Summit League Announces 2012-13 Championship Slate; NDSU to Host Volleyball and Softball

ELMHURST, Ill.--The Summit League announced dates and hosts for all 19 of its sport championships in 2012-13 after approval at the league's June President's Council meeting. North Dakota State is scheduled to host volleyball in November and softball in May.

Headlining the schedule is The Summit League Basketball Championships, which will be held in Sioux Falls, S.D., for a record fifth consecutive year. The Sioux Falls Sports Authority will also host the 2014 championships at the Sioux Falls Arena, marking the first time that six tournaments in a row will be played at the same location.

The first six championships of 2012-13 will be hosted by six different league institutions and a total of seven different schools will serve as championship hosts during the year.

Oakland is set to host a league-high three championships in 2012-13, beginning with cross country in October and men’s and women’s swimming & diving in February. The school will host the league’s first and last championships of the 2012-13 season, culminating with baseball in May. The 2013 Baseball Championship will mark the sport’s initial league tournament hosted by the Golden Grizzlies.

Fort Wayne, North Dakota State and South Dakota State will each host a pair of Summit League championships. IPFW will host both men’s and women’s tennis and men’s and women’s outdoor track & field within a three-week span. North Dakota State will serve as the site for volleyball for the third time in four years and softball for the second time in four seasons. South Dakota State will host women’s soccer for the third time in four years and also co-hosts the men’s and women’s golf championships with The Summit League.

The University of South Dakota hosts its first Summit League Championship when the Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track & Field Championships are contested at the DakotaDome, Feb. 24-25.

2012-13 Summit League Championships Calendar

ABOUT THE SUMMIT LEAGUE
Entering its fourth decade of Division I athletics, The Summit League offers 19 championship sports and has a combined enrollment of over 144,000 at nine universities, four of which are located in top 58 U.S. metro populations (Detroit, Indianapolis, Kansas City and Omaha). Member institutions include: Fort Wayne (Indiana University-Purdue University-Fort Wayne), IUPUI (Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis), Kansas City (University of Missouri-Kansas City), Omaha (University of  Nebraska Omaha), North Dakota State University, Oakland University, the University of South Dakota, South Dakota State University and Western Illinois University. Previously known as the Mid-Continent Conference, The Summit League rebranded in 2007 and has since produced 54 All-Americans, 37 Academic All-America selections and seven NCAA Championships. For more information about the league and its history, visit www.thesummitleague.org and follow on Twitter @thesummitleague.