Trinidad State Faces Snow College in NJCAA Tournament First Round at Hutchinson

A 101-91 win over Lamar Community College in Sterling on March 7 sent Trinidad State College's men's basketball team to Hutchinson for the first round of the 2026 NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship, where the Trojans faced Snow College of Ephraim, Utah, on March 18. The Region IX title was Trinidad State's seventh all-time berth in the national finals.

What made the run remarkable was how unlikely it looked just weeks earlier. Folda, speaking after the region clinched, was candid about his expectations. "I didn't really see this group winning the region this year. We were very inconsistent and had plenty of blowout losses. After our first-round win at Gillette, our kids had me feeling there might be a chance."

The Trojans then won five straight to close the postseason. "It's crazy that we have won five in a row, because I don't know if I ever believed that we would be able to get one," Folda said. That five-game stretch is part of a broader 18-game postseason winning streak Trinidad State has built across the past five Region IX finales.

Snow College arrived in Hutchinson carrying a 30-4 record and an at-large bid, though the Badgers stumbled at the finish. They won just once in their final four games, all played on the road, including back-to-back losses at College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls: 71-66 on February 28 and 64-60 on March 7 in the Region XVIII postseason title game. Before that skid, Snow had been ranked No. 1 in the NJCAA Division I polls as recently as February 23. The Hutchinson appearance was Snow's fifth overall in the NJCAA National Tournament and the first time the program had qualified in consecutive seasons.

Folda was not understating the challenge. "Snow is very good. Rumor has it that they have 11 Division 1 players on their team. They were No. 1 in the country for most of the year. They will have a tremendous height advantage as well. We will need to do a great job rebounding and shoot it pretty well to be there in the end."

Trinidad State earned its automatic berth by winning Region IX outright; Snow earned its spot through the at-large selection process after the late-season losses knocked it out of the Region XVIII title. For the Trojans, the seventh trip to nationals represents the deepest stretch of sustained postseason success in program history.