The Valley City State women's basketbal team was edged out by the #24 Dickinson State Bluehawks on Monday night by a score of 68-64.

Dickinson State's Lorna Shepherd scored a go-ahead layup with 40 seconds left, giving DSU the lead for good at 63-62. Shepherd would make four late free throws to seal the win for the Bluehawks.

Dickinson State was led in scoring by Megan Klein with 21 points. She also added 13 rebounds for a double-double.  

The Bluehawks raced out to an early 5-0 lead which would be their largest of the game.  A pair of 3's by Nisja Bass and Georgia Williams would give the Vikings a 6-5 lead in a sign of things to come. Neither team was able to gain much of an upper hand and the Blue Hawks led 30-28 at halftime. The game saw 16 lead changes and 10 ties.

The Vikings were led in scoring by Lexi Lennon with 20 points, and Georgia Williams added 16.  

The Vikings committed 11 turnovers to DSU's 20. However, VCSU was out-rebounded 32-22 and reached the free throw line only four times compared to DSU's 16 free throw attempts.

The Vikings fall to 15-6 overall and 6-2 in NSAA play. Dickinson State improves to 14-5 overall and 7-1 in NSAA play.

Up Next: Valley City State matches up against Dickinson State again, this time in Dickinson on Friday night. Tip off is set for 6:30 p.m.(CST)