VALLEY CITY, N.D. – The Valley City State women's basketball team wasted little time giving its home crowd something to cheer about Tuesday night.
The Vikings poured in 30 first-quarter points, built a commanding halftime lead and kept pulling away for an 87-47 victory over Minnesota Morris inside W.E. Osmon Fieldhouse.
Olivia Backus led VCSU with 17 points, Liz Lukken added 15 points and six rebounds, and Tiyana Schwinghammer finished with 12 points, six rebounds and two blocks. Eleven Vikings scored as VCSU paired a balanced offensive effort with a defense that made the Cougars work for every basket.
Schwinghammer opened the scoring with a layup, Lukken followed with a 3-pointer and Delaney Cotton added a basket to give the Vikings a quick 7-0 lead.
Minnesota Morris settled in and eventually trimmed the deficit to 9-8, but VCSU answered with a 12-0 run. Cassidy Shute knocked down two 3-pointers during the stretch, helping turn a one-point game into a 21-8 Viking advantage.
Backus added five straight VCSU points later in the quarter, and Schwinghammer scored the Vikings' final four points of the opening period to make it 30-14.
The Vikings continued to control the game in the second quarter. Cotton scored twice and Schwinghammer added another basket as VCSU opened the period with seven unanswered points. On the other end, the Vikings held Minnesota Morris to seven points for the entire quarter.
Ellie Braaten finished the half with a layup in the closing seconds, sending VCSU into the locker room ahead 46-21.
The break did little to slow the Vikings. Cotton opened the third quarter with two free throws, Braaten connected from beyond the arc and VCSU continued to find contributions throughout its lineup.
Backus scored six points in the third, while Dacota Potratz added a late 3-pointer. The Vikings outscored Minnesota Morris 24-10 in the period to take a 70-31 lead into the fourth.
VCSU's advantage grew to as many as 43 points in the final quarter as the Vikings completed the 40-point victory.
The Vikings shot 48.5 percent from the field and went 14-for-15 at the free-throw line. They also controlled the boards, outrebounding Minnesota Morris 41-22, and turned 20 Cougar turnovers into 24 points.
Potratz led VCSU with nine rebounds while scoring seven points and making both of her 3-point attempts. Shute finished with nine points, Cotton added eight, and Brooke Welle contributed six points and two steals. Braaten recorded five points, six rebounds and three assists.
Minnesota Morris shot 26.3 percent from the field. Gianna Klarenbeek led the Cougars with 19 points.
UP NEXT: Valley City State hosts Trinity Bible College on Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 5:30 p.m. inside W.E. Osmon Fieldhouse.
