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Pulse goal attack Tiana Metuarau takes a pass under pressure from Tactix goal defence Jess Maclennan.

Central Pulse survived a nervous final quarter to beat Mainland Tactix 52-44.

After previously beating Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic and Southern Steel, the Pulse have now claimed the scalp of previously unbeaten Mainland Tactix too - their eight-goal win at TSB Arena on Monday lifting them to a perfect 3-0 record.

Teenage shooters Aliyah Dunn (33/40) and Tiana Metuarau (16/17) were once again preferred over New Zealand international Ameliaranne Ekenasio and they took it to the Tactix defence, combining for 49 of the Pulse's 52 goals.

But Ekenasio, who is playing catch-up after missing some of the pre-season while on international duty, was eventually injected off the bench in the final quarter and she played a crucial cameo, shoring up their lead after the Pulse had allowed the Tactix to close the gap to as few as seven goals.

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​"It's nice to get the win because we certainly felt it wasn't a complete performance," Pulse coach Yvette McCausland-Durie said. 

"The players are disappointed that they let their intensity drop but at the same time the Tactix really lifted their intensity and I think that's the challenge also, sensing what the opposition is doing and making that shift.

"The work on is definitely about how we sustain pressure and take responsibility for those moments when people are coming back at us hard."

For much of the night it looked like it could have been a white wash though, a dominant second quarter firmly swinging the game in the Pulse's favour. Having already led 15-11, their 6-0 run to begin the quarter saw them open up a double figure advantage and they went into halftime up 30-17.

The Tactix scored just six goals in the second quarter - a stat they were left to rue as it was the key period that led to their first defeat of 2018. Making matters worse was the fact they lost captain Jess Maclennan, who started ahead of star signing Jane Watson, to a knee injury early in the same quarter.

It was a mixed night for the Tactix shooters, who had to deal with standout Pulse defender Sulu Fitzpatrick and captain Katrina Grant. Brooke Leaver was the pick of them though, scoring 13 from 16 attempts.

Central Pulse 52 (Aliyah Dunn 33/40, Tiana Metuarau 16/17, Ameliaranne Ekenasio 3/4) Mainland Tactix 44 (Kate Beveridge 18/25, Ellie Bird 13/17, Brooke Leaver 13/16)

Q1: 15-11, HT: 30-17, Q3: 43-29

Standings: Central Pulse 6, Mainland Tactix 4, Northern Mystics 3, Southern Steel 2*, Northern Stars 1*, Waikato-Bay of Plenty Magic 0​**

* Denotes game in hand

 - Stuff