Six of the seven North Central Kansas League schools got their 2026 fall athletic season underway this past Saturday as their volleyball teams competed in different tournaments around the area.
The only NCKL school still waiting to begin the 2026 fall athletic campaign is Abilene, which will see its first action tonight when the Cowgirl volleyball team opens the season in an NCKL doubleheader at Chapman.
The other NCKL volleyball teams saw action as Chapman and Wamego competed in the Salina South tournament, Rock Creek competed in the Hays tournament while Clay Center and Concordia traveled to compete in the tournament hosted at Marysville.
All seven NCKL schools will begin their 2026 football campaign this Friday night as Abilene plays at Concordia, Marysville plays at Chapman, Clay Center plays at Wamego and Rock Creek hosts Centralia.
Here is a look at how each NCKL school did in volleyball this past weekend and how they did in football last year and who they will begin the 2026 season against:
ABILENE
The Cowgirl volleyball team finished last year with a 17-19, 6-6 record and will begin 2026 when they play at Chapman on September 1. … The Cowboy football team finished last year with a 5-4, 3-3 record and will begin this season by playing at Concordia on September 4.
CHAPMAN
The Lady Irish went 3-2 in the Salina South tournament as they defeated Minneapolis 2-0, Salina South 2-0 and Wamego 2-0. The Lady Irish lost 2-0 against Sacred Heart and 2-0 against Silver Lake. … The Fighting Irish football team finished the 2025 season with a 1-8, 1-5 record and will begin the 2026 season on Friday, September 4 by hosting Marysville.
CLAY CENTER
The Lady Tiger volleyball team went 6-0 on Saturday in the Marysville tournament as they defeated Cheney 2-0, Eudora twice 2-0 and 2-0, Holton 2-0, Marysville 2-0 and Nemaha Central 2-0. … The Tiger football team finished last season with a 6-4, 4-2 record and will begin this season on Friday, September 4 at Wamego.
CONCORDIA
The Lady Panther volleyball team opened the season on Saturday in the Marysville tournament where they went 0-3, losing 2-0 against Holton, 2-0 against Riley County and 2-0 against Valley Heights. … The Panther football team finished 2025 with a 4-5, 2-4 record and will begin the 2026 season on Friday, September 4 when they host Abilene.
MARYSVILLE
The Lady Bulldog volleyball team went 0-4 on Saturday in the tournament they hosted. The Lady Bulldogs lost 2-0 against Cheney, 2-0 against Clay Center, 2-0 against Eudora and 2-0 against Nemaha Central. … The Bulldog football team finished the 2025 season with an 0-8, 0-6 record and will look to snap their losing streak on Friday, September 4 when they open the season at Chapman.
ROCK CREEK
The Lady Mustang volleyball team opened the season in the Hays tournament on Saturday where they went 1-2 and failed to advance out of pool play. The Lady Mustangs defeated Hays TMP 2-0, but lost 2-1 against Hays High and 2-0 against Olathe North. … The Mustang football team won the 2025 NCKL regular season title with an 11-1, 6-0 record. The Mustangs will begin the 2026 season on Friday, September 4 when they play against Centralia.
WAMEGO
The Lady Raider volleyball team went 1-4 on Saturday in the Salina South tournament. The Lady Raiders lost 2-0 against Chapman, 2-0 against Minneapolis, 2-0 against Sacred Heart and 2-0 against Silver Lake. The Lady Raiders defeated Salina South 2-0. … The Red Raider football team finished 2025 with a 9-3, 5-1 record and will begin the 2026 season on Friday, September 4 when they host Clay Center in the season-opener.
2026 NCKL Football Standings
NCKL Overall
Team W L W L
Abilene 0 0 0 0
Chapman 0 0 0 0
Clay Center 0 0 0 0
Concordia 0 0 0 0
Marysville 0 0 0 0
Rock Creek 0 0 0 0
Wamego 0 0 0 0
Friday, September 4
Abilene at Concordia
Marysville at Chapman
Clay Center at Wamego
Centralia at Rock Creek
Friday, September 11
Wamego at Abilene
Rock Creek at Chapman
Marysville at Clay Center
Concordia at Beloit
2026 NCKL Volleyball Standings
NCKL Overall
Team W L W L
Clay Center 0 0 6 0
Chapman 0 0 3 2
Rock Creek 0 0 1 2
Wamego 0 0 1 4
Abilene 0 0 0 0
Concordia 0 0 0 3
Marysville 0 0 0 4
