VALLEY CITY, N.D. – With Mayville State one point away from forcing a fifth set, Valley City State found its finish.
The Vikings fought off set point before Molly Bjorneby put them ahead with a kill. Madden Bogenreif then set Madysen Geist for the winning swing, sealing a 19–25, 25–14, 25–22, 26–24 victory Wednesday at W.E. Osmon Fieldhouse.
Kadie Kocka led VCSU with 14 kills, while Bjorneby added 13 on a .250 hitting percentage. Bogenreif contributed nine kills, 19 assists and 17 digs as the Vikings improved to 7–14 overall and 5–9 in Frontier Conference play.
The dramatic finish followed an evening of Viking comebacks. Mayville State used a seven-point run to take control of the opening set, then held off a late VCSU push.
The Vikings answered with an 8–2 start in the second. Leading 16–13, VCSU strung together seven straight points to pull away before Ellie Lucas delivered the closing kill.
The third set brought another challenge. After falling behind 9–4, the Vikings worked back into contention but still trailed 21–19 late. VCSU claimed six of the final seven points, with a Gracie Schumacher ace helping the Vikings take a 2–1 match lead.
Mayville State responded by building a 20–16 advantage in the fourth and later led 23–20. Kills from Eden Carrier and Bogenreif helped bring VCSU even, setting up the final exchange that ended with Geist's sixth kill.
Schumacher finished with 22 assists, 16 digs and two aces. Reece Cave led the defense with 22 digs, Annika Pulju added 12, and Carrier recorded four blocks.
VCSU totaled 53 kills and 86 digs. Cadynce Dewitz led Mayville State with 11 kills, while Tori Richter collected 23 digs.
