There was no slow start this time around.

Less than 24 hours after Aberdeen Central struggled out of the gate, the Golden Eagles came bolting from the starting line against fifth-rated Rapid City Stevens Saturday afternoon.

Central scored the first nine points of the game, and played the contest of its terms on the way to a 56-44 non-conference girls’ basketball victory at Golden Eagles Arena.

“I just thought we handled that full-court pressure and came out the gate ready to run,” said Central coach Paiton Burckhard, “And I think that definitely set the tone for us into our mindset for how we wanted this game to play out.”

After losing by 26 points to the Raiders last season, Central was in control in this year’s contest.

The Golden Eagles were able to handle the press, and then used their height advantage to dominate the backboards, outrebounding Stevens by a whopping 47-14 margin.

Burckhard said the team played with a solid mindset against the Raiders.

“It’s your choice to go and rebound,” she said. “It’s your choice to move well without the ball, and I felt like our girls chose to do that from the get go.”

Lauryn Burckhard put together a dominant double-double, finishing the afternoon with 20 points and 11 rebounds.

She worked in tandem with senior Taryn Hermansen to help get open looks.

“Being able to work the high low with Taryn really opened up some shots,” said the junior Burckhard.

Included in Central’s rebounding numbers were 20 offensive rebounds, six more caroms than Stevens had as an entire team.

“Rebounding is a choice,” coach Burckhard said, “and we made that choice today.”

Central’s defense also played a role as the Raiders shot just 14-of-45 from field.

However, the biggest test was Central’s ability to handle the Stevens press. While the Golden Eagles still had twice as many turnovers, they were able to play at their pace.

“I just thought we were really consistent. We had girls doing what they needed to do,” coach Burckhard said. “We handled the pressure. We didn’t allow them to speed us up, got to our offense, and then we got what we wanted.”

Hermansen and Kenadi Withers each contributed 11 points to the Central total. Withers hauled down 12 rebounds and Hermansen grabbed 11.

When asked about the significance of the win against Stevens, a team that finished fourth at the State AA Tournament last season, Lauryn Burckhard said, “Beating a team like that gives us a ton of confidence, so it’s really exciting.”

Central, 2-0, heads west this coming weekend playing at Spearfish on Friday and at Sturgis on Saturday.

RAPID CITY STEVENS (1-1): Mackenzie Schreiber 2 2-2 7, Finley Love 4 2-3 10, Jessa Griswold 1 1-2 3, Halle Peterson 0 1-2 1, Marley Seumanutafa 1 4-7 6, Hayden Thorton 2 1-2 5, Haley Falcon 4 0-0 12. Totals 14-45 11-18 44.

ABERDEEN CENTRAL (2-0): Ava Yeske 3 0-0 8, Kenadi Withers 5 1-1 11, Emma Dohrer 1 4-4 6, Lauryn Burckhard 8 3-4 20, Taryn Hermansen 4 3-4 11. Totals 21-49 11-13 56.

Rapid City Stevens 9 21 30 44

Aberdeen Central 11 28 38 56

3-point field goals – Schreiber, Falcon 4; Yeske 2, Burckhard. Fouled out – Schreiber. Total fouls – Rapid City Stevens 17 ; Aberdeen Central 15. Rebounds – Rapid City Stevens 14 (Seumanutafa 6); Aberdeen Central 47 (Withers 12, Burckhard 11, Hermansen 11). Turnovers – Rapid City Stevens 12; Aberdeen Central 25. Assists – Rapid City Stevens 5; Aberdeen Central 11 (Dohrer 3, Burckhard 3). Steals – Rapid City Stevens 15 (Love 6); Aberdeen Central 3.