The Aberdeen Christian defense stood firm on Monday night.

The Knights used a strong defensive performance to earn a 43-25 girls’ basketball win over Waverly-South Shore in the opening round of the Region 1B girls’ basketball tournament at the Civic Arena.

Knights coach Cristian Martinez was glad to see his team come out on top.

“It was one of those days when everything is going pretty good on your side,” Martinez said. “But we were prepared mentally and focused for this game.”

The Christian defense caused problems for the Waverly-South Shore offense throughout the first half, forcing steals that led to baskets, while also putting constant pressure on the Coyotes.

Waverly-South Shore coach Kelsey Hannigan gave credit to the Knights for the pressure they put on her team.

“I’ve got a very young team,” Hannigan said. “We play a bunch of freshmen and sophomores, so it was props to Aberdeen Christian for coming out and putting a lot of pressure on those young girls to figure out how to go around that.”

Christian scored the first 11 points of the contest and continued to pull away in the first half, building a 29-10 halftime lead.

Knights senior Chloe Holt was glad to see the team accomplish its game plan.

“We just talked about coming out strong, setting the tone for the game, and I think we did a good job running the ball, just getting people open by moving the ball,” Holt said. “I feel like our defense was pretty good tonight, so I mean, overall, I think we did good and we accomplished what we wanted to accomplish.”

Waverly-South Shore freshman Carlee Mushitz, who led the Coyotes with 11 points, said the Knights defense made it difficult for the Coyotes to get their offense into rhythm.

“We knew they were going to double me, so we were just trying to work around that and pass the ball around,” Mushitz said. “We just couldn’t really get anything set up as we wanted to.”

Christian stretched its lead to 22 points by the end of the third quarter by continuously making the Coyotes work for every shot.

Holt noted that a change in defense early in the game paid off for the Knights.

“We started off in man, which did not go very good,” Holt said. “So, then we switched to 3-2 (zone) and we were like, you know, this is working, let’s just stay in this. We knew who they wanted shooting, so we just doubled down and took away those looks.”

The squads faced off back on Jan. 27 in a game that saw Christian take a 15-point lead into the fourth quarter only to see Waverly-South Shore outscore the Knights 13-0 before Christian held on for a 37-35 win. Monday’s fourth quarter looked as if it might be a repeat performance as the Coyotes scored the first seven points of the quarter, cutting the 22-point deficit down to 15, while the Knights struggled to make a basket.

“We know that we play best in the fourth quarter,” Mushitz said, “so we knew that going into it we just had to push, just like we did in our last game.”

Despite the comeback attempt, Christian was able to put the game away, sealing the region win.

“I think we just didn’t want it to be a repeat of last time,” Holt said. “We wanted to pull ahead and just keep it ahead and secure the win.”

The Coyotes finished their season with a record of 1-19. Hannigan emphasized what the team will work on in the offseason in preparation for next year.

“Fundamentals, fundamentals, fundamentals,” Hannigan said.

Holt led the Knights with 15 points, while Jolie Fogarty had 10. Chloe Bosma and Payton Skarin each contributed eight.

Christian (3-18 on the year) will now move on to the Region 1B quarterfinals where it will travel to top-seeded Warner tonight, with tip-off set for 7 p.m.

Martinez said his players know what they are up against, and that they will give it their best shot.

“I know (Tuesday) is going to be a hard game, but we want to do the best performance we can,” Martinez said. “We’re accepting the challenge and we’re going to go over there and be prepared.”

WAVERLY-SOUTH SHORE (1-19): Jolene Krantz 1 0-0 2, Dashaya Koch 0 3-4 3, Carlee Mushitz 5 1-4 11, Sidney Stricherz 1 1-2 3, Marlie Riter 1 0-3 2, Jaina Johnson 1 1-1 3, Annie Stricherz 0 1-4 1. Totals 9 7-18 25.

ABERDEEN CHRISTIAN (3-18): Payton Skarin 1 5-8 8, Jolie Fogarty 4 1-1 10, Sophia Fogarty 0 2-2 2, Chloe Holt 5 2-2 15, Chloe Bosma 2 4-7 8. Totals 12 14-20 43.

Waverly-South Shore 5 10 16 25

Aberdeen Christian 13 29 38 43

3-point field goals – Holt (3), Skarin, J. Fogarty. Total fouls – Waverly-South Shore 20; Aberdeen Christian 16.