SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO.com) – Summit League officials revealed the upcoming 2019-20 championships schedule Thursday along with announcing an expanded partnership with the U.S. Air Force Special Ops to be the presenting sponsor for a majority of those events.
The new partnership will cover each of the league’s championships except the 2020 Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships. Representatives from the organization will be involved in various activities at the events including trophy and award presentations and fan engagement.
“We are always looking for ways to enhance our student-athlete experience and promote our Championship events. This expanded partnership with the Air Force will help us do that,” Summit League Commissioner Tom Douple said. “We’re excited to team up with an organization that exemplifies such high standards in how they operate and protect our freedoms.”
“Air Force Special Ops is excited to partner with The Summit League for its upcoming championship seasons,” Lt. Col. Heath Kerns, 330th Recruiting Squadron Commander said. “These student-athletes, just like Special Operations operators, are trained and developed by some of the very best in their respective fields, challenging themselves at every step toward their goals. We hope to inspire these athletes by sharing our calling into Air Force Special Operations. We look forward to a great season ahead.”
The fall championship slate gets underway on Nov. 2 in Fargo, N.D., with North Dakota State hosting the men’s and women’s cross country championships. It will be the second time in program history the Bison will run the XC championships on their home course (2014). The women’s soccer championship will be played in Brookings, S.D. for the second-consecutive season and sixth time overall as the Jackrabbits will host the event Nov. 7 and 9. Denver, Colo., will once again be the site for the men’s soccer (Nov. 14 and 16) and volleyball (November 22-24) championships.
For the third season in a row, The Summit League Swimming and Diving Championships will take place in Sioux Falls at the Midco Aquatic Center (Feb. 19-22). The 2020 Indoor Track and Field Championships will be back in a familiar place as Purdue Fort Wayne will host the event Feb. 28-29. The Mastodons are hosting the event for the fourth time in the last eight years.
Speaking of familiar venues, The Summit League Basketball Championships are back in Sioux Falls for the 11th-consecutive season in 2019. Co-hosted by the Sioux Falls Sports Authority, both league tournaments are slated to run from March 7-10 inside the Denny Sanford PREMIER Center. This marks the sixth-straight basketball season the PREMIER Center will feature both Summit League Championships.
The 2020 Tennis Championship will be played in Denver for the first time since 2014 as the Pioneers are set to host both the men’s and women’s tournaments April 24-25.
The Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships are headed back to Kansas for another season as the league’s golfers will look to tame the Sand Creek Station course. The women are back for the second year in a row and that event is slated for April 26-28, while the men’s event is slated for May 3-5. No stranger to Sand Creek Station, the men will make their fifth-straight championship appearance in Newton.
The reigning and six-time defending softball champion North Dakota State Bison host their eighth-straight Summit League Softball Championship in Fargo, N.D., May 6-9, while South Dakota gets to host the Outdoor Track & Field Championships, May 14-16, in Vermillion. The Summit League Baseball Championship is headed to Omaha, Neb., for the first time after the Mavericks captured the 2019 regular-season title. Omaha will host the four-team event on May 20-23.
(This story was contributed by the Summit League.)
