A change in defense has led to change in fortunes for the Sisseton girls’ basketball team.

The Redmen relied on their zone defense to turn back Aberdeen Roncalli 45-36 in the semifinals of the Region 1A girls’ basketball tournament at Roncalli Gym Thursday night.

The victory avenged a setback to the Cavaliers on the same floor earlier this season.

Sisseton coach Sara Lincoln said it’s the defense that transformed a slow start to the year into a spot in next week’s SoDak 16.

“That’s what I think they figured out. They’re defense is so good and that just created so much trust on the other end with them,” Lincoln said of her players. “We struggled a little bit on offense, but honestly when they start sharing the ball they’re unstoppable.”

With a height advantage at nearly every position on the floor, the Redmen were able to pressure the wings and deny a lot of open looks.

“They extended their zone, pushed us out farther,” said Roncalli coach Derek Larson. “I still thought we had some decent looks.”

It didn’t take long to see that the night would play out much differently than the previous meeting between the two Northeast Conference rivals.

Saylor Langager, who did not score in the first matchup, made the game’s first basket on the way to scoring a game-high 14 points.

“I just came out playing hard,” Langager said. “I just gave it my all and figured leave it all on the court.”

The 6-foot-2 junior said she has improved her play as the season has progressed.

“I’ve just been feeling that I wasn’t playing good … but now I’ve been playing way better,” Langager said. “I just figured I’d come out and play hard, and I thought I could be more aggressive than the last time I played.”

With the game tied at 30-30 early in the fourth quarter, the Redmen scored seven unanswered points to take control. Senior Elliot Hortness got into the lane where she scored or got fouled.

“Our legs were tired, so we were told to get to the rim,” Hortness said.

She made three clutch free throws down the stretch to help ice the victory.

When asked what went through her mind when shooting the pivotal foul shots, Hortness responded, “Nothing, it’s just another free throw. I have confidence in myself. I can do this. I do it every single day at practice.”

Hortness played in the State A Tournament a couple of years ago when the Redmen finished third and is used to big-game environments.

“It was sophomore year, so it was a while ago, but I’ve played in big games,” Hortness said, “and all that experience has definitely helped and led me to where I am tonight.”

The Cavaliers never went away, slicing the margin down to 39-36 with one minute remaining, only to have Sisseton score the final six points to put the finishing touches on the win.

Roncalli was led by senior Morgan Helms, who scored nine points, despite being one of the smallest players on the floor.

Helms was one of several Cavaliers who had their shot blocked by the taller Sisseton players.

“A lot of times it is in the back of your head, like shoot I just got blocked. I don’t want to get blocked again, because you feel like it’s almost embarrassing, but when they have people that’s 6-foot tall you just gotta remember, hey, they’re so much taller than me,” Helms said. “They’ve got long arms. They’re going to block shots, and also you just have to rely on your teammates to pick you up from that and remind yourself it was one shot, it’s not that big of a deal.”

In the end it was Sisseton’s defense that gave the Redmen the boost they needed with the season on the line.

“They just had so much confidence and we didn’t have confidence coming down the stretch of the game,” Larson said. “We didn’t particularly shoot the ball well. They took away a lot of perimeter shots, which again that’s kind of the team we are. And we didn’t finish at the rim when we got the ball inside.”

The Redmen, who will face Hamlin in the SoDak 16, have been playing with new-found confidence, especially late in the season.

“About a week and a half ago, I think it finally clicked,” Lincoln said. “I’ve been talking to them a lot the last two weeks of just how good they are. Part of it is just making them believe how good they are.”

That progress has been noticeable and it was on display Thursday night.

“Give them credit,” Larson said. “They’ve gotten a lot better since the start of the year and they’ve gotten a lot better in the last couple weeks.”

Hortness, who contributed 11 points to the Sisseton total, talked about what has changed since the first meeting against Roncalli.

“So much has changed. We went to a zone and I’m so proud of our defense,” Hortness said. “I think our defense put us over the edge and then it just helped us flow on offense.”

The contest marked the final games for Roncalli seniors Helms, Claire Crawford, and Rylee Voeller.

“It’s one of the worst feelings to have. I mean you put so much into a program and to see it end like this is really hard,” Helms said. “I give it to Sisseton, they forced turnovers, they blocked shots, but this is one of the worst feelings. I hope that what I have done has left a mark on the rest of the girls and that they can move on and be better players because of me in the future.”

SISSETON (11-10): Fallon Hawkins 3 1-2 7, Kennedy Hanson 1 0-0 3, Piper Langager 4 0-2 8, Elliot Hortness 4 3-4 11, Saylor Langager 5 4-5 14, Harper Hortness 1 0-0 2. Totals 18 8-13 45.

ABERDEEN RONCALLI (16-5): Elyana Roach 3 1-2 7, Morgan Helms 3 3-4 9, Claire Crawford 2 0-0 5, Karsyn Davis 2 0-0 4, Rylee Voeller 2 0-0 6, Kadince Glynn 2 0-0 4, Olivia Dix 0 1-2 1. Total 14 5-8 36.

Sisseton 13 19 28 45

Aberdeen Roncalli 9 15 25 36

3-point field goals – Hanson; Crawford, Voeller 2. Total fouls – Sisseton 10; Aberdeen Roncalli 18. Turnovers – Sisseton 19; Aberdeen Roncalli 7.