South Dakota’s 1st sanctioned regular season for esports concluded for the Panthers on Thursday, February 6, 2025. It was a stellar 8 weeks of play by Dakota Valley as they qualified 30 for the state tournament in Aberdeen on February 14-15, 2025.

Wrestlers at Dakota Valley were very busy during a 3 day stretch of matches, duals and tournaments. First up was a contest, in Nebraska, on Thursday, February 6, 2025. A good crowd was in attendance as the Panther Wrestling youth club joined the DV high schoolers to show support and also wrestle some bouts against Ponca and Homer.

The Panther elementary school building was rockin’ on Thursday, January 30, 2025 in the most literal sense. It was STEM night and this year’s theme revolved around gems, rocks, minerals and stones. The acronym STEM stands for: science, technology, engineering and mathematics. And from 5 pm to 7 pm, Dakota Valley families were encouraged to stop by the elementary school and have fun with STEM learning in regards to minerals, gemstones, paleontology and more.

The Panther boys faced #1 ranked Sioux Falls Christian (SFC), at home, on Thursday, January 30, 2025. The score was 4-7 quickly when Logan Collette sent a laser throw from the arc that beelined itself into the hoop.

The Panther wrestling squad traveled to Parkston for duals versus the Trojans, Mount Vernon/Plankinton/ Corsica-Stickney (MVPC) and Garretson on Tuesday, January 28, 2025. It was a dynamic evening for Dakota Valley as they won the majority of their duals.

The Panther girls had a slow start to their offense against undefeated Sioux Falls Christian (SFC) on Thursday, January 30, 2025. Down 1-9, Dakota Valley struggled with pressure in the full court. However, the varsity squad dug deep and went on a 5-0 run to make up ground. The Chargers hit a long 3-pointer at the end of the 1st quarter to have DV down 7-16.

In the second to last week of regular season play, Panther esports athletes are striving to advance to the postseason. The 2025 Fenworks/SDHSAA South Dakota esports state tournament will occur on February 14-15 in Aberdeen. Central High School is set to be the host.

Metros have experienced it all in just two weeks of regular season play with shutouts, shootouts, and a split. Omaha jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period during the Saturday, January 25th game. Metros fought back and the contest went into overtime where Sioux City secured the 3-2 win. Forward Karson Fitch, a Senior at Heelan High School, broke the Sioux City Metros record for career assists, recording his 104th and 105th assists. The previous record of 103 had stood for 10 years. Sunday’s game provided spectators with intense action and numerous penalties by both benches. The outcome was a 2-3 loss to the Jr. Lancers.

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The Panther varsity wrestling squad had their work cut out from them as they faced strong competition on Saturday, January 25, 2025 for the DAK XII Conference Tournament. The event took place in Elk Point and was hosted by the Huskies.