Herreid-Selby Area came out on the attack from the opening tip and made life tough on an inexperienced Aberdeen Christian squad Thursday night at the Aberdeen Civic Arena.

The Wolverines did not allow a shot attempt in the first four minutes of the game on the way to a 48-18 non-conference girls’ basketball victory.

“I was very happy with our defensive play, right from the start,” said new HSA coach Ryan Yackley who picked up his first career coaching victory. “Right from the tip we were going, we were jumping passes lanes.”

While the Wolverines did lose some standout players from the past couple of seasons, they still have some veterans who play with intensity.

“The defense was great. They were tough girls,” said Knights coach Cristian Martinez, who was also coaching in his first ever game. “They have everything: size, speed, good defenders.”

While its defense was solid the entire night, Herreid-Selby Area had a bit of struggle out of the gates just like the Knights.

“I was really pleased with how we moved the ball. Initially at the start I think we had our pre-game jitters of course where we didn’t know how to rotate that ball, but once we got in the middle, oh man, it just opened everything up,” Yackley said. “The Rossow sisters (Jada and Jordyn) did a phenomenal job in there. Jada hitting those nice jumpers and making good passes to our guards, it just opened everything up.”

Jada drew a lot of attention whenever she touched the ball. The 6-foot-1 junior either tried to score or passed the ball out to open shooters.

“I mainly just make sure I know where I am on the floor,” Rossow said. “If I think I can go one vs. one with the girl, then I try to do that, but if I don’t think I will be able to, then I kick it out and see what happens after that.”

Rossow scored six points in the second period when the Wolverines broke the game open on the way to a 19-point halftime advantage. She ended up making five of her seven shot attempts on the way to 10 points.

“She’s really stepped into that leadership role and I think that all has to do with what she was able to bring last year and her experience to bring it to the next level,” Yackley said. “A lot of these kids, they’re not used to varsity yet, so her bringing that edge to this team has just only helped.”

Mya Ebel contributed nine points, six rebounds and six steals for the Wolverines, Jennica Berens had eight points and five steals, and Pausha Meidinger added seven points and four steals.

Herreid-Selby Area, which lost in the SoDak16 last season and competed in the state tournament two years ago, has its sights set on another big year ahead.

“I think we definitely have a great chance going to the SoDak 16 and state again this year,” Rossow said.

Chloe Bosma topped the Knights with nine points and seven rebounds.

Martinez saw some positive things from his young team despite the setback.

“I’m pretty happy even though the score was not the way I like it,” he said.

Christian is right back in action on Saturday hosting James Valley Christian in a girls-boys doubleheader at the Civic Arena. The girls’ varsity game will start around 6:30 p.m. with the boys to follow.

“We just shake it off, what happened in this game, and put it in the back and continue the season,” Martinez said. “We’ve got 19 more games and hopefully we get some wins.”

HERREID-SELBY AREA (1-0): Jennica Berens 4 0-0 8, Jordyn Rossow 2 0-2 4, Stephanie Allbee 1 0-0 2, McKayla Hanson 1 0-0 3, Sophia Ritter 2 1-1 5, Pausha Meidinger 2 2-2 7, Mya Ebel 4 1-2 9, Jada Rossow 5 0-0 10. Totals 21-50 4-7 48.

ABERDEEN CHRISTIAN (0-1): Rachel Beaner 1 0-0 2, Sophia Eichler 0 3-6 3, Sophia Fogarty 2 0-0 4, Chloe Bosma 4 1-3 9. Totals 7-24 4-9 18.

Herreid-Selby Area 11 29 45 48

Aberdeen Christian 4 10 15 18

3-point field goals – Hanson, Meidinger. Total fouls – Herreid-Selby Area 15; Aberdeen Christian 6. Rebounds – Herreid-Selby Area 29 (Jordyn Rossow 7, Ebel 6); Aberdeen Christian 22 (Bosma 7, Fogarty 6, Eichler 5). Turnovers – Herreid-Selby Area 15; Aberdeen Christian 29. Assists – Herreid-Selby Area 6 (Ebel 4). Steals – Herreid-Selby Area 23 (Ebel 6, Berens 5, Meidinger 4, Allbee 4); Aberdeen Christian 12 (Beaner 4).