DICKINSON – The Valley City State women's basketball team hit a season-high 11 three-pointers to cruise past the Blue Hawks in Friday's regular season finale, 79-63.

Valley City State and Dickinson State each finish the regular season with an 8-12 overall record and a 6-8 conference record. Valley City State wins the head-to-head tiebreaker to secure the No. 5 seed for the NSAA Tournament. The Vikings will travel to No. 4 Mayville State on Tuesday, Feb. 23, for the opening round. The conference office will release the official NSAA Tournament bracket on Saturday.

Junior forward Alexis Bentz led all scorers off the Viking bench, pouring in a career-high 24 points, including six 3's. Maara Nelson scored 20 points and dished out a team-high five assists Friday. Senior Macey Kvilvang finished with a double-double, adding 10 points and 12 rebounds while also tallying five blocked shots.

It was all Valley City State Friday night as the Vikings never trailed in the game. The Vikings held the Blue Hawks to just nine points in the third quarter and took a 20-point lead and largest of the game on a three-pointer from Bentz with 9:09 left to play. Dickinson State closed the gap to just nine points on a three-pointer from Sunshine Vicente, but Valley City State sank 9-of-10 free throws in the final two minutes to ice the victory.

"There are not enough words to explain how proud I am of this group. They play with so much grit and determination." said head coach Vanessa Johnson. "We have more and more players step up in big moments down the stretch and that is how you are going to win in the tournament. It's a whole new season now, we have to stay focused."

Valley City State shot 54 percent from the field (27-50), 50 percent on 3's (11-22), and 82 percent on free throws (14-17). Dickinson State shot 31 percent on field goals (22-70), 26 percent on three-pointers (8-31), and 92 percent from the free throw line (11-12).

The Vikings out rebounded the Blue Hawks 44-29 Friday night. The Blue Hawks tallied 12 steals as a team and committed just 10 turnovers in the game.

Courtney Olson led Dickinson State with 22 points. Shali Sheridan added 16 points and Dakota Dosch scored 12 points off the Blue Hawk bench.

UP NEXT: The No. 5 Vikings travel to No. 4 Mayville State in the opening round of the NSAA Tournament on Tuesday, Feb. 23. Tip is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.