Box Score
MAYVILLE, ND – The #23 Comets returned home on Friday night for another back-to-back home stand against their longtime rival, Valley City State, who also came to the Lewy Lee Fieldhouse in the national rankings at #19 in the country. It was going to be another special battle between the schools with both teams nationally ranked and near the top of the NSAA standings.
The Vikings jumped ahead right away after a Comet score with an 8-0 run to get things going. MSU answered with a
Sydney Gangl three, followed up by a pair of layups from
Cyan Hale to draw the Comets to within one, down 12-11. The Vikings countered with a 7-3 run to close the quarter out at 19-14 in favor of the Vikings.
Things in the second quarter did not go kindly for the Comets, as they hit some struggling points right away. VCSU started it off with an 8-2 run, causing Coach Hutter to call a timeout to refocus the team. The Vikings then proceeded to finish out the half with a 19-8 run led by Lexi Lennon, boosting their lead by 22, the scoreboard reading 46-24.
Rebounding was a leading factor between the teams, VCSU had 31 compared to the Comets' seven. First half shooting for the Comets was below their average, going 8-28 from the field and netting only 2-15 from behind the arc.
The second half started out even in scoring from both teams. The Comets found some scoring streaks, but they were quickly answered by the Vikings. VCSU was able to maintain a steady gap over the Comets, leading by 23 after the third. The momentum continued for the Vikings, as they quietly put in another 20 points in the fourth. In the end, the Vikings won 84-56.
Leading all scorers was Lexi Lennon for VCSU with 20. She was followed by Mackenzie Huber with 17, Alli Vandal with eleven and Hannah Schlecht with ten for the Vikings. Schlecht also had a double-double night with 13 rebounds.
For the Comets,
Karleigh Weber led with 13, followed by
Cyan Hale with eleven, and
Joelle Ertl with nine. The Comets fell in the battle of the boards, 59-28. The Comets struggled in shooting overall from the field, shooting 27% from the floor and 12% from behind the arc.
Next up for the #23 Comets (14-6, 5-4 NSAA) will be Dickinson State on Saturday afternoon at 3:00 pm, once again at home inside the Lewy Lee Fieldhouse.
