VALLEY CITY, N.D. (VCSUVikings.com) – The Valley City State University women’s basketball team has earned a No. 4 seed for the NAIA National Tournament and will face No. 5 seed St. Francis (Ill.) in the opening round, Thursday, March 8, at 1:45 p.m.

The Vikings were announced Wednesday night as the No. 4 seed in the Duer Bracket of the NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball National Tournament. The 32-team tournament is seeded into four brackets of eight teams, and runs March 7-13 at the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa. First round games will be played March 7-8. 

Valley City State is ranked No. 14 in the final Top 25 Coaches’ Poll released Wednesday. The Vikings earned an automatic bid to the national tournament after defeating University of Jamestown in the North Star Athletic Association Tournament Championship on Sunday. VCSU set a school record this season with 25 wins, and enters the tournament with a 25-4 overall record. 

Valley City State is heading to the national tournament for the second straight season and the fifth time in program history – all of which have come since 2011. VCSU is 0-4 in its previous national tournament appearances. This year’s No. 4 seed is the highest seed in program history. 

VCSU National Tournament Appearances

2011: (4) Sterling (Kan.) 71, (5) VCSU 65

2012: (1) College of the Ozarks 57, (8) VCSU 51

2013: (3) Bethel (Ind.) 79, (6) VCSU 63

2017: (2) Southeastern (Fla.) 87, (7) VCSU 58

2018: (4) VCSU vs. (5) St. Francis (Ill.), March 8, 1:45 p.m.

St. Francis is ranked No. 19 in the final Top 25 poll. The Fighting Saints earned an at-large bid to the national tournament. St. Francis is a member of the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference, and has a 20-8 overall record. St. Francis went 16-4 in conference play, finishing third in the CCAC standings. This is the third national tournament appearance for St. Francis, which has a 3-2 record at the national tournament. The Fighting Saints were a No. 1 seed for last year’s tournament and advanced to the semifinals before losing to eventual national champion Marian (Ind.). 

If VCSU can win its first round matchup, it’s likely that No. 1 seed College of the Ozarks – the No. 3-ranked team in the country – will be waiting in the next round. 

University of Jamestown received a No. 2 seed for the national tournament and faces No. 7 seed Cardinal Stritch in the opening round, Wednesday, March 7, at 10:15 a.m.