What started out as a promising 7-0 lead to start the night for the Aberdeen Central girls’ basketball program instead evaporated into a 50-36 victory for Watertown Tuesday evening in an Eastern South Dakota Conference conference contest at Golden Eagles Arena.

With both teams looking for their second win of the season, it was Central that grabbed the early advantage, getting good inside looks early.

But some defensive breakdowns in the second half of that opening stanza opened the door for the Arrows, who rallied for a 10-9 lead at the end of the quarter.

Turnovers then punched holes in any momentum the Golden Eagles tried to muster the remainder of the way. Central turned it over on its first three possessions of the second half, as Watertown used a 10-0 run to begin the third quarter and a 5-0 run to end it to essentially put the game out of reach.

“We got out-worked, and that’s frustrating,” said Central coach Mikayla Arechigo. “We need to do a better job taking care of the ball on the offensive end. On the defensive end, having only four steals and not forcing more turnovers is unacceptable. All around, we need to be better.”

Watertown, for its part, shot just three percentage points better than the Golden Eagles in the game, but had 13 more attempts from the field, thanks in large part to 17 steals and a transition game that led to a handful of 3-point plays.

Jaida Young and Jaid Lund had a dozen points apiece for the Arrows, Young’s coming from the free throw line and Lund’s coming from the perimeter. Maddy Rohde finished with 10 points.

Central got 13 points and eight rebounds from Taryn Hermansen. Taryn Hettich finished with eight points, going 6-for-6 from the free throw line.

Central will host Tea Area on Saturday. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. at Golden Eagles Arena.

WATERTOWN (2-3): Maddy Rohde 4 0-0 10, Emery Thury 3 1-1 2, Jaida Young 3 6-7 12, Jade Lund 4 1-2 12, Grace Corey 1 3-4 5, Avery Munger 1 2-4 4. Totals 16-49 13-18 50.

ABERDEEN CENTRAL (1-5): Anna Malchow 1 0-0 3, Taryn Hettich 1 6-6 8, Sydney Evans 2 0-0 5, Caydi Withers 2 1-2 5, Taryn Hermansen 5 3-5 13, Lauren Joosten 0 2-2 2. Totals 11-26 12-15 36.

Watertown 10 25 42 50

Aberdeen Central 9 19 25 36

3-pt FG – WAT 5-19 (Rohde 2, Lund 3); AC 2-7 (Malchow, Evans). Fouls – WAT 14; AC 14. Rebounds – WAT 28 (Corey 7, Rohde 5); AC 34 (Hermansen 8, Withers 8). Assists – WAT 8 (Kendall Paulson 3); AC 6 (Hettich 4). Turnovers – WAT 13; AC 25. Blocks – WAT 1 (Lund); AC 5 (Withers 4). Steals – WAT 17 (Thury 5); AC 4 (Evans 2).