The first home game at the ARC against a Big Ten opponent in 12 years highlights the 2026-27 nonconference schedule for the Valpo women's basketball program, released by the program today.
 
The Beacons host Wisconsin at the ARC on Thursday, Dec. 10, taking on a Badgers squad which made it to the semifinals of the WBIT last season. It is Valpo's first home game against a Big Ten opponent since hosting Illinois in December 2014.
 
The season gets underway with a home exhibition against Judson (Oct. 26) before the regular season kicks off at Michigan State (Nov. 3). The Spartans finished last season ranked in the top-25 in both national polls after winning 23 games and advancing to the round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament.
 
Valpo's regular season home opener comes against Detroit Mercy (Nov. 7), followed three days later by the annual Kids Day game as the Beacons host Culver-Stockton (Nov. 10). A two-game road trip to Purdue Fort Wayne (Nov. 13) and Toledo (Nov. 15) is next on the docket, with the first of those games coming against a Mastodons team which won 21 games and made it to the Super 16 of the WNIT last season.
 
Next up is a quick return home to take on South Dakota (Nov. 20), a 26-game winner which advanced to the Fab Four of the WNIT last year, before returning to the road for games at SIUE (Nov. 23) and Loyola Chicago (Nov. 29), the latter squad having made the WNIT Super 16 last season.
 
The Beacons open the month of December at home (Dec. 2) against a Western Illinois team which won 26 games, OVC regular season and tournament titles and advanced to the NCAA Tournament last year. Games on the road at Central Michigan (Dec. 6) and Eastern Michigan (Dec. 13) sandwich the aforementioned Wisconsin matchup to close the nonconference slate.
 
The Missouri Valley Conference schedule will be released at a later date. For the first time this year, the MVC Women's Basketball Tournament will be part of Arch Madness in St. Louis March 3-7.
 
Season tickets for the 2026-27 Valpo women's basketball home campaign are on sale now and can be purchased by visiting https://tickets.valpoathletics.com/.