Box Score VALLEY CITY, N.D.  – A 13-0 run for Valley City State University was enough to lead them past the University of Minnesota, Crookston 68-60 in the Golden Eagles' regular-season opener on the road at W.P. Osmon Fieldhouse in Valley City, N.D. Monday night. UMC falls to 0-1 on the season while Valley City State is 2-1 on the season with wins over Dordt College and UMC. The Golden Eagles struggled to hold on to the ball on the game as they had 24 turnovers.

 The Vikings did take the Golden Eagles' fellow NSIC team, Minnesota State University, Moorhead to overtime in an exhibition loss last Friday. UMC had not played a game since Nov. 1 when they played North Dakota State University in an exhibition.

Brittani Wiese (Sr., G, Albertville, Minn.), who is coming off a major knee injury that ended her season last year, led the team with 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the field. The Golden Eagles shot 25-of-55 for 45.5 percent for the game. They were 5-of-21 from beyond the arc and 5-of-12 from the free-throw line. Four of UMC's three-pointers came from Ashley Martell (So., G, Somerset, Wis.), who finished with 14 points. The Golden Eagles were out-rebounded on the night 40 to 24 and were led by four players with four boards on the game.

Valley City State was paced by three players who scored in double figures. Courtney Titus led the team with 18 points on five-of-five shooting from the field. Brittany Lehner added 14 points and had nine rebounds while Alyssa Hummel chipped in 11 points. The Vikings shot 50 percent for the game.

The University of Minnesota, Crookston took a narrow 28-27 lead after a back-and-forth first half against Valley City State. The Golden Eagles went down 3-0 early against the Vikings but used a 7-0 rally to get it to 7-3 early on but Valley City State quickly struck back and it was close for most of the first half. UMC's biggest lead was by six at the 3:40 mark before the Vikings were able to cut into the lead late in the opening half.

UMC shot 11-of-28 for 39.3 percent in the first half. They converted on 2-of-9 from beyond the arc and were 4-of-7 from the charity stripe. The Golden Eagles were out-rebounded 18 to 12 on the glass in the first half. 2011 All-NSIC Second Team pick Wiese and Martell led the team with six points in the half as she was 3-of-7 from the field. Freshman Alexa Thielman (G, Buffalo, Minn.) added five while Jaya Perkins (R-Fr., G, Lakeville, Minn.) and Carli Bunning (Sr., F, Boone, Iowa) added four apiece.

Laurie Tyson (Sr., C, Rosemount, Minn.) led the Golden Eagles on the boards with four in the first half.

Valley City State was paced in the first half by Lehner, who had eight points and seven boards. The Vikings were 8-of-21 from the field for 38.1 percent. Titus added six points and also dished out three assists in the first half. The Vikings were 10-of-15 from the free-throw line in the first half.

The Golden Eagles fended off a quick Valley City State start to the second frame as the Vikings started the second half on a 7-2 run after being down 28-27 at the break. The Golden Eagles would respond led by the play of Katrina Moenkedick (Fr., F, Perham, Minn.) who ignited UMC with six back-to-back points half-way through the second half to make it UMC 49, Valley City State 45 but the Vikings came back with a run of their own scoring 13 of the next 16 points to make it 58-52 with just under six minutes left in the game.

UMC was able to get back into the game as Martell started the comeback attempt with her fourth three-pointer of the game with 4:17 left in the second half. A made free-throw by Tyson cut into Viking lead further making it VSU 58, UMC 56. However, Valley City State was able to widen their lead to 60-56 as Alyssa Hummel hit the basket on the other end. A Wiese lay-up with just over a minute cut the lead to two for the Vikings but Sadiqah Jihad responded on the other end to make it Valley City State 62-58. A steal by the Vikings and another lay-up to make it 64-58 with 33 seconds left. UMC was unable convert free throws to cut into the lead and Valley City State was able to make their shots to put the score at 66-58. Wiese made a quick lay-up to put it at VCSU 66, UMC 60, the Vikings missed two free throws and Martell attempted a three but the Golden Eagles to unable to mount enough of a comeback as Titus iced the victory with two free throws to make the final tally Valley City State 68, UMC 60.

The Golden Eagles will return to action Thursday as they play Mayville State University in Mayville, N.D.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics Web site at www.goldeneaglesports.com.

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The University of Minnesota, Crookston is an NCAA Division II Institution and a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). The Golden Eagle Equestrian team is a member of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA).