BGSU – NCDA

2025 Buckeye Opener Tournament Preview

Dodgeball is finally back in the Buckeye State, and Columbus, the site of this years nationals, will also be hosting the inaugural event of the 2025-26 season. This years Buckeye Opener promises to be filled with drama, as 5 Ohio region teams go head-to-head, with plenty of storylines and rivalries at play. Every team comes in with something to prove, but there isn’t room for everyone to make a statement, meaning someone has to go home disappointed. Every game matters in the incredibly contentious Ohio region, meaning there will be fireworks from the jump in Columbus.

Michigan Region Preview 2025-2026

For two decades, the Michigan Region has been the gold standard of collegiate dodgeball, producing powerhouse programs and setting the bar for national success. From the inaugural season in 2005 until just last year, at least one Michigan team had always battled its way to the NCDA Championship game. That remarkable streak came to an end in 2025, marking the first time in league history that the region was absent from the title match. Now, as a new season is about to unfold, all eyes are on Michigan to see if its teams can reclaim their place at the top.

Ohio Region Preview 2025-2026

As summer draws to a close and the air turns crisp with the first hints of fall, one unmistakable truth rises with the changing winds—dodgeball is back.

Across the country, players are lacing up and teams are retooling. But in one region, the energy feels different. Sharper. Hungrier. More storied. This is Ohio—the beating heart of collegiate dodgeball, where tradition meets talent, and rivalries run deep. Without further ado, here is the 2025-2026 season preview for the Ohio region.

Ohio Dodgeball Cup

Summit Street Slugfest VIII

Red Cedar Rumble II (W)

Red Cedar Rumble II

Tyler Webb Memorial II

Ethan Lehmkuhl’s Grand Valley Gauntlet X Predictions

For this preview, it’s just going to be me sharing my predictions for the Grand Valley Gauntlet, so if you don’t care what I have to say, this is your queue to leave. With that being said, this should be a great tournament all around, as it features 3 of the top 5 teams in the current standings (GVSU, MSU, UC).

ODC 2024 Recap

With the 2024 ODC officially in the books, here is our recap from each team.

By Wes Peters, Rylan Close, Mitch Porter, and Ethan Lehmkuhl

2024 ODC Preview

Looking ahead to this weekend’s Ohio Dodgeball Cup, I asked the content team to fill out an ODC bracket and opened up the floor for them to share their thoughts. While there was a lot of consensus on most of the picks, some staff members were bolder than others.

Summit Street Slugfest VII Recap

This past weekend saw the completion of what will likely be the largest pre-nationals tournament of the semester. Don’t worry if you missed any action because we’ve got you covered with a full recap below.

By Ethan Lehmkuhl (OSU) and Rylan Close (Kent)

Summit Street Slugfest VII Preview

A new semester has come upon us, and with that, the NCDA will return to the corner of Ted Boyd Drive & Summit Street in beautiful Kent, Ohio for the first time since 2019. This tournament will be held on Sunday, January 28th, and will feature 10 teams spanning from East Lansing, Michigan, all the way down to Harrisonburg, Virginia, as well as 7/8 of the Ohio teams, and the Nittany Lions of Penn State. This tournament is putting some big names up against each other as we will see a total of EIGHT top-10 match-ups as this will certainly show who are the contenders versus the pretenders. Down below, we have the schedule, the links to each YouTube channel that will be streaming, and previews for all 10 teams attending.

By Mitchell Porter (Kent) & Rylan Close (Kent)

Ohio Dodgeball Cup (ODC)

Mid-Season Recap: Ohio Region

Now that the NCDA is officially at the halfway point in the season, we will be doing a deep dive into each region. Here is the scoop from Ohio. Make sure to stay tuned for the rest of the regions’ mid-season recaps as well!

By Ethan Lehmkuhl (OSU) and Rylan Close (Kent)