Bishop Seabury sophomore Maddie McCafferey, left, and Veritas junior Kayli Farley fight for possession during Bishop Seabury’s game against Veritas Christian School on Friday, Jan. 28, 2011 in Lawrence. The Veritas girls won, 40-18.

Veritas girls basketball coach Kevin Shelton didn’t want to let Bishop Seabury get into offensive possessions.

So he turned up the defensive pressure in the backcourt.

“We think our quickness can win us games, and so we wanted to pressure,” Shelton said. “I think our defensive pressure on full court was the difference in the game.”

The Eagles forced 21 turnovers in the first quarter alone, jumping out to a 12-point lead and cruising to a 40-18 victory.

Sophomore Madison Bennett led Veritas (6-8) with nine points. Kristen Finger scored seven points and grabbed seven rebounds.

Both the Veritas and Seabury fan bases were vocal throughout, often trading chants. Shelton said his team is used to playing in loud environments.

“We like playing in front of that,” Shelton said. “It kind of gets your emotions going.”

The Seahawks (0-2) have just an eight-game schedule as coach Becky Bridson is still trying to get her team ready at the varsity level. She told her team to just play and not worry about the score.

“They kept fighting, and they were super-aggressive. We certainly don’t lack intensity,” Bridson said.

Veritas plays again at 6:45 tonight against Midland Adventist at home. The Seahawks take on the University Academy junior varsity at home on Tuesday.