavaliers defeated cross-town opponent and third-ranked Aberdeen Christian 58-37, turning in a most efficient showing in the much-anticipated meeting between the two ranked Class B teams at the Civic Arena.

While neither a rivalry nor a first – the two teams met on the court last season for the first time – Thursday’s season finale was a highly touted matchup, but it was the visiting Cavaliers that hit the gas first.

Roncalli was 14-of-25 shooting in the first half, including 9-for-13 from inside the arc. Seniors Madelyn Bragg and Morgan Fiedler were the catalysts of that engine, both hitting their first three or four shots of the game en route to an early Roncalli lead.

“We knew we just had to come out strong,” said Fiedler, who tallied 17 points on the night. “We couldn’t be caught lacking in any position on the floor, and we came out and did exactly that.”

That early offensive rhythm plus a full-court press that induced a number of Knight turnovers led to a 19-11 lead at the end of the first quarter, which quickly ballooned to a 36-19 advantage by halftime.

Bragg, who finished with a game-best 23 points, had 17 of those in the first 12 minutes.

“They’re a tough matchup all the way around,” said Christian coach Michael Rohrbach. “They’re so good and they can put five players on the floor that can all score. And when Bragg is playing like she did, they’re really tough to beat. We had a few missed defensive assignments in that first half. I thought once we changed things up, we played alright defensively, but we definitely got off to a slow start and you just can’t do that against Roncalli.”

Christian did eventually find some openings in the Roncalli defense in the second half, but, despite having six players in the scoring column, could not turn in a double-digit night. Hanna Miller led the Knights with eight points, but the Cavaliers were able to contain 6-foot-1 Hanna and her 6-foot-4 center Mallory Miller.

“I thought our (defensive) effort was really good,” said Roncalli coach Derek Larson. “Especially in the first half, I thought we really played well defensively. Second half, both teams got a little rag-tag offensively and lost some matchups, which led to some open layups, but overall I thought we defended well. I’m proud of the effort tonight.”

The game marked the end of the regular season for both squads, which now turn their attention to postseason play, which begins Tuesday.

“I thought we played really well in our last two games against Florence-Henry, which was a two-loss team,” Larson said. “Then we had another two-loss team tonight. Just happy for the kids to get a win and have this momentum going into the postseason.”

Roncalli (19-1) will have the top seed in the Region 1B tournament, while Christian (17-3) had the two-seed wrapped up prior to Thursday’s game. Both squads will host Tuesday night.

“It’s good to go into the playoffs hungry and wanting to bounce back after a tough loss,” Rohrbach said. “I think we’ll come ready to go next week.”

ABERDEEN RONCALLI (19-1): Madelyn Bragg 9 1-2 23, Morgan Fiedler 8 0-1 17, Jeci Ewart 2 0-0 6, Olivia Hanson 3 1-3 7, Ava Hanson 2 0-0 5. Totals 24-50 2-6 58.

ABERDEEN CHRISTIAN (17-3): Joy Rohrbach 3 0-1 6, Bailey Englund 0 0-2 0, Kaylee Block 3 0-0 7, Hanna Miller 3 0-2 8, Mallory Miller 2 2-2 7, Chloe Holt 2 1-1 6, Grace Kaiser 1 1-2 3, Chloe Bosma 0 0-2 0. Totals 14-37 4-12 37.

Aberdeen Roncalli 19 36 48 58

Aberdeen Christian 11 19 30 37

3-pt FG – Roncalli 8-23 (Bragg 4, Fiedler, Ewart 2, A. Hanson); Christian 5-10 (Block, H. Miller 2, M. Miller, Holt). Fouls – Roncalli 13; Christian 8. Rebounds – Roncalli 23 (O. Hanson 5, Fiedler 5); Christian 32 (Bosma 7, M. Miller 6). Turnovers – Roncalli 5; Christian 21. Assists – Roncalli 13 (Fiedler 4); Christian 9 (Rohrbach 3). Steals – Roncalli 10 (Ewart 4); Christian 2 (M. Miller 2).