VALLEY CITY – The No. 4 Valley City State women’s basketball team finished its season Wednesday night in front of a standing crowd, falling to No. 5 Viterbo University, 85-66.

Viterbo utilized a strong defensive effort Wednesday, tallying 18 steals as a team and scoring 36 points off of 29 Viking turnovers. The V-Hawks’ pressure controlled a majority of the game as Viterbo tallied 23 more shots than the Vikings on Wednesday.

Valley City State shot 41 percent from the field (21-52), 28 percent on 3’s (5-18), and 76 percent from the free throw line (19-25). Viterbo shot 41 percent from the field (31-75), 26 percent on 3’s (18-22), and 81 percent from the free throw line (18-22). The V-Hawks also narrowly out-rebounded the Vikings, 40-38.

The game featured five lead changes in the first quarter as the two teams battled for the advantage. The Vikings held onto an early lead until a 3-pointer from Madison Lindauer tied it up at 7-7 with 4:13 on the clock. The Vikings broke the V-Hawk press to score on a Dani Schwanke 3-pointer to take the lead at 12-11 with 3:01 to go in the first. Over the next three minutes, the V-Hawks took back the lead and finished the first quarter with an 18-16 advantage.

A layup from Macey Kvilvang opened the second quarter and tied the game up at 18-18. A 3-point play from Lindauer started a 14-4 run for the V-Hawks, giving them a double figure lead at 34-24 with 3:34 to play in the half. The V-Hawks continued to extend their lead, holding a 45-28 advantage at halftime.

Trailing 67-48 early in the fourth quarter, a 3-point play from Mackenzie Huber would start a 12-3 Viking run to get as close as 10 points of Viterbo with 6:36 to play. The Vikings trailed by only 10 points again on a pair of free throws from Maara Nelson with 3:10 to play. From there, it was all Viterbo as they sealed the upset, 85-66.

Three Vikings scored in double figures Wednesday, led by senior Mackenzie Huber with 25 points, going 8-for-12 from the field and a perfect 9-for-9 on free throws. Dani Schwanke scored 13 points while Maara Nelson added 10. Macey Kvilvang tallied a team-high five assists and four blocks for Valley City State.

Huber finishes her career with 1302 career points, placing her at No. 8 in VCSU scoring history.

Five V-Hawks scored in double figures Wednesday, led by Ambree Schlosser with 23 points and a team-high six rebounds. Madison Lindauer poured in 15 points while Sophie Leinfelder scored 12, Alyssa Nilssen added 11 and Kacie Gross scored 10.

Valley City state finishes the season with a 12-14 overall record. Viterbo improves to 12-14 and continues play at the Final Four of the NSAA tournament beginning Saturday, February 29, in Watertown, S.D.