The Lady Warriors erased an early deficit Thursday night in the Bobby Andrews Recreation Center to walk away with the 33-17 victory over the Lady Shocks.

In this matchup between two teams from the 11-14 Girls Division, the Washington Youth Basketball League Game of the Week came down to a few second quarter defensive adjustments turned the tide and proved to be the difference for the Warriors.

Shocks point guard Cyntavea Blackledge was the catalyst behind her team’s success in the first quarter. She moved the ball around the perimeter, created open looking and came through with four timly steals. Even with Warriors forward Shantaja Brown outrebounded the entire Shocks team, Blackledge’s performance lifted her team to an 8-4 lead.

The second quarter was a different story, however, as Warriors’ head coach Franz Holscher switched to a 3-2 zone with a full court press. It worked to perfection. The ball crossed half court just once in 10 minutes and, after a strong start, the Shocks were held scoreless in the second quarter. As a result, offensively, the Warriors picked up five steals and 13 points to bring the halftime score 17-8.

The Warriors’ strong defensive showing continued in the third quarter, holding the opposition scoreless through the first four minutes. Finally, following a 14-minute scoring drought, a free throw from Blackledge gave the Shocks their first point since the first quarter. The Warriors also had trouble putting the ball in the basketball in the third, however, as Mary Emma Holscher provided the only made shot from the floor.

Through the final 10 minutes, both teams responded offensively and moved the ball efficiently, the deficit was too large to overcome for the Shocks and the Warriors came through with the victory.

Blackledge finished with nine points, six steals and six rebounds, while point guard Kizoria Redmond led the Warriors with 12 points to go along with five assists and six rebounds. Brown recorded a game-high 14 rebounds.

The Warriors will look to continue their winning ways when they face the Sparks today at 4 p.m. before the Shocks take on the Cougars at 5 p.m.