VALLEY CITY, ND  (NewsDakota.com)  There were a couple of moments where Valley City was getting the better end of the deal in Kindred Monday night, but those moments could not hold up against the state’s top-ranked team.

Early threes by Miken Mattson and Bryson Heck gave the Hi-Liners a first-quarter lead, and a 9-0 run on threes by the duo cut into a Kindred lead early in the second half, but four double-figure scorers for the Vikings led Kindred to a 71-40 win in Kindred Monday night in the final game of the regular season for both teams.

Kindred will finish as the top seed in the upcoming regional tournament.  Valley City will be the sixth seed into the tournament, and likely face Northern Cass in the opening round.

The threes by Mattson and Heck in the first quarter followed an ally-oop reverse slam by Kindred’s Presley Peraza on the game’s opening play.  Valley City held the game together for  the first four minutes, taking an 8-7 lead, before Kindred ended the quarter on a 15-0 run to lead 22-8.  The Vikings would lead 44-15 after a half.

Mattson hit two threes and Heck added one to fuel a 9-0 run by Valley City to start the third quarter, cutting the lead to 20 and forcing a Kindred time out.  The Vikings quickly recovered, and re-established a 24-point lead at the end of  the quarter, stretching the lead to 30 in the fourth to force running time.

Mattson led the Hi-Liners with 16 points, with Heck added 12.  Karson Oase led all scorers with 18 for Kindred.

Valley City finishes the regular season 9-13, and plays in the Region 1A tournament at the SHAC in Fargo next week.