MINOT, N.D. – Home dates have been few and far between for the Minot State women's basketball team, but for the rest of the month there truly will be no place like home for the Beavers.

After one game in their first 10 at the MSU Dome, the Beavers finish the 2023 calendar year with five straight in their friendly home confines starting Tuesday as Minot State (2-8 overall, 1-2 NSIC) renews an old in-state rivalry with visiting Valley City State.

Former rivals in the Dakota Athletic Conference, the Vikings and Beavers last met in November of 2019 and have played just four times since Minot State made the leap to the NCAA – all Beaver victories.

And all exhibition contests for the Vikings (6-6 overall), the same as this meeting will be for Valley City State which has played one similar foe as Minot State, falling 77-43 at St. Cloud State in mid-November.

The Vikings are led by a pair of double-digit scorers in 5-foot-9 junior guard Ashlyn Diemert, who leads the team scoring at 10.8 points per game and has a team-best 17 3-pointers, and 5-10 senior guard Adriana Torres who averages 10.1 ppg and 5.7 rpg. Five-11 freshman forward Ellie Powell has led the efforts inside averaging 4.6 ppg and 7.1 rpg.

Valley City State comes in shooting just 36.4 percent from the field but makes up for that with a strong effort on the glass averaging 39.1 rebounds per game, including 12.5 rpg on the offensive end.

Minot State is led by junior-college All-American Sydney Gustavsson, a 5-7 guard who in her first season with the Beavers is averaging 13.3 ppg and 3.1 rpg.

Sophomore point guard Vilborg Jonsdottir (5-5) leads in rebounds (3.3 rpg) and assists (28), while sophomore forward Lorelei McIver (6-0) adds 4.0 ppg and 3.2 rpg.

Like the Vikings, Minot State's offense is under 40 percent from the field shooting 35.6 percent, and while the Beavers aren't commanding the glass as much as Valley City State as the Beavers average 32.4 rpg, they are tough on defense forcing 17.1 turnovers per game.