The Valley City State women's basketball team fell just short in Saturday's conference opener at Bellevue Saturday afternoon. The Vikings held a 40-32 halftime lead but ultimately fell to the Bruins 70-65.
 
JayCee Richter made a clutch 3-pointer with 13 seconds on the clock to keep the game within one possession Saturday, but it wasn't enough as Bellevue's Gabby Moore sank a pair of free throws to secure the win.
 
Bellevue improves to 9-3 on the season and 2-0 in conference play. VCSU drops to 8-4 overall and opens its NSAA schedule at 0-1.
 
After opening the first quarter trailing 19-18, VCSU took 13 straight points to open the second frame to hold a 31-19 lead capped by an Abby Aslesen layup. The Vikings held onto the lead with the help of a Tilda Mauritzson 3-pointer en route to a 40-32 advantage at halftime.
 
Coming out of the locker room, Bellevue exploded to outscore the Vikings 21-9 including three 3's to take over a 53-49 lead going into the fourth quarter. VCSU tied the game at 53-53 on a bucket by Richter with under nine minutes to play. The teams continued to battle until Bellevue went on a 9-0 run including two 3's by Gabby Moore with 6 minutes to go.
 
The game remained close and VCSU closed the gap to trail 66-62 on a 3-pointer from Ashlyn Diemert with two minutes remaining. A clutch 3-pointer from Richter with 13 seconds on the clock narrowed the gap to 68-65. The Vikings had to foul to regain possession, and Bellevue's Moore sank a pair of free throws to ice the win 70-65.
 
VCSU shot 41 percent from the field (27-66), 39 percent on 3's (7-18) and 50 percent on free throws (4-8) Saturday. Bellevue shot 34 percent on field goals (24-70), 27 percent on 3-pointers (6-22) and 84 percent from the charity stripe (16-19).
 
VCSU held the edge with 34 points in the paint and 15 bench points while Bellevue led with 13 second chance points and 12 fast break points. VCSU totaled 14 assists and 17 turnovers in the game. Bellevue posted 11 assists and just nine turnovers Saturday.
 
Aslesen finished with a double double of 18 points and 12 rebounds in the conference opener while also posting two blocks and a steal for the Vikings. Diemert added 18 points, including three 3's, while Richter scored 13. Ellie Braaten and Elyse Hebrink each grabbed ten rebounds and Braaten dished a game-high six assists Saturday.

Bellevue's Josias Mickens scored a team-high 17 points while Moore chipped in 16 points and three 3-pointers. Ashtyn Arnold (12) and Zakiyyah Muhammad (10) rounded out Bruins scoring in double figures, and each finished with a double double with 10 rebounds apiece.
 
UP NEXT: VCSU continues conference play at No. 6 Dakota State on Sunday at 3 p.m. with the men to follow at 5 p.m.