VERMILLION, S.D. – On the heels of its most successful nonconference season in four years, the South Dakota soccer team opens Summit League action at Denver Friday night. The Coyotes own a 5-3-2 overall record, a mark that ranks second in the league by win percentage and the number of victories.
 
"Things have been as positive as they possibly could have been," first-year head coach Michael Thomas said. "I am nothing but proud of the women. We've competed hard and we have gotten our share of results. I think we carry a good sense of team and momentum into this part of the season."
                                                     
The Coyotes own victories over Northern Colorado, Green Bay, Drake, New Mexico State and Chicago State along with draws at Northern Iowa and at Eastern Washington.
 
Much the of the success can be attributed to the overall team, as nine different players have already tallied goals, along with defensive efforts that have shutout four opponents.
 
"It's hard to pick out individuals because we've had so many different people stepping up in different situations," Thomas added. "Seniors Tayler Karas and Parker Rytz have led a strong defensive back, Kellee Willer is atop the Summit League in assists and different people step up and score goals every game. We've received goals from a lot of places and that's a hard team to stop."
 
South Dakota has already claimed a pair of Summit League Player of the Week honors with Rytz awarded the defensive accolade after posting a shutout against Chicago State and giving up just one goal in a 1-1 tie at Big Sky favorite Eastern Washington. Junior Taryn LaBree is fresh off the offensive award from the league's office after tallying two goals at New Mexico State along with an assist against UMKC.
 
Freshman Tiannah Moore leads the team and ranks fourth in the league with four goals while sophomore Amanda Carpio joins LaBree with three goals on the season. The Coyotes also have Joana Zanin and Willer who have tallied multiple goals on the season. Other goal scorers include Dani Brown, Taylor Cotter, Abby Ostrem and Maddison Sullivan who each have a goal apiece.
 
Defensively, Rytz ranks second in the league with 51 saves and third with four shutouts. Along with her strong play in net, the defensive effort can also be credited to a strong backline of freshman Teresa Fontenot, junior Courtney Stodola, Ostrem and Karas who all average over 85 minutes played per game.
 
Transitioning into Summit League play, Thomas acknowledges the competitiveness of the league.
 
"It is a brutally competitive league," Thomas said. "It is one of the most competitive conferences as far as making the conference tournament with only four of the nine teams getting into the tournament.
 
"From what I can tell, every year, things are really tight and I can't see a reason why this season would be any different."
 
The Coyotes face the preseason favorite Pioneers in their first league game. Denver is the only team ahead of the Coyotes in the NCAA RPI rankings at No. 146. South Dakota is ranked at No. 216, a mark that would be the highest in program history if the season ended today.
 
"The Summit League season is just another chance for us to grow, for us to continue our progression," Thomas continued. "The women understand that going into conference, we don't change who we are.
 
"Having said that, everything matters a little bit more. Everything is a half-second faster, everybody needs to be a little bit sharper and the teams that accomplish that are going to have a successful Summit League season."
 
Kickoff at Denver is slated for 8 p.m. (CDT) Friday with the Coyotes returning home on Thursday, Oct. 4 to host Oral Roberts. Kickoff from First Bank & Trust Soccer Complex is scheduled for 4 p.m.