At Presentation College

Women

VCSU 75 Presentation 57

Box Score

ABERDEEN, S.D (VCSU) . – The Valley City State women’s basketball team put together an explosive 53-point second half Friday night, defeating Presentation College by a final score of 75-57.

Ashlyn Diemert scored 19 second-half points and totaled a career-best 22 points in the game. She was 6-for-9 from the field, 3-for-3 from beyond the arc and 7-for-7 on free throws to round out a new career high. She added four rebounds, two steals and an assist in the game.

“We showed some fight in the second half that we haven’t shown early in games and I’m hoping we can find some more consistency with that,” said head coach Vanessa Johnson. “Overall, I’m very proud of us for finding ways to win down the stretch.”

The Vikings improve to 11-8 overall and 4-2 in NSAA play while Presentation drops to 1-16 on the season and 0-6 in the conference.

Nek Newell scored 15 points in the first half to help Presentation to a 27-22 lead at halftime, but the Vikings came back with an explosive second half while shooting 60 percent from the field. Out of the locker room, VCSU took a 15-3 run including 10 straight points from Diemert to hold a 37-30 advantage.

VCSU’s fourth quarter opened all Taryn Dieterle as she scored 12 points over the first five minutes en route to the double-figure win.

Dieterle finished the game with 19 points and five rebounds while Adriana Torres chipped in 11 points and Katie Johnson scored 10.

VCSU shot 77 percent in the fourth quarter (10-13) and 49 percent in the game (26-53). The Vikings also shot 35 percent from 3-point range (7-20) and 67 percent on free throws (16-24). Presentation shot 33 percent from the field (19-58), 10 percent on 3’s (1-10) and 75 percent from the line (18-24).

Presentation led the rebounding effort 36-31 and scored 16 second chance points. Each team tallied 10 steals and 13 points off turnovers.

The Saints had three players score in double figures, led by Nek Newell with 21 points, eight rebounds and four steals.

UP NEXT: VCSU travels to Mayville State on Saturday for a conference doubleheader. The women will tip at 3 p.m. followed by the men at 5 p.m.

Men

ABERDEEN, S.D. (VCSU) – Valley City State had 17 steals and forced 24 turnovers Friday night as the VCSU men’s basketball team earned a conference road win at Presentation College.

The Vikings took control with a 15-0 run early in the first half and led for the final 34 minutes of the contest, picking up an 84-72 victory.

With the win, Valley City State improves to 10-10 overall and 3-3 in conference play. Presentation College drops to 5-13 overall and 0-6 in the North Star.

“We went into a hostile environment and got a hard-fought road win,” said VCSU head coach Ryan Montgomery. “I’m proud of our ability to handle adversity.”

Trailing 9-6 early in the game, the Vikings ripped off 15 straight points to take control at 21-9. Cleveland Bedgood started the rally with a 3-pointer and Duoth Gach capped it with a 3 – one of four 3’s by Gach in the first half. The big run lasted just 2 minutes and was fueled by VCSU’s defense that forced turnovers on six straight Saints possessions.

The Vikings extended the lead to 44-30 at halftime and led by as many as 16 points in the second half.

Presentation College eventually trimmed the Viking lead to four points late in the second half at 66-62, but five straight points by Daevonte Munson sparked a 10-3 Viking run that put the game back out of reach.

“I thought Presentation College made good adjustments in the second half, and we handled them OK but we still need to improve in certain areas,” said Montgomery. “Our guys are learning what it takes to win conference games.”

Six players scored in double figures for VCSU, including 16 by Gach – all of which came in the first half. Cayden Rickard scored 13 second-half points and finished with 15 in the game. Daevonte Munson scored 10 of his 14 points in the second half. Off the bench, Joseph Owens had 13 points and seven rebounds, Bedgood finished with 12 points and six rebounds, and Edmon Paul Oyet had 10 points.

Gach, Munson, Owens and Oyet all had three steals each as the Vikings finished with 17 steals, which included 12 steals in the first half. VCSU held a 39-32 rebounding advantage and a 14-5 edge on the offensive glass.

VCSU shot 44 percent overall (31-71), 36 percent on 3’s (9-25) and 72 percent at the free throw line (13-18). Presentation College shot 49 percent from the field (29-59), 25 percent on 3’s (4-16) and 42 percent on free throws (10-24).

Up next: Valley City State travels to conference leader Mayville State on Saturday. The men’s game tips off at 5 p.m. in Mayville.