Hot weather did not slow down the Dakota Valley (DV) cross country team as they ran well at their home meet on September 1, 2026. Races for varsity, junior varsity (JV) and junior high were held at the Adams Homestead and Nature Preserve in McCook Lake. Teams from Iowa and South Dakota were in attendance.

A crisp back set from Madelyn Munch to Tinsley Sorensen made for a kill near the start of Dakota Valley’s volleyball season opener on August 27, 2026. The attack gave the Panthers a 2-1 edge over the Yankton Gazelles. It was an away game for the Panthers versus a Class AA opponent.

Travel to Hartford, South Dakota was on Dakota Valley’s agenda for the 1st football game of the 2026 season. The Panthers were set to battle a ranked West Central (WC) squad in the away contest. For Class 11A, the South Dakota Prep Media Football Poll had WC ranked in 4th place in early polling. Dakota Valley (DV) was not ranked in the top 5, but did receive votes. Sioux Falls Christian started the season ranked #1, followed by #2 Lennox and #3 Dell Rapids. Madison took the 5th spot with DV receiving the most votes thereafter.

The Panther dance squad traveled to Gregory, South Dakota on Saturday, August 29, 2026 for their season opener. High scores were earned across the board for Dakota Valley (DV) as their pom routine and jazz performance took top honors. The Panthers were overall champions on the day after placing 1st in pom and jazz.

A heartbreaker loss followed by a pair of wins was how Dakota Valley girls soccer closed out the month of August. They took a 1-2 loss versus #1 ranked Sioux Falls Christian (SFC), but steadily defeated St. Thomas More and Belle Fourche.

Cross country season started in Beresford, as it does every year, with an epic meet on August 27, 2026. It was a contest full of fantastic competition and personal records. Dakota Valley’s varsity girls and varsity boys both took home 5th place finishes in team scoring. Many secured top times and some brought home individual medals.

August was busy for the Panther boys golf program as meets were played on August 24, 2026 and a couple of days later on August 26, 2026. Dell Rapids was the team’s 1st destination as the Dakota Valley (DV) varsity roster placed 2nd overall as a team. They played the Rocky Run Golf Course and had a trio of Panthers secure individual medals.

Dakota Valley started quickly Saturday at Groton, with Bryan Cardona opening the scoring about 10 minutes into the match. Goalkeeper Diego Ayala started the buildup with a long pass to Jack Bomgaars on the left wing, who carried the ball forward before delivering a precise through ball to Cardona. Cardona finished the opportunity with a well-placed left-footed shot from near the edge of the penalty area into the back corner.

Golfers for the Dakota Valley boys team played in a couple of meets, in addition to starting school, during the 3rd week of August. Ten Panthers were at Central Valley Golf Course, in Hartford, on August 18, 2026 for the West Central Invite. More underclassmen battled the links on August 20 as they competed in the Madison Invite.

The Panther girls soccer team dominated in their home opener on August 18, 2026 as they defeated the Trojans of West Central by a score of 3-1. Six minutes into the game, Millie Squier, on defense, sent a nice ball up to Alexis Stusse in the midfield. From there Stusse found Quinn Bostead who then located Mallory Riibe coming up the side. Riibe passed to Isabella Mijangos who put the ball up to Sophie Meyer at outside forward. The ball was close to the goal and Meyer made a fantastic run, but brushed up with the Trojan’s goalkeeper. No goal was garnered, but it was early in the contest and already DV was moving the ball well.