The Valley City State University women's basketball team suffered a pair of losses this weekend in Mitchell, S.D.
Playing in the Dakota Wesleyan Classic, the Vikings loss to Hastings College on Friday by a score of 84-63. On Saturday, VCSU dropped a close game to Dakota Wesleyan, 79-74.
Valley City State is now 4-3 overall this season. Both Hastings and Dakota Wesleyan remain undefeated at 4-0.
Up next: The Vikings are on the road Thursday, Nov. 19, for a 7 p.m. exhibition game at North Dakota State University.
Hastings College 84, VCSU 63
Hastings shot 57 percent in the second half on Friday, pulling away from Valley City State in the final two periods for an 84-63 victory.
Hastings, which was a final four team at the national tournament last season, led 41-34 at halftime and outscored the Vikings 26-16 in the third quarter to build a 67-50 lead.
The Vikings committed 17 turnovers that led to 24 points for Hastings. The Broncos outscored VCSU 38-4 in second-chance points and points off turnovers.
Sara Schwanke and Georgia Williams each had 15 points to lead Valley City State's offense. The Vikings shot 47 percent overall in the game, 55 percent on 3's and 69 percent on free throws.
Schwanke went 3-for-3 on 3-pointers, part of a 6-for-11 team effort from behind the 3-point line. Alli Vandal added eight points and nine rebounds, and Courtney Dixon chipped in seven points. Lexi Lennon had six points and six assists in the loss.
Hastings College shot 44 percent from the field, 42 percent on 3's and 80 percent on free throws. Four different Broncos scored in double figures, led by 13 points each from Teeka Thompson and Rachel Jelden. The Broncos committed just nine turnovers.
Dakota Wesleyan 79, VCSU 74
Valley City State shot 53 percent from the field (29-55) but it wasn't enough to overcome host Dakota Wesleyan, which defeated VCSU 79-74 on Saturday.
Georgia Williams poured in 28 points to lead VCSU in the loss, going 11-for-17 from the field. Lexi Lennon had 20 points and six rebounds, as she shot 7-for-11 from the field. Mackenzie Huber had nine points and eight rebounds.
VCSU was 5-for-16 on 3-pointers, and went 11-for-14 at the free throw line. Dakota Wesleyan shot 44 percent from the field (28-63), 44 percent on 3's (8-18) and 75 percent on free throws (15-20).
Similar to Friday, the Vikings were hurt by too many turnovers. VCSU turned the ball over 19 times Saturday, which led 27 points for Dakota Wesleyan.
Dakota Wesleyan built its largest lead of the game at 52-39 midway through the third quarter. The Vikings came storming back, using a 15-2 run to tie the game at 54-54 late in the quarter. The teams were tied two more times in the fourth quarter, but VCSU was never able to regain the lead.
Erica Herrold scored 17 points to lead four Dakota Wesleyan players in double figures.
