RAPID CITY - For the second straight season the Red Cloud Lady Crusaders knocked off the Custer Wildcats for the District 15A girls' basketball title.

The Crusaders jumped all over the Wildcats early, building a 13-2 lead after the first quarter, en route to a 49-32 win at the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center on Thursday night.

"As a coach it's a little different," Red Cloud head coach Jerome LeBeaux said of winning his first district championship on the sidelines after a successful playing career for the Crusaders in the mid 90s that included a state title his senior season.

"I walked off the court and the girls were laughing at me, they were like, 'You've been out of the game that long? You forgot to get your medal.' So I just tried to play it cool. I was like, 'I just won so many of those as a player that it's nothing new to me.' I just tried to downplay it.

"But this is what we worked so hard for this season."

The Crusaders used their trademark trapping pressure defense to rattle the Wildcats early, forcing 11 Custer turnovers in the first half as they took an 18-7 lead into the locker room at the half.

"I told the girls before districts started that it's a six-game season now," LeBeaux said. "Everybody is 0-0 and everybody is dangerous. That long (regular) season was great, but this is why we worked so hard."

The Wildcats showed plenty of heart in the fourth quarter, but couldn't manage to get any closer than eight points - 35-27 with 4:49 to play. Claire Carson had a 3-pointer with 4:20 to play that was all over the basket, but just a couple of inches long that would have cut the lead to five, with Red Cloud star Marque Lunderman on the bench with four fouls. Lunderman came back into the game soon thereafter and the Crusaders rolled to the win.

"She really is our gel," LeBeaux said. "Whether she's scoring points, playing defense, when she's in there, she's our gel. She just adds something to our team. She doesn't really even have to score points.

"She's just one of those special players."

Lunderman led the Crusaders (16-6) with 18 points. The Crusader win sets up a Region 8A championship game between western South Dakota's two Catholic high schools, as Red Cloud will play St. Thomas More at the civic center on Tuesday at 8 p.m.

Custer ended its season at 9-13.