For the first time in 36-years, the Sioux Valley Cossacks are Dome bound. They took down Elk Point-Jefferson, who has been to the state championship game in 11B the past two-years, in the semifinal round 28-14 to punch their ticket to Vermillion.
This has been a long time coming for the Cossacks football program.
“It’s impressive what they did, but we’ve been scratching on the door of this the past seven, eight, nine years now. We were happy, and we’re glad it happened, but we’re not really surprised. We’ve had some really good teams that have won nine or ten games, and had one domino not go our way to keep us out of it,” explained Sioux Valley head football coach Dan Hughes. “I do want to let everyone know that those teams that came before this one are very special, and what they did to propel this team to getting it done.”
The Cossacks lone dome appearance came in 1988 when they beat Bon Homme for the state championship. Not only is this recent trip to the title game big for the players, but it’s big for the community of Volga as well.
“It’s real important for a lot of people. I know the people around town, in the community, they’ve been waiting for it for a while, and I’m happy for them,” said Hughes. “The kids too, they believed this back in December of last year when they were hitting the weights hard. They were the ones who believed they could do it first, and they back it up with their work.”
Sioux Valley’s opponent in this year’s championship game is Winner, who is no stranger to making it to this stage. Since 1981, the Winner Warriors have been to the dome a total of eighteen times. Nine of those times, they won the title. For Coach Hughes and his Cossacks team, they’re focused on what they can regulate.
“We’re just looking forward to doing our thing and doing it the best we can. The opponent isn’t really too much of a concern, it’s nothing we can control. It just happens to be Winner, we know them really well. Their coaches are wonderful people, they have a wonderful community, we’re happy for them too, but we’re looking to do our thing the best that we can,” Hughes exclaimed. “That’s kind of how we roll, we don’t really worry about who we’re playing or anything that we can’t control. This is a game of fundamentals, taking care of the ball, and doing the ordinary things very well.”
The Cossacks have had a lot of success in athletics recently as well. Their boys basketball team has had numerous state tournament appearances over the past ten years, and their cheer team just won their eighteenth straight state title this past month. Sioux Valley’s volleyball team also advanced to the state tournament on Tuesday night for the first time since 2017 with a victory in the SoDak 16.
“It's probably the best school in the state. We have a real rich tradition academically up here. Kids want to be doctors, lawyers, and small business owners quite routinely. And then on top of that, our fine arts are outstanding. We just had a great school play that involved athletes from all different walks – volleyball, cheer, and football,” Hughes said. “There isn’t a program that doesn’t excel here and that’s just really telling about the expectations about this place. The expectations are always maintained by the kids, teachers, and the community, and that’s what they expect.”
The 11B championship game between Winner and Sioux Valley will take place on Friday, November 15, at 2 pm CT. Both team go into the title showdown dawning undefeated records.
