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CITY (NewsDakota.com)–During Jill DeVries’ tenure at Valley City State, the head Vikings womens’ basketball coach has refused to acknowledge moral victories.
Even DeVries had to notice this one.
A patchwork Vikings team, limited to nine players and missing three starters, took the game to the North Dakota State University Bison in the second half, dropping an 85-64 decision at the Bison Sports Arena Saturday afternoon.
Stephanie Peterson (Fr., Mandan, ND) led a torrid Viking pace that outplayed the Bison 45-38 in the second half, scoring 15 of her 17 points in the second half, a half that saw the Vikings drain seven of 13 three-point shots.
The Vikings refused to back down to the much bigger Bison. A front line that features 6’5″ Janae Burich (Jr., Roseville, MN), 6’1″ Catavia Jones (Jr., St Paul, MN) and four 5’11” players scored just 28 of the team’s 85 points in the paint. The Viking bench outscored that of the Bison 27-19 for the game.
Had it not been for Abby Plucker (Sr., Parker, SD), the second half may have seen the Bison on the ropes. She scored 14 of her 17 during a stretch when the Vikings were denying everyone else.
Trailing 47-19 at the half, the hot-shooting of Peterson and Sierra Even (Fr., Windhom, MN) fueled an effort that cut the lead to as few as 17. Sadiqah Jihad (Fr., Minneapolis, MN) scored nine of her 13 points after the break, spending the game breaking down taller defenders and finishing at the rim.
North Dakota State built their big halftime lead behind six three-point shots and a variety of mid-range jumpers, and made it stick by using their size to limit Viking post opportunities and outrebound Valley City State 47-30.
Even the rebounding number is misleading. The much larger Bison team was simply beaten to loose balls and hustle plays in the second half, with the number on the boards even in the second 20 minutes. A tenacious Viking defense, led by Courtney Titus (Jr., Hankinson, ND) forced the Bison into 18 turnovers, while Valley City State committed just 15.
“Courtney (Titus) has done a nice job of leading this team,” said DeVries after the game. “I told the team that there are no more moral victories, but we had a great second half.”
The Vikings drop to 3-7 overall, and host Concordia College of Moorhead, MN, Monday. The game will be broadcast on Dakota Country Radio, with pregame starting at 6:35 p.m.