THURSDAY SPORTS, OCTOBER 9, 2025
MITCHELL KERNELS
— Mitchell Kernels girls tennis competes at the Class AA state tournament in Sioux Falls on Thursday and Friday. Mitchell finished second behind Harrisburg at the ESD conference meet earlier this week in Yankton.
— Mitchell Kernels football has its final road game of the season on Friday when they take on Brandon Valley at 6 pm.
— Mitchell Kernels volleyball, 9-4 on the season, will host Rapid City Central on Friday at 6:30 pm. The Kernels have won a season best three matches in row. A win on Friday night would give Mitchell their longest winning streak in four years.
DAKOTA WESLEYAN
— Dakota Wesleyan volleyball will be at Doane on Friday at 7:30 pm. The Tigers are 10-8 on the season and 4-4 in the GPAC. They are currently tied with the College of St. Mary in fifth place in the conference, just one game behind fourth place Dordt.
— Dakota Wesleyan football hosts No. 4 Morningside next Saturday at 1 pm. The Tigers are coming off their second win of the season last week, a 33-7 road victory at Dordt. Quarterback Jed Jenson threw for 306 yards and a career-high five touchdowns. Morningside is 4-1 on the season and 4-0 in the GPAC with their lone loss coming at No. 3 Benedictine (Kansas.) in their season opener. The Mustangs put up a season-high 69 points in a 63-point homecoming win over Waldorf last week, as QB Zach Chevalier completed 17-of-18 for 327 yards and five touchdowns. In all, Morningside gained 651 yards of total offense, including have a 49-0 lead by halftime.
— Dakota Wesleyan men’s soccer will be at Midland on Saturday at 5 pm. The Tigers have only lost one of their past six matches and currently sit in third place in the GPAC with a 3-1-1 conference record.
— Dakota Wesleyan women’s soccer will be at Midland on Saturday at 7:30 pm. The Tigers have played to a tie in six of their 10 matches this season. They are currently 2-2-6 on the year and 1-1-3 in the conference.
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
— South Dakota State volleyball hosts Kansas City on Thursday at 7 pm. The Jackrabbits are 9-3 on the season at 3-0 in the Summit League. St. Thomas and North Dakota State are the only other Summit League teams still undefeated in conference play through the first two weeks. Kansas City is 1-3 in the conference and 2-15 overall. SDSU also has 999 wins in program history. The Jackrabbits’ next win will be the 1,000th in the team’s 60-year history.
— South Dakota State women’s soccer will be at Denver on Thursday at 8 pm. The Jackrabbits are 8-1-4 on the season and are on a current 11 match unbeaten streak going back to August 17. SDSU is 2-0-1 in the Summit League.
— South Dakota State football returns home on Saturday to face Northern Iowa at 2 pm on Hobo Day. The Jackrabbits are coming off a 35-30 win at Youngstown State last Saturday to open Missouri Valley Football Conference play. SDSU has won 32 consecutive games at home and is tied with North Dakota State (2017-20) for the fourth-longest streak in FCS history. The Jacks were ranked No. 2 this week in the FCS National Poll and are 5-0 on the season. Meanwhile, Northern Iowa is 2-3 on the season, coming off a 35-7 loss vs. North Dakota last week. Home-field advantage has meant little in the recent series as the road team has won nine of the last 13 meetings dating back to 2014.
SOUTH DAKOTA
— USD volleyball host St. Thomas on Thursday at 7 pm in their annual Pink Out match for Breast Cancer Awareness. The Coyotes are 9-6 on the season and 1-2 in the Summit League, coming off a 3-1 loss at Denver last Saturday.
— USD women’s soccer will be at Kansas City on Thursday at 7 pm. The Coyotes are 6-3-4 on the season and 2-1 in the Summit League. Last time out, USD defeated North Dakota 2-1 on Sunday.
— USD football will be at Indiana State next Saturday at Noon. The Coyotes look to be above .500 for the first time this season with a win as they enter the game with a 3-3 record. Last week, USD defeated Murray State on homecoming 49-24 behind 244 rushing yards and four touchdowns from L.J. Phillips Jr.
NATIONAL LEAGUE PLAYOFFS – THURSDAY (GAME 4)
Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Philadelphia Phillies, 5 pm on TBS – Los Angeles leads the series 2-1
Chicago Cubs vs. Milwaukee Brewers, 8 pm on TBS – Milwaukee leads the series 2-1
AMERICAN LEAGUE PLAYOFFS – FRIDAY (GAME 5)
Seattle Mariners vs. Detroit Tigers, 7 pm on FOX – Series tied 2-2
MLB
— Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and George Springer each drove in a run, and eight Toronto pitchers shut down the New York Yankees offense in a 5-2 victory that sent the Blue Jays to the American League Championship Series for the first time in nine years. Toronto’s Nathan Lukes provided a two-run single and Addison Barger had three of Toronto’s 12 hits as the Blue Jays bounced right back after blowing a five-run lead in Tuesday night’s loss at Yankee Stadium. Toronto took the best-of-five Division Series 3-1 and will host Game 1 in the best-of-seven ALCS on Sunday against the Tigers or Mariners.
— Kyle Schwarber homered twice, leading the Philadelphia Phillies to an 8-2 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 3 of their NL Division Series. The Phillies avoided a sweep with the win on Wednesday night. Schwarber’s first homer cleared the right-field stands, measuring at over 450 feet. The Phillies added five more runs in the eighth inning, including a solo HR by J.T. Realmuto and a two-run shot by Schwarber. The Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman went hitless, while Mookie Betts tripled and singled in four at-bats.
— The Cubs Pete Crow-Armstrong hit a tiebreaking two-run single as Chicago avoided a sweep by holding off the Milwaukee Brewers for a 4-3 victory in Game 3 of their NL Division Series. Crow-Armstrong’s two-out swing was part of a four-run first inning for Chicago. Michael Busch started the rally by becoming the first player in major league history with multiple leadoff homers in a single playoff series. The series is also the first in postseason history in which both teams scored in the first inning in each of the first three games.
— Detroit’s Riley Greene and Javier Báez homered in a four-run sixth inning as the Tigers kept their season alive with a 9-3 win over the Seattle Mariners in Game 4 of the American League Division Series. The Tigers forced a Game 5 by winning at Comerica Park for the first time in more than a month, ending an eight-game losing streak.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
— The NCAA has moved a step closer to allowing athletes and athletic department staff members to bet on professional sports. The Division I Administrative Committee approved the change on Wednesday. It must still be approved by Division II and III for it to go into effect. If approved by all three divisions, it would go into effect Nov. 1. This doesn’t change the NCAA rule which forbids athletes from betting on college sports.
— The Stanford football program has received a $50 million gift from a former player, the school announced Wednesday, marking a significant donation as it attempts to revive the fortunes of the program under general manager and former quarterback Andrew Luck. It’s the biggest individual gift in Stanford football history outside of facilities, and an unusually large one for an individual program. Donations of that value are typically tied to buildings or facilities. The donation comes from former Stanford football player Bradford Freeman, who graduated from the school in 1964 and has been a major Stanford donor for decades.
— Colorado head football coach Deion Sanders is undergoing a procedure related to his blood clots. He hopes to be back at practice the next day and on the sideline this weekend against Iowa State. Sanders provided a medical update Tuesday, saying the issue is hereditary and not related to his work level. He experienced pain during a recent game at TCU, where he was seen limping and not wearing a shoe on his left foot. Sanders has faced blood clot issues before, leading to the amputation of two toes in 2021.
— The College Sports Commission launched a tip line Wednesday that allows for anonymous reporting of potential violations of new rules that govern how players are paid for the use of their name, image and likeness. The commission says that the reporting line adds an important method of gathering information about the thousands of deals it is overseeing under terms of the $2.8 billion House settlement that allows players to earn money.
— Bill Belichick’s first season at North Carolina is off to a rough start, with the Tar Heels sitting at 2-3. Despite speculation yesterday about his future and a potential buyout, both Belichick and UNC are reaffirming their commitment to each other. Athletic Director Bubba Cunningham says Belichick has “the full support” of the administration. The Tar Heels will face Cal in their first road ACC game next Saturday, October 17th.
WNBA
— A’ja Wilson made a turnaround jumper with 0.3 seconds left, capping a 34-point night and lifting the Las Vegas Aces over the Phoenix Mercury 90-88 in Game 3 of the WNBA Finals for a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven series. The Aces are one victory away from winning their third championship in four seasons. Game 4 is on Friday in Phoenix.
— The opening game of the WNBA Finals was the most watched Game 1 since the league’s inaugural season in 1997. An average of 1.9 million viewers watched Las Vegas defeat the Phoenix Mercury 89-86 on Friday night. That was up 62% from last season’s matchup of New York and Minnesota. The game peaked with 2.5 million viewers.
MEDIA
— Fox and its related networks will televise next year’s World Baseball Classic, obtaining U.S. English and Spanish rights to the tournament. Seven games from the upcoming WBC, including the title game, will be aired on Fox.
NFL
— Free agent WR Odell Beckham Jr. has accepted a six-game suspension from the NFL after he reportedly failed a performance-enhancing drug test last year. Beckham will not be eligible to play until Week 12. Beckham played nine games with the Miami Dolphins last season, catching nine passes for 55 yards. Despite the news, the 10-year NFL veteran said he hopes to continue his career this season.
HIGH SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL – THURSDAY
No. 5 Bridgewater-Emery (17-0) vs. Avon
Hanson vs. Ethan
Sanborn Central/Woonsocket vs. Tripp-Delmont/Armour
Freeman vs. Corsica-Stickney
Gregory vs. Platte-Geddes
Highmore-Harrold vs. Wessington Springs
West Central vs. McCook Central/Montrose
Scotland vs. Centerville
No. 2 Brandon Valley vs. Yankton
No. 3 O’Gorman vs. SF Washington
Tea Area vs. SF Lincoln
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL – FRIDAY
Class 11AAA
1. Brandon Valley vs. Mitchell
2. Lincoln at Rapid City Central
3. Harrisburg at 5. SF Jefferson
4. O’Gorman vs. SF Washington
SF Roosevelt vs. Rapid City Stevens
Class 11AA
1. Huron vs. Aberdeen Central
2. Tea Area vs. Watertown
3. Sturgis at 5. Pierre
4. Yankton vs. Brookings
Douglas vs. Spearfish
Class 11A
1. SF Christian at Bridgewater-Emery/Ethan
2. Dell Rapids at Canton
3. Madison at 5. Lennox
4. West Central vs. Dakota Valley
Class 11B
1. Elk Point-Jefferson at Flandreau
2. St. Thomas More at Hot Springs
3. Woonsocket/Wessington Springs/Sanborn Central at Chamberlain
4. Mobridge-Pollock at 5. Clark/Willow Lake
McCook Central/Montrose vs. Baltic
Mt. Vernon/Plankinton vs. Miller/Highmore-Harrold
Class 9AA
1. Freeman/Marion/Freeman Academy vs. Irene-Wakonda
2. Hamlin – BYE
3. Elkton-Lake Benton vs. Deubrook Area
4. Parkston at Wolsey-Wessington – THURSDAY
5. Hill City vs. Kadoka Area
Hanson at Viborg-Hurley
Tripp-Delmont/Armour/Andes Central/Dakota Christian vs. Colome
Kimball/White Lake vs. Gregory – Q107.3
Class 9A
1. Wall at Bennett County
2. Warner vs. North Central
3. Alcester-Hudson at 3. Dell Rapids St. Mary’s
4. Howard at Garretson
5. Platte-Geddes vs. Bon Homme
Class 9B
1. Sully Buttes at 5. Herreid/Selby Area
2. Avon at Scotland/Menno
3. Dell Rapids St. Mary’s vs. Alcester-Hudson
4. Faulkton Area vs. Hitchcock-Tulare
Canistota vs. Chester
Corsica-Stickney vs. Burke