The last time they played, the game was decided by a 3-pointer in the final 30 seconds.

That said, Friday night's girls' basketball showdown between L-L League Section Four frontrunners Lancaster Catholic and Lancaster Mennonite projected to be another thrilling, back-and-forth affair.

It was, for all but four minutes and three seconds — a time span that ultimately spelled doom for Mennonite.

Taking control for good with a 15-3 run to start the game, host Lancaster Catholic fended off one Mennonite charge after another en route to a 67-55 victory.

The Crusaders (12-0 L-L, 15-2 overall), who are seeking their second straight section title, hold a three-game advantage over Lebanon Catholic (9-3, 14-4) and a three-and-a-half-game edge on Mennonite (8-3, 11-6) with four regular-season games remaining.

"This one we didn't want to lose," said Catholic coach Lamar Kauffman, whose team edged Mennonite, 54-51, in their first meeting on Jan 3. "And (the Crusaders) played like they knew that."

From the very beginning.

Sparked by six points from Porscha Speller and five from Amy Balasavage, Catholic made five of its first 10 shots to build that 15-3 edge with 3:57 remaining in the first quarter.

Although the biggest problem for Mennonite during that stretch was Catholic's swarming, trapping press, which forced four Blazers turnovers in the game's first 1:08 and seven in the first 3:30.

That explains why Mennonite didn't get on the board until Jess Rheinheimer (game-high 21 points, game-high eight rebounds) scored in the lane with 5:00 left in the opening quarter.

"With (causing) turnovers (with the press), you're basically saying we want to take you out of your offense," Kauffman said.

How easy that seemed to be Friday was a surprise to Mennonite coach Sherri Gorman.

"We just totally lost our composure and you've got to give Catholic credit for that," she said. "Their intensity made us do things we weren't supposed to be doing.

"I thought we were ready to play and obviously our mental focus … we panicked. And when you panic against Lancaster Catholic it means turnovers."

By game's end, the Blazers had 27 of them, including 10 in the first quarter, after which it trailed 21-10.

And from there, it was a game of catch-up for Mennonite, which never did.

After Danielle Atkinson (team-high 17 points) knocked down a 3-pointer from the left wing to give Catholic its biggest lead of the night (34-12) with 4:06 left in the first half, the Blazers — finally building some momentum — embarked on a 17-3 run to get within 37-29 at the break.

Rheinheimer opened the third quarter with a drive that made it 37-31, but after Balasavage answered with a trey from the top, the Blazers never got closer than nine the rest of the way.

"When you go on a run you're not getting anywhere," Gorman said of the early hole her team dug for itself. "Because when they go on a run you're right back where you started."

Using one of those runs, Catholic pushed its lead back to 19 on a pair of Emily Martin (12 points) free throws with 4:56 left to play, before Probst (14 points, game-high eight rebounds) scored six points down the stretch to make the final score respectable.

A final score which, interestingly enough, would have been tied but for Catholic's game-opening 15-3 run.

"We knew what we had to do," Crusaders senior guard Alyssa Aichele said. "It definitely takes pressure off that Mennonite isn't right there with us any more (in the section race)."

After the first 4:03 of Friday's game, the Blazers never were.

jfulginiti@lnpnews.com