VALLEY CITY, N.D. – Valley City State University volleyball comes up just short in a five-set thriller against (RV) Carroll College on Friday, Oct. 24, at Graichen Gym. The Vikings fell 18-25, 25-18, 25-20, 25-21, and 17-15 to the Carroll College Fighting Saints.

VCSU is now 9-13 overall and 7-10 in Frontier Conference games. (RV) Carroll College improves to 15-10 overall and 10-7 in Frontier Conference games.

The Vikings took the first set 25-18 with a dominant performance later on in the set. Initially, they trialed 4-2 after the Saints capitalized on a few Vikings errors. The Viking later tied the game at 5-5 with a big block by Rosie Anderson and Danielle Hagler. The set was close until the Vikings went on a 4-0 run, stretching a 14-13 lead to 18-13, courtesy of kills by Morgan Freije and Eden Carrier, and a solo block by Anderson. They continued to build that lead, standing tall with assisted blocks by Emma Lucas with Hagler, and Emma Lucas with Freije, later closing the set 25-18.

Early in the second set, VCSU saw a 4-0 run from Carroll, leading to a 9-4 Carroll lead, and a timeout from Valley. The Vikings settled in and nearly evened up the score following a kill by Macy Fridgen and Freije, along with a pair of aces served by JayCee Richter. The teams battled it out in the middle of the second set, finding a tie game once again at 16-16. There the Saints went on a 7-0 run that would be enough to secure the set for them at 25-18.

In the third, the Vikings found themselves down 6-5, seeing another long Carroll run that ended with the Saints leading 11-5. A kill by Hagler ended the run. The saints rallied again, growing their lead to 16-6, where the Vikings would find a little moment with kills by Fridgen, Emma Lucas, and Anderson, narrowing the lead to 18-12. The Vikings later found three straight kills from Ellie Lucas and later Danielle Hagler getting within three at 23-20, but came up short in taking the third set.

Needing the fourth set, the Vikings played some gritty volleyball where they never let the Saints score more than three in a row. The set went back and forth with ten ties and seven lead changes, seeming like neither team could get too far ahead. Tied at 21-21, the Vikings took four straight scoring on kills by Hagler and Fridgen to take the set 25-21.

The fifth set was much of the same, with the teams battling out each point. The Vikings found a 12-8 lead after kills by both Emma and Ellie Lucas. After a timeout, Carroll rallied and tied the game at 14-14, where they would later take the set and match at 17-15.

The Vikings were led by Fridgen tallying 17 kills, along with Hagler, who had 16. JayCee Richter tallied a career high of 38 digs while serving three aces in the match. Anderson put up five blocks while Hagler and Freije had four. Madden Bogenreif and Gracie Schumacher had 33 and 24 assists.

UP NEXT: The Vikings take on Rocky Mountain College at 6:00 p.m. at Graichen Gym.