JAMESTOWN – The Valley City State women's basketball team won a Top 25 battle Monday night, outscoring rival University of Jamestown by 15 points in the second half en route to a 67-55 victory.

The Vikings and Jimmies are tied for the No. 16 ranking in the Top 25 Preseason Coaches' Poll, but on Monday night the Vikings outscored Jamestown 37-22 in the second half to secure a big road victory. Valley City State overcame 21 turnovers with a strong defensive effort, holding Jamestown to just 28 percent shooting. Offensively, the Vikings went 8-for-11 from 3-point range to spark the victory.

VCSU improves to 2-3 overall this season, snapping a three-game losing streak. Monday's contest was their third game against a ranked opponent in the last seven days. Jamestown drops to 3-1 overall.

Four Vikings scored in double figures led by 15 points from Kate Williams. Mackenzie Huber added 13 points and seven rebounds, including nine points in the fourth quarter. Alli Vandal had 11 points and seven rebounds, while Dierra Diegel tallied 10 points and seven rebounds. Diegel scored seven of her points in the fourth quarter.

Hannah Schlecht, Diegel and Zoie Breckheimer all went 2-for-2 on 3-point shots, highlighting VCSU's 8-for-11 performance from beyond the arc.

The Vikings went on a 10-0 run early in the second quarter, which was punctuated by a Breckheimer 3-pointer that put VCSU up 23-18. The Jimmies responded by scoring 13 of the next 17 points to open up their own five-point advantage at 31-26. Jamestown went into the locker room leading 33-30.

The Vikings started to take control in third quarter. Valley City State went 4-for-5 from 3-point range in the third quarter – including both of Schlecht's 3's – helping to build a 46-41 lead entering the final period.

Jamestown's Emma Stoehr made a 3-pointer to start the fourth quarter, cutting VCSU's lead to 46-44. From there, the Vikings went inside for their next run. Starting center Mackenzie Huber scored the next seven points, sparking a 9-0 run by the Vikings that put them ahead 55-44. Jamestown twice cut the Viking lead to five points down the stretch, but a late 3-pointer by Dierra Diegel and the Vikings going 7-for-8 on free throws in the final minute clinched the victory.

Valley City State's defense held Jamestown to just 28 percent shooting in the game. With the Jimmies trying to fight back late in the fourth quarter, both Diegel and Huber took charges in the lane that kept the momentum with the Vikings.

"I'm proud of the way we battled on the defensive end tonight," said VCSU head coach Vanessa Keeler-Johnson. "Even though we turned the ball over 21 times, we were able to hold them to 28 percent shooting and kept battling to the end."

Valley City State shot 45 percent overall (23-51), 73 percent on 3's (8-11) and 65 percent at the line (13-20). Jamestown was 28 percent overall (17-61), 23 percent on 3's (7-31) and 61 percent at the line (14-23).

The Vikings had 21 turnovers and 11 assists, while Jamestown finished with 15 turnovers and nine assists. VCSU held a 48-31 rebounding advantage, including a slight 13-12 advantage on the offensive glass.

Up next: Valley City State travels to St. Cloud State on Saturday for an exhibition game at 2 p.m.