Dakota Valley Esports carried its strong Week 1 momentum straight into the second week of competition (on November 17-20, 2025) showcasing depth, experience, and talent across nearly every game title. From Mario Kart to League of Legends, the Panthers proved once again why they remain one of South Dakota’s top esports programs.

Dakota Valley captures Class A crown Dakota Valley was the #1 seed,in Class A, at the 2025 state tournament. The Panthers took on #8 Wagner in their 1st round of play at Summit Arena at The Monument in Rapid City.

Dakota Valley Esports returned to competition this week with a strong start across multiple game titles. After a productive preseason, our athletes are already showing why DV is a defending state champion program. Here are the highlights from Week 1: Mario Kart – A Perfect Start (4–0 Across All Teams)

The Metros Varsity squad enters a bye week still searching for a win, holding a 0-8 record. The Metros Program currently sits with just 20 skaters across its JV/Varsity roster. Injuries have compounded the uphill battle, as Varsity has yet to compete with a full roster. Three of the program’s four DV athletes—Trosper, Delperdang, and Stusse remain sidelined with upper-shoulder injuries, leaving the team short-handed during the opening stretch. Assistant Captain Jax Trosper spoke about the anticipation of finally having a complete bench. “We forced overtime against a top team missing some key guys, I can’t imagine a team we can’t beat when we have everybody”, he said. Trosper described the atmosphere in the locker room as engaged and focused, giving some insight as to the team’s mindset as they push through adversity. “We have a lot of young guys looking for guidance, and they’re responding to coaching as well as our leadership group’s direction. They are improving rapidly. Our goal is to make state where anything can happen.”

Accolades continue for Elk Point-Jefferson’s football program in 2025. And this time it is the man at the helm, Jacob Terry, receiving a well deserved honor as he was named Class 11B Head Coach of the Year. The award was announced in the midst of November during South Dakota high school football’s post-season.

Centerville, South Dakota was the neutral site for Dakota Valley’s volleyball match in the SoDak 16 qualifier versus Platte-Geddes. The contest took place on Tuesday, November 11, 2025 with the winner punching a ticket to the Class A state tournament. The Panthers were the #1 seed and Platte-Geddes came in seeded #16.

A battle of the unbeatens unfolded on Friday, November 14, 2025 as Elk Point-Jefferson faced St. Thomas More (STM) in the DakotaDome for the Class 11B football state finals.

Hosting the semifinals for 11B playoff football were the Elk Point-Jefferson Huskies on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. Their opponent was Deuel who received the kick-off to start the contest. The weather was chilly, but both teams appeared warmed up and ready as an invitation to the state finals was on the line.

Regional play in Class A volleyball started for the Huskies on Tuesday, November 4, 2025. It was an away contest as Elk Point-Jefferson was seeded #5 to take on the #4 C-Hawks in Canton.

As the #1 seed in region 4 for Class A volleyball, Dakota Valley hosted the semifinals on Thursday, November 6, 2025. The Panthers received a bye for the 1st round of regional play. The 2nd round had them facing Elk Point-Jefferson (EPJ) for an opportunity to advance to the SoDak 16 state qualifying match.