VALLEY CITY, ND (NewsDakota.com)  The mountain may be tall, but the Viking volleyball team may be peaking at the right time.

Valley City State took down the team that replaced them in the national poll voting, Dakota State 3-1 (26-24, 16-25, 25-22, 25-17) to avenge a sweep at the hands of the Trojans earlier this season.

The first match was one of the first matches the Vikings played after the injury to Danielle Hagler, their leading blocker and one of ther leading attackers.

A month to learn new roles has seemed to help the equation.  Macy Fridgen had 13 kills, three players hit the double figure mark offensively, and Sadie Hansen set the career record for assists Thursday night.

The Vikings rallied from deficits in both the first and third sets for wins.  The third saw tremendous back row defense from Reagan Bogenreif as a difference maker.  That continued through a fourth that saw a dominant Vikings team build and early lead and maintain it throughout.

The Vikings are now 5-4 in conference play, and 13-12 overall.  They host sixth-ranked Beelevue Friday night.