Completed Event: Men's Swimming and Diving versus Summit League Championships on February 18, 2026 , , 4th of 7 Teams — 458 Points
/
FINAL
Men's Swimming and Diving
(4th of 7 Teams — 458 Points)
vs Summit League Championships
South Dakota State University Athletics
Photo by: SDSU Sports Information
Pair of Former Swimmers Rooted in Brookings
7/24/2019 2:19:00 PM | Men's Swimming and Diving, Swimming and Diving, Women's Swimming and Diving
By Riley Baker
South Dakota State swimming brought John Bisson and Alex Hoffman to Brookings, S.D. in 2007.
12 years later, they're married with two children and making an impact within the community they grew to love, running Bisson Dental in Brookings for the last year and a half.
"We always said if there was one community in South Dakota that we could pick, if we had the pick of the litter, so to speak, of where we wanted to live, it was always Brookings. Always. Hands down," Alex said.
With their strong admiration of the community, it comes at a bit of a surprise that Brookings hasn't always been their home.
John is from Sturgis and attended SDSU, choosing to major in biology before walking on to the swim team as a freshman.
John worked hard to become an impactful swimmer with the team. He won 11 events during his tenure and graduated with the school record in the 200 freestyle relay, all while excelling in the classroom and ultimately preparing himself for his career.
"The work ethic and what made me strive to be competitive in swimming kind of has the same attitude here in business, trying to make sure we're here for patients and be as thorough as possible to help them with their needs," John said.
As for Alex, she grew up in Eureka and swam at Minnesota for a semester during the 2006-07 season. Shortly after she decided to transfer and reached out to a familiar face in SDSU's then-head coach, Brad Erickson.
She swam with the Jacks the following year but sat out the 2008-09 season after being named Miss South Dakota 2008. It was hard for her to break the news to Erickson, but she wanted to take the year to focus on Miss America.
"I spent that year traveling the state preparing for Miss America, attending different service events, and I had a blast. It was definitely an experience that I look back on now and realize that it really shaped who I am and allowed me to grow, and kind of figure the world out a little bit."
Alex remains involved with Miss South Dakota and played a role in bringing the pageants from Hot Springs to Brookings, where they will be held at the new Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center on campus.
As part of the Miss South Dakota Host Committee, Alex helped figure out the logistics from housing the event, to lining up sponsorships and donors as Brookings prepared to host the pageants.
Following her year off from swimming, Alex competed for two more seasons before graduating with a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism and sociology. She also left with school records in the 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle, 200 freestyle, 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke, 200 medley relay, 200 freestyle relay, 400 freestyle relay and 800 freestyle relay.
"Both of them improved so much," Erickson said. "John more so, because he didn't have the background coming into things."
Alex had been swimming for over a decade before competing collegiately. John didn't have as much prior experience in the pool, but was a multi-sport athlete in Sturgis. That well-rounded background helped him to make a smoother transition.
"The first practice he came to he did an open turn instead of a flip turn, and we said, John, that's not allowed," Erickson remembered with a chuckle.
Erickson was SDSU's swim and dive head coach for 41 years and made a lasting impact on the swimmers he coached, including the Bissons. He retired following the 2016-17 season.
"He is a coach and mentor in the truest sense of the word," Alex said.
"If you needed a little extra help, he was always really vocal and would come through and help with that," John added.
After both graduating in 2011, John and Alex moved to Omaha, Nebraska, where for five years, John continued his education while Alex worked at a local news station. The two got married in 2013, and later, their son Jackson was born (2015).
There was no question the Bissons wanted to find their way back to Brookings, and when the opportunity to open their own practice presented itself, the family was ecstatic.
"There were a couple places we knew of that there was a doctor looking to retire and we prayed just hoping it was Brookings," Alex said. "When we found out it was, I think we both just screamed because we knew there was this opportunity for us."
Bisson Dental opened Feb. 1, 2018 and it's a team effort for the Bissons to run the practice. John works hands-on with the patients and Alex lines up sponsorships and advertising while running the website and social media accounts.
Between all the hard work, they still find time to help the community and support Jackrabbit athletics.
"We still know a fair amount of people through the different colleges that we graduated from and the athletic department," John said. "So we like to stay involved with donating and being available for events and trying to keep as involved as we can."
The last two years, they have given away two football season tickets as a fun way to get people excited for the season. The Bissons attend as many events as they can to support Jackrabbit athletics.
"We always feel like being back here is just us coming full circle," Alex said. "I think it just was destiny for us to meet at SDSU."
Now after returning to Brookings, they're here to stay.
The only thing still up in the air—who is the better swimmer?
"[Alex] had more records than I did at the end of it all, but I don't know if [she] ever beat me head-to-head," John said with a laugh.
"John improved so much during those four years that I don't think I could have beat him. Even today I don't think I could beat him in the water," Alex said.
It remains to be seen if this will be settled by a head-to-head competition between the two, but in the meantime, they'll keep moving forward with the business they enjoy in the town that was always meant to be home.
-GoJacks.com-
South Dakota State swimming brought John Bisson and Alex Hoffman to Brookings, S.D. in 2007.
12 years later, they're married with two children and making an impact within the community they grew to love, running Bisson Dental in Brookings for the last year and a half.
"We always said if there was one community in South Dakota that we could pick, if we had the pick of the litter, so to speak, of where we wanted to live, it was always Brookings. Always. Hands down," Alex said.
With their strong admiration of the community, it comes at a bit of a surprise that Brookings hasn't always been their home.
John is from Sturgis and attended SDSU, choosing to major in biology before walking on to the swim team as a freshman.
John worked hard to become an impactful swimmer with the team. He won 11 events during his tenure and graduated with the school record in the 200 freestyle relay, all while excelling in the classroom and ultimately preparing himself for his career.
"The work ethic and what made me strive to be competitive in swimming kind of has the same attitude here in business, trying to make sure we're here for patients and be as thorough as possible to help them with their needs," John said.
As for Alex, she grew up in Eureka and swam at Minnesota for a semester during the 2006-07 season. Shortly after she decided to transfer and reached out to a familiar face in SDSU's then-head coach, Brad Erickson.
John Bisson and Alex (Hoffman) Bisson posed with then-head coach Brad Erickson.
"I had known Brad forever just because I had been swimming in South Dakota since I was six and Brad is this legend in South Dakota swimming," said Alex. "I never had a doubt as to where I knew I wanted to go after I knew Minnesota was not for me."She swam with the Jacks the following year but sat out the 2008-09 season after being named Miss South Dakota 2008. It was hard for her to break the news to Erickson, but she wanted to take the year to focus on Miss America.
"I spent that year traveling the state preparing for Miss America, attending different service events, and I had a blast. It was definitely an experience that I look back on now and realize that it really shaped who I am and allowed me to grow, and kind of figure the world out a little bit."
Alex remains involved with Miss South Dakota and played a role in bringing the pageants from Hot Springs to Brookings, where they will be held at the new Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center on campus.
As part of the Miss South Dakota Host Committee, Alex helped figure out the logistics from housing the event, to lining up sponsorships and donors as Brookings prepared to host the pageants.
Following her year off from swimming, Alex competed for two more seasons before graduating with a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism and sociology. She also left with school records in the 50 freestyle, 100 freestyle, 200 freestyle, 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke, 200 medley relay, 200 freestyle relay, 400 freestyle relay and 800 freestyle relay.
"Both of them improved so much," Erickson said. "John more so, because he didn't have the background coming into things."
Alex had been swimming for over a decade before competing collegiately. John didn't have as much prior experience in the pool, but was a multi-sport athlete in Sturgis. That well-rounded background helped him to make a smoother transition.
"The first practice he came to he did an open turn instead of a flip turn, and we said, John, that's not allowed," Erickson remembered with a chuckle.
Erickson was SDSU's swim and dive head coach for 41 years and made a lasting impact on the swimmers he coached, including the Bissons. He retired following the 2016-17 season.
"He is a coach and mentor in the truest sense of the word," Alex said.
"If you needed a little extra help, he was always really vocal and would come through and help with that," John added.
After both graduating in 2011, John and Alex moved to Omaha, Nebraska, where for five years, John continued his education while Alex worked at a local news station. The two got married in 2013, and later, their son Jackson was born (2015).
John Bisson and Alex (Hoffman) Bisson following graduation from SDSU in 2011.
In 2016, John's career took the family to Mitchell where they lived for two years, and their daughter Avery was born (2018).There was no question the Bissons wanted to find their way back to Brookings, and when the opportunity to open their own practice presented itself, the family was ecstatic.
"There were a couple places we knew of that there was a doctor looking to retire and we prayed just hoping it was Brookings," Alex said. "When we found out it was, I think we both just screamed because we knew there was this opportunity for us."
Bisson Dental opened Feb. 1, 2018 and it's a team effort for the Bissons to run the practice. John works hands-on with the patients and Alex lines up sponsorships and advertising while running the website and social media accounts.
Between all the hard work, they still find time to help the community and support Jackrabbit athletics.
"We still know a fair amount of people through the different colleges that we graduated from and the athletic department," John said. "So we like to stay involved with donating and being available for events and trying to keep as involved as we can."
The last two years, they have given away two football season tickets as a fun way to get people excited for the season. The Bissons attend as many events as they can to support Jackrabbit athletics.
"We always feel like being back here is just us coming full circle," Alex said. "I think it just was destiny for us to meet at SDSU."
Now after returning to Brookings, they're here to stay.
The only thing still up in the air—who is the better swimmer?
"[Alex] had more records than I did at the end of it all, but I don't know if [she] ever beat me head-to-head," John said with a laugh.
"John improved so much during those four years that I don't think I could have beat him. Even today I don't think I could beat him in the water," Alex said.
It remains to be seen if this will be settled by a head-to-head competition between the two, but in the meantime, they'll keep moving forward with the business they enjoy in the town that was always meant to be home.
-GoJacks.com-
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