VERMILLION, S.D. — South Dakota softball heads to Conway, South Carolina for a three-game series against Coastal Carolina. The two teams will play one game a day Friday through Sunday.
 
The Schedule vs Coastal Carolina                                      
Friday @ 5:00 p.m. CT
Saturday at 1:00 p.m. CT
Sunday at 11:00 a.m. CT
 
ABOUT THE YOTES

• South Dakota is 14-5 on the season after a perfect 5-0 weekend in Pirate-Spartan Challenge in Virginia last weekend. The Yotes are now 9-3 in true road games and 5-2 when on a neutral site.
• This weekend will be the first meetings between South Dakota and Coastal Carolina
• South Dakota swept this week's Summit League's Peak Performer of the Week honors with Tatum Villotta earning the Peak Performer of the Week and Clara Edwards earning the Peak Pitcher of the Week.
  • Villotta extended her current hit streak to 16 games this weekend and went 11-for-22 from the plate across the five games at the Pirate-Spartan Challenge. Villotta scored nine runs and had seven RBIs. She tallied six extra-base hits with three triples, two doubles and an inside the park home run.
  • Edwards earned a win in all four of her starts this past week and improved her season record to 7-3. Edwards tossed 23.0 innings with a 0.78 ERA and had 19 strikeouts. Edwards tossed complete games in three of four games this past week and has seven complete games on the year. 
• Tatum Villotta carries a team high .492 batting average into this weekend's set of games and leads the Yotes with 31 hits.
  • Villotta has reached base safely in 18 of 19 games to start the season, has nine multi-hit games and is currently on a 16-game hit streak.
  • She has drove in runs in five of the last seven games.
  • In the last four contests, Villotta is 9-for-16 at the plate and has scored seven runs.
  • Villotta also leads the Yotes with three triples on the season and has eight extra-base hits. She is tied for the team lead with Edwards with 13 RBIs.
• Delaney White follows Villotta with a .419 batting average and has a team high six doubles. White is second on the team with 12 RBIs.
  • White has eight multi-hit games, including a 3-for-3 performance against UTSA earlier this spring.
  • White went 8-for-16 from the plate at the Lion Classic with two RBIs and five runs scored.
  • White hit streak was snapped at eight games but has recorded a hit in 11 of the last 12 contests.
• Clara Edwards has started in the pitcher's circle in 10 of her 11 appearances and has a 7-3 record with 61.2 innings of work.
  • Edwards has tossed seven complete games and has struck out 44 batters.
  •  Edwards went 3-0 last weekend against Hampton and Norfolk State with a pair of complete games, including a complete game shutout over Norfolk State.
  • Edwards has also been exceptional at the plate, boasting a .341 batting average with 15 hits, one home run and 13 RBIs.
  • In her complete game shutout of Norfolk State, Edwards also went 2-for-3 at the plate with a double and an RBI. She followed that with a 4-for-4 game at the plate with four RBIs in the second game of the doubleheader against the Spartans.
• Autumn Iversen is fourth on the team with 10 RBIs and is fourth with a .333 batting average. She has five extra base hits with two doubles, two triples and a home run.
• Alyssa Thorson also carries a hitting clip above .300 and has 15 runs and 14 hits.
• McKenna Young had herself a weekend in Texas and earned her first career Kwik Star Summit League Peak Pitcher of the Week honor two weekends ago.
  • Young put together back-to-back complete game wins with 10+ strikeouts in both contests.
  • Young opened up her weekend with a career high 14 strikeouts against Prairie View A&M, and followed that with 11 punchouts against East Texas A&M.
• Young has a team leading 63 strikeouts in 40.2 innings of work. She has made 11 appearances, six starts and carries a 0.66 ERA and 0.76 WHIP while holding opposing bats to a .144 average. She holds a 6-0 record on the season.
• South Dakota was picked to finish third in the Summit League Preseason Poll, as announced by the league office.
• The Coyotes finished fifth in the Summit League a season ago with a 7-10 conference record and a 23-30 mark on the season.
• USD returns a trio of All-Summit League selections from a season ago in Tatum Villotta (second team), Clara Edwards (HM) and Delaney White (HM).
• Villotta and Edwards were named as USD's players to watch in the conference preseason poll.
• Villotta was one of three Yotes to start in all 53 games a season ago, splitting time in both middle infield positions. She tallied a team-high 54 hits, 23 runs and a team best 10 game hitting streak during the season. Villotta had 12 multi-hit games in 2024 and has 39 multi-hit games in her career.
• Edwards made 28 starts in 29 appearances as the No. 1 pitcher in 2024 and recorded an 8-13 record, 2.76 ERA, and 121 strikeouts in 157.1 innings pitched. Edwards struck out a career-high 13 batters in a complete game shutout, one of five shutouts she had on the season, in a win over Abilene Christian.
• McKenna Young begins her sophomore season after pitching 79.0 innings in her freshman campaign, making 27 appearances and nine starts. She tallied 75 strikeouts and held opponents to a team-low .246 batting average.
• Rounding out the pitching staff is freshmen Madison Evans and Campbell German. Evans was named the South Dakota Gatorade Players of the Year last year after leading Sioux Falls Lincoln to a state title, while German was a three-time First Team All-State selection in Iowa.
• The combination of Villotta, White and Rylie Jones in the infield combined to start all but three games in 2024.
• White was tied for second on the squad in 2024 with 45 hits, second with eight doubles and drove in the second most runs (23) while holding a .278 batting average. White led the team with 13 multi-hit games and had five games with multiple RBIs.

 
ABOUT COASTAL CAROLINA

• Coastal Carolina holds a 17-4 record on the season and are 12-4 one its home field.
• The Chanticleers have outscored opponents 146 to 78 on the season and are averaging just under seven runs per game.
• Georgia Hood leads the Chants bats with a .483 average and has three doubles, six home runs and 22 RBIs.
• Delaney Keith has a team leading 11 home runs and 24 RBIs. It's been seven games since Keith hit a home run, but prior to that she put together five straight games with a home run.
• Keirstin Roose also has over 20 RBIs with 22 on the season and holds a .383 batting average with six home runs and three triples.
• The two main pitchers in the circle for the Chants are Nicolette Picone and Abby Henderson.
• Picone has made 15 appearances with 10 starts and holds a 9-1 record with a 1.87 ERA. In 67.1 innings of work, she has 59 strikeouts and allowed just 18 earned runs while throwing seven complete games.
• Henderson has made 10 starts in 11 appearances and has thrown two shutouts in 49.0 innings. She has 36 strikeouts and a 5-2 overall record.