VERMILLION, S.D.—Trips to Texas, South Carolina, Florida and Tennessee highlight South Dakota's 2022 softball schedule announced Wednesday by head coach Robert Wagner.
 
The schedule includes tournaments hosted by Sam Houston State, Furman, Florida International, Memphis and Kansas. The home opener is March 22 against Creighton. The Coyotes will also host North Dakota State (March 26-27), South Dakota State (April 2-3) and Omaha (April 23-24) in three-game, weekend series at Nygaard Field.
 
South Dakota will face 29 different teams in non-conference play including 2021 NCAA tournament teams Wichita State (Feb. 12), Saint Francis (Feb. 19-20) and Oklahoma State (March 12). The Coyotes meet Sam Houston State (Feb. 11), Furman (Feb. 18), Brown (Feb. 25) and Stony Brook (Feb. 26-27) for the first time.
 
The season begins Feb. 11 with games against Houston Baptist and Sam Houston State in Huntsville, Texas, as part of the Bearkat Classic. USD will face teams from 16 different conferences. Ten teams finished in the RPI top 100.
 
The Summit League Tournament will be held May 11-13 in Brookings, South Dakota. The winner of the six-team tournament will receive the league's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
 
The Summit League welcomes St. Thomas this year, bringing the number of softball playing teams to eight. The Coyotes will meet the Tommies April 9-10 in St. Paul.