The Montesano Bulldogs are one step closer to repeating as 1A District 4 girls basketball champions.

Behind 24 points from 1A Evergreen League MVP Paige Lisherness and an active, swarming defense the Bulldogs outpaced King’s Way Christian 53-39 in a district semifinal matchup on Tuesday at Montesano High School.

Monte (18-1 overall) and the Knights (13-5) played close throughout much of the first quarter, trading jabs while locked in a 10-10 tie late in the period.

But Monte got a little cushion on some points off turnovers in the final minute of the frame. A steal by junior guard Maia Young led to a Mikayla Stanfield pass back to Young for a bucket followed by another Young steal and layup just before the buzzer to put Monte up 14-10 at the end of one quarter.

“Maia came in and gave us a big spark with her energy and hustle plays,” Montesano head coach Mark Mansfield said of Young, who scored 11 points to go along with five steals and three assists in the game.

RYAN SPARKS | THE DAILY WORLD Montesano junior guard Maia Young scored 11 points to go along with five steals and three assists in Montesano’s 53-39 win over King’s Way Christian in the district semifinals on Tuesday in Montesano.

The Bulldogs seized control of the game in the second quarter by using two of its best weapons: a suffocating defense and the dominant inside presence of Lisherness.

Montesano made it a priority to pick apart the paint with pinpoint passing to Lisherness, who scored 10 points in the period.

On the defensive end, the Bulldogs pressed and trapped to force an eight-second violation and multiple turnovers by frazzled Knights ball-handlers.

When the Knights did manage to get into its half-court offense, they didn’t find much success against Monte’s quick-reacting zone defense, managing just two field goals in the period on a bucket by Izzy Hill and a three from Hannah Irwin with 15 seconds left in the first half.

At the half, Monte had opened up a 27-15 lead over its longtime district-tournament rivals.

The Bulldogs put the game out of reach in the third quarter, opening the period with an 11-2 run culminated on a drive and layup from Lisherness to give the Bulldogs a definitive 38-17 advantage at the 3:05 mark.

After Trico League co-MVP Laurel Quinn hit a pair of free throws followed by a 3-pointer to cut Monte’s lead to 38-22 with 2:27 left in the third, the Bulldogs closed the quarter on a bucket in close by senior Olivia Young off a nifty post-feed from her sister Maia followed by steal and layup by Maia Young to put Monte up 42-22 at the end of the third.

Quinn scored 14 of her team high 23 points in the fourth quarter as the Knights tried to make a game of it, but Monte’s defense — led by four blocks in the frame from Lisherness — would not let KWC get any closer than 17 points en route to the victory.

Lisherness had seven rebounds, six steals and three assists to go along with her 24 points.

Monte guard Jaiden King also scored in double figures with 11 points while Olivia Young scored four points and grabbed a team high 11 rebounds.

The Bulldogs also shared the ball with high efficiency, recording 15 assists as a team on 24 field goals made (63%).

“When we move the ball, we put more pressure on their defense,” Mansfield said. “We might have a good look, but we got a great look because we made the extra pass. We played very unselfish tonight.”

RYAN SPARKS | THE DAILY WORLD Montesano senior Paige Lisherness (23) powers through King’s Way Christian defenders Laurel Quinn (14) and Riley Philbrook to score two of her game high 24 points in the Bulldogs’ 53-39 victory in the 1A District 4 semifinals on Tuesday in Montesano.

Montesano will face a familiar foe in its quest for a second consecutive district crown when it faces league-rival Tenino at 6 p.m. Saturday at Rochester High School in the district-title game.

Tenino (17-5) defeated La Center 27-21 in a district semifinal on Tuesday and lost twice to Montesano in league play this season.

The win also secures a spot in the 1A State Tournament regional round for the Bulldogs, but Mansfield said he’s not looking too far ahead this late in the season.

“We’re focused on Saturday,” he said. “We want to take care of business, work out a few things and just get better for Saturday. … Then we can worry about regionals.”

King’s Way Christian 10 5 7 17 — 39

Montesano 14 13 15 11 — 53

Scoring

KWC (39) — L. Quinn 23, Erwin 9, Philbrook 3, B. Quinn 3, Hill 2

Montesano (53) — Lisherness 24, M. Young 11, King 11, O. Young 4, Stanfield 3