Hastings High School athletes, coaches and fans will see several changes from the Minnesota State High School League during the 2026-27 school year, beginning with a new home for one of Minnesota’s traditional fall championship events.
The Minnesota State High School League Board of Directors met Aug. 4 in Deerwood, approving and affirming a series of changes affecting state tournaments, ticket prices and membership costs. The board also received updates on several proposals that could eventually affect Hastings programs including softball, boys tennis and girls wrestling.
The most noticeable change this fall will come in cross country, where the boys and girls state meets are moving away from the University of Minnesota.
The 2026 boys and girls Cross Country State Meets will be held Saturday, Nov. 7, at Majestic Oaks Golf Course in Ham Lake. For Hastings runners who advance through the section meet, Ham Lake will now replace the familiar Les Bolstad University of Minnesota Golf Course as their final destination.
Les Bolstad hosted the past three state cross country meets, but the course closed shortly after the 2025 meet. The University of Minnesota Board of Regents had been exploring the sale of the property, and that sale was completed in late June.
With Les Bolstad no longer available, the League needed a new championship site. Majestic Oaks is not new to high school cross country, having hosted numerous meets over the years, but 2026 will give the course a much larger role on the state high school calendar.
The change means a different course to prepare for, a different championship setting and a different travel plan for athletes and spectators making the trip from Hastings.
Another change will arrive later in the school year, although Hastings basketball teams will first have to earn their way into the state tournament for it to matter.
The 2027 girls basketball state tournament will be played March 24-27, followed by the boys tournament March 31-April 3. Williams Arena at the University of Minnesota will remain the primary venue.
The adjustment was necessary in part because Williams Arena is booked for the NCAA women’s basketball tournament March 17-20.
While shifting dates on a calendar might seem minor in August, the change will eventually affect the entire postseason schedule leading into the state tournament. For teams fortunate enough to make a deep March run, including Hastings, the destination remains familiar, but the timing changes.
Fans attending any state tournament this school year will also pay more.
The Board of Directors approved an increase in base ticket prices for 2026-27 state tournament events. Adult tickets will be $15, while student tickets will cost $10.
While spectators will pay more at state events, the League is returning some money to its member schools.
For the fourth consecutive school year, the MSHSL will provide a membership dues credit. A total of $620,000 will be distributed through credits during the coming school year, funded through excess revenue from state tournaments, League sponsorships and broadcast and streaming rights.
The League’s base membership fee is $100, along with a charge of $160 per activity and $2.25 per student. The credit will reduce the activity charge by $30 and the student fee by $1.25.
For a school such as Hastings, which offers a broad selection of athletic programs and other League-sponsored activities, those credits can add up across an entire school year.
Some of the Aug. 4 discussion could have an even larger impact on Hastings in future seasons, although those items have not yet reached the point where they should be considered final rule changes.
One of those involves softball.
League staff presented information on a proposal to adopt a National Federation of State High School Associations approved tiebreaking procedure during regular season games. Under the proposal, if a softball game remains tied after eight innings, each subsequent half-inning would begin with a runner placed on second base.
The runner would be the batter scheduled last in that inning.
For Hastings softball, the change would create a noticeable difference in extra-inning strategy if it is eventually approved. Coaches would immediately begin an inning with a runner in scoring position rather than starting with the bases empty. The proposal applies only to regular season contests.
Boys tennis is also part of the discussion.
League staff presented a proposal to change the way tennis classifications are determined, creating an even split between Class A and Class AA. Each classification would have approximately 82 teams.
Because classification affects the postseason road a team must travel to reach state, any adjustment to the Class A and Class AA dividing line could have consequences for Hastings and other schools near the enrollment cutoff. The proposal remains under consideration.
The League is also continuing its work on classifications, competitive section placement and district football assignments for the 2027-28 and 2028-29 school years.
Sept. 11 is the next major deadline. Member schools must submit requests to opt teams into higher classifications by that date. Applications for new cooperative programs or the dissolution of existing cooperatives are also due Sept. 11, while football programs must submit school information and notify the League of new football cooperative arrangements.
Those decisions will eventually determine who Hastings teams see in section competition and what path Raider programs must navigate during postseason play beginning with the 2027-28 school year.
Girls wrestling, a rapidly developing part of the high school sports landscape, was another subject discussed by the board.
Current rules allow a wrestling team to schedule up to eight girls-only team events without those competitions counting against the existing limit of 16 dates and 45 matches. A proposal presented to the board would eliminate the reference to the additional eight events and instead state, “A girls team is limited to 16 dates/45 matches in a season. All individual wrestlers must not exceed those limitations.”
Girls flag football continues moving through the League’s emerging activity process as well. The Girls Flag Football Advisory Committee is developing a potential model that could eventually lead to full MSHSL sanctioning, also affecting the Hastings Girls team. The next step will be a membership survey before the committee’s Oct. 8 meeting.
Esports is further along in the process. The 2026-27 school year will serve as a “shadow” year, with the League working with Fenworks on the development of the activity. The MSHSL plans to conduct its first Esports State Tournament during the 2027-28 school year.
Other proposals discussed during the meeting included potentially expanding the robotics state tournament. One proposal would turn the current one-day, 36-team event into a two-day tournament, while another would increase the field to 42 teams. League officials estimated the additional six teams could create state tournament opportunities for approximately 90 to 150 more students.
Speech could also see a change. League staff presented a proposal to rename the Great Speeches category Communications Analysis and expand eligible material beyond traditional speeches to include written, digital or verbal communications intended to convey a message to an audience.
The board also approved speech selections for the 2026-27 school year, annual League publications and the Dance Team Rules Book.
For Hastings, many of the Aug. 4 decisions will remain largely behind the scenes. Others will become obvious quickly.
The first arrives Nov. 7, when Minnesota’s best high school cross country runners gather for the state meet and, for the first time in several years, the road to a state championship ends in Ham Lake rather than at the University of Minnesota.
Board President Keith Cornell, activities director at St. Michael-Albertville High School, said the opening meeting established the direction for the coming year.
“Through their hard work and decision making, this Board of Directors group has set a strong course for the coming school year,” Cornell said. “At the center of all they do is a deep commitment of service to the Member Schools.”