SIOUX FALLS, S.D.—South Dakota head coach Nolan Fife has been named the Summit League Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year as announced by the league office Wednesday afternoon.
 
Fife garners the accolade in just his second season at the helm of the South Dakota program. His women's squad improved from fifth place a year ago without any all-conference finishers to Summit League champions with four runners on the all-league first team. The women also put together an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Midwest Regional, the program's fourth top-10 finish in 11 seasons.
 
Fife came to South Dakota after six seasons as an assistant coach with the University of Illinois. In 2016, he guided the Illini men to their first NCAA Championship appearance in 30 years. He then coached the women's cross country team to an NCAA Championship appearance in 2019. Fife is a 2015 graduate of Indiana University.