HURON – Fifth-rated Aberdeen Central got off to a slow start in the first quarter, fought its way back by halftime and took over in the second half en route to a 56-44 Eastern South Dakota Conference girls’ basketball win over Huron Thursday night.

Central, playing without senior post player Taryn Hermansen, trailed the host Tigers 15-7 following the opening stanza of play, but rallied in the second quarter to trail by just one point, 27-26, at the half.

“Definitely a tough start,” said Central coach Paiton Burckhard. “Kamdyn (Borge) was a huge spark for us. She fueled our team, and she was a huge reason we won tonight.”

Borge clocked four of the team’s nine 3-pointers on the night and finished with 22 points. Burckhard said her contributions, particularly in the second and third quarters, proved to be contagious.

“Then everyone started getting involved,” Burckhard said. “(Ava) Yeske shot the ball well, we were on the boards hard. We just battled to get the win at the end of the day, and that’s what matters at this point in the season. Proud of this win.”

Yeske finished with a trio of 3-pointers and nine total points. Emma Dohrer notched 10 points, while Kenadi Withers and Lauryn Burckhard grabbed a dozen rebounds apiece to pace the Golden Eagles in that category.

Huron was led by Hylton Heinz’s 23-point effort. Heinz went 7-for-10 from the free throw line in the game.

Central, 11-5 on the season, is home to face Watertown on Tuesday at Golden Eagles Arena.

ABERDEEN CENTRAL (11-5): Ava Yeske 3 0-0 9, Kamdyn Borge 7 4-7 22, Kenadi Withers 2 2-2 6, Emma Dohrer 3 2-2 10, Lauryn Burckhard 4 1-2 9. Totals 19-58 9-11 56.

HURON (9-8): Addyson Knight 1 0-0 2, Aly Davis 3 0-0 8, Hylton Heinz 8 7-10 23, Abagail Harrington 1 0-0 2, Chloe Carr 4 1-2 9. Totals 17-45 8-12 44.

Aberdeen Central 7 26 44 56

Huron 15 27 35 44

3-pt field goals – Yeske 3, Borge 4, Dohrer 2; Davis 2. Fouled out – Heinz. Total fouls – Aberdeen Central 13; Huron 16. Rebounds – Aberdeen Central 36 (Burckhard 12, Withers 11); HUR 23 (Knight 5, Harrington 5, Carr 5). Assists – Aberdeen Central 10 (Dohrer 4); Huron 9 (Davis 4). Turnovers – Aberdeen Central 11; Huron 12. Steals – Aberdeen Central 4; Huron 9 (Knight 3). Blocks – Aberdeen Central 2 (Dohrer, Burckhard); Huron 3 (Carr 2).