VERMILLION, S.D. — The University of South Dakota is proud to announce the 2026 Henry Heider Hall of Fame Class that sees seven individuals and one team set to be inducted into the USD Athletics Hall of Fame.
 
2026 Hall of Fame Inductees

• Emily Grove, women's track & field
• Greysen Hertting, women's swim & dive
• Brooks Little, football
• Chris Nilsen, men's track & field
• Audrey Reeg, volleyball
• Nicole Seekamp, women's basketball
• Bruce Fischbach, special contributor
• 2015-16 Women's Basketball Team

 
Sitting tied for the second-most most All-American honors at South Dakota in Division I, Grove (2011-17) enters into the USD Athletics Hall of Fame. Grove earned six All-American honors in the pole vault and finished national runner-up in 2013-14 (14-7¼). Grove was a two-time NCAA Indoor and four-time NCAA Outdoor qualifier in her career, while also being named the Summit League Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year twice (2014, 2016). Graduating from USD with both the indoor and outdoor pole vault records (since broken), though the marks continue to sit top-3 in program history. Professionally, Grove went on to compete at the Indoor World Championships and finished ninth in 2025.
 
Hertting (2013-17), the first Summit League diver – male or female – to win Summit League Diver of the Year for three-straight seasons, represents the USD swim & dive program in her induction into the Hall of Fame. She holds the USD school records in both the one- and three-meter dives and was a three-time All-Summit League selection (2015-17). In her senior season in 2017, she placed 17^th in the NCAA Zone Diving Championships, rounding out her storied career as a three-time Women's Diving Championship MVP (2014-16).
 
A dynamic wide receiver at the tail end of the Division II era, Little (2004-07) represents South Dakota football in 2026 as a Hall of Fame inductee. The 2007 First Team All-NCC wide out and 2008 All-Great West Honorable Mention performer graduated from South Dakota as the program's leader in career receptions (165), which he held for over 15 years (now sits second-best all-time).
 
He recorded a pair of seasons with 700+ receiving yards (2005, 2007) with his 803 yards in 2005 sitting ninth-best in program history. Entering the 2026 football season, Little sits third all-time in career receiving yards (2,386), being one of six Coyotes to have 2,000+ receiving yards in their career. He also brought in 16 touchdown receptions which sits T6th in program history.
 
One of South Dakota's most storied student-athletes is three-time national champion pole vaulter and Olympic silver medalist, Nilsen (2016-20) has been selected into the Hall of Fame. The two-time Olympic qualifier is just one of two Division I national champions at South Dakota and garnered seven All-American honors as a pole vaulter at USD. He's the only Summit League student-athlete to earn three national championships individually, which also is a USD record.
 
In 2020, the United States Track and Field and Cross County Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) named Nilsen the Indoor Field Athlete of the Year, where he earned three-time Indoor (2017, 2019-20) and Outdoor (2017-19) Summit League Field Athlete of the Year recognition. Nilsen graduated from South Dakota with school records in the Indoor pole vault (19-5½), Outdoor pole vault (19-6¼), and DakotaDome record (19-4¼). Upon his selection into the USD Hall of Fame (June 2026), he continues to hold the NCAA Outdoor National Championships meet record in the pole vault.
 
The 2016 Summit League Volleyball Player of the Year, Reeg (2013-16) enters the Hall of Fame as the fourth volleyball student-athlete in program history to record 1,000+ kills and 1,000+ digs in their career. The two-time All-Summit League performer and Summit League Tournament team honoree (2015, 2016), Reeg was a member of a Coyote team that set a then school record 25 wins and earned the program's first-ever Summit League regular season title in 2016 under head coach Leanne Williamson.
 
Seekamp (2011-16) had a decorated career as a Coyote, leading the squad that won the 2016 Women's NIT under head coach Amy Williams. She was named the 2016 Summit League Player of the Year, 2016 WNIT Tournament MVP, and two-time Summit League Tournament MVP (2013, 2015). She's one of three Coyotes to score 2,000+ career points and finished her career second in school history with 2,056 points (which now sits third all-time).
 
The three-time First Team Summit League and four0time Summit League All-Tournament team performer guided South Dakota to the WNIT Championship (2015-16), two Summit League Regular season titles (2014-15, 2015-16), a Summit League Tournament title (2014), and an NCAA Tournament appearance (2014). She also sits second in school history in both career assists (628) and steals (265), while also graduating from USD as the Summit League's all-time leader in assists (now second in league history).
 
Long time serving athletic trainer for the Coyotes, in both the Division II and Division I eras, Fischbach (at USD from 1984-21) enters the Hall of Fame as a special contributor to Coyote athletics. He served 25+ years as the Director of Sports Medicine at the University of South Dakota, serving both the football and men's basketball programs and overseeing a staff of six athletic trainers.
 
Under his leadership and mentorship, Fischbach produced numerous healthcare professionals and he, personally, worked a multitude of national-level events including the men's College World Series, Division II Indoor Track Championships, NCAA Division II MBB Elite Eight, and the Orange Bowl.
 
The 2015-16 women's basketball team, led by 2026 Hall of Fame honoree Nicole Seekamp, won the program's first-ever WNIT title in 2016. The team put up a 32-6 (15-1 Summit League) record and won the Summit League regular season title under head coach Amy Williams. Producing the program's first 30-win season in the Division I era, the Coyotes downed the Big Ten's Illinois Fighting Illini in the regular season. The Yotes also toppled the Big Ten's Minnesota Golden Gophers and the then-Pac 12's Oregon Ducks in the WNIT run.
 
With the induction of this year's class, the USD Athletics Hall of Fame will now feature 356 members and 22 teams.
 
The 2026 Hall of Fame induction ceremony is scheduled for Friday, October 9 ahead of the October 10 football game against Southern Illinois at the DakotaDome.