A year after qualifying for the NCAA postseason for the first time in its Division I history, the University of South Dakota volleyball team has done nothing in the early part of 2019 to indicate a retreat is coming.
 
The Coyotes graduated three talented players from last year, but have started the season out with a 6-1 record and are coming off consecutive 3-0 wins over Tulsa, Kansas City and Louisiana Tech last weekend.
 
It sets up an intriguing South Dakota Classic at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center beginning on Friday with a noon matchup with UC Davis, followed by a 7 p.m. contest with Wyoming. On Saturday, the Coyotes play Iowa at 6:30 p.m. It will represent the first time USD has been host to a Big Ten team.
 
So what makes this team potentially as good as last year's Summit League Tournament champion? And how might this happen after losing players like Hayley Dotseth and Taylor Wilson, a pair of seniors in 2018 who combined for 809 of the Coyotes' 1,498 kills?
 
"There are so many new people," said USD coach Leanne Williamson, in her sixth season as the Coyote head coach. "Eight out of 16 are new. It introduces a lot of new things to coaching. You have the chemistry, the cohesiveness and the comfort level of our new players to think about. The nice thing is that they were all here this summer so they spent a lot of time together."
 
The Coyotes return Elizabeth Loschen, the team's top returning offensive player with 247 kills a year ago, as well as Summit League Defensive Player of the Year Anne Rasmussen. Setter Madison Jurgens, who ranked second in the league in assists per set, is also back.


 
Elizabeth Juhnke, named Minnesota's Player of the Year by both the StarTribune and St. Paul Pioneer Press last year at Lakeville North and one of the top recruits in program history, is off to a big start with a team-leading 96 kills in her first seven college matches. Also delivering as advertised is Sami Slaughter, a familiar name to high school volleyball fans in the area. The former Harrisburg star was the state's player of the year as a senior while also earning first-team all-state honors in basketball.
 
After two years at Nebraska — the Cornhuskers lost in the national championship to Stanford last year – she decided it was time to get a little closer to home. Now a junior, it sounds like she made the right decision.
 
"This has been awesome," she said. "It's been great that my whole family has been able to come see me play. I absolutely adore the coaching staff here and my new teammates. There are a lot of new kids in the starting lineup and everyone is coming in and doing their jobs."
 
Williamson recruited Slaughter out of high school. While she didn't win the recruiting battle the first time, she did the second.
 
"I knew I needed a change," Slaughter said. "Leanne recruited me before and I absolutely love her and her coaching style and as a person in general. I knew when I wanted to transfer that I was going to try to go to USD."
 
Though Slaughter and Williamson both talk about how well the former high school player of the year has coordinated her talents with those of her teammates, they're just getting started.
 
"We always knew she could be a great addition for us," Williamson said. "What we've been happiest about is that she came in and she was willing to learn. We do some things differently than what she's been part of in the past. She's been able to buy in and make some of those changes. That's been great to see."


 
It is clear — or as clear as it can get after just seven contests — that Williamson's recruiting efforts over the last five years have been anywhere from steady to steadily improving. It is why after the first NCAA Tournament berth in school history, the program can lose a few of the league's most talented players to graduation and be on a similar track the next year with younger players. Twelve of the team's 17 players are sophomores and freshmen.
 
"Even though we've been challenged up to this point, the teams we have coming in are going to challenge us in different ways," Williamson said. "They might be more physical, they might be a little bit bigger, they might be able to do some things the other teams haven't done. How do we handle that? How do we handle the newness of some of these teams?"

The Coyotes have so far been adept at making changes on the run. They can expect more changing and more running this weekend.
 
"Every single one on the team is extremely competitive," Slaughter said. "And they're very self-driven. We get into the process and everyone is working as hard as they can all the time. And I love how well we communicate."