VERMILLION, S.D. — South Dakota softball closes out the regular season at Nygaard Field this weekend when they welcome Kansas City Friday and Saturday.
 
The Coyotes will also celebrate Senior Day and their four seniors, Tatum Villotta, Rylie Jones, Clara Edwards and Alyssa Thorson following Saturday's game against the Roos.
 
The Schedule vs Kansas City
Friday @ noon and 2:00 p.m.
Saturday at 11:00 a.m.
 
ABOUT THE YOTES

• The Coyotes hold a 25-22 record and are 5-10 in Summit League play. The Yotes enter the weekend with a 5-3 record at Nygaard Field.
• The Coyotes are tied for No. 2 in the Summit League in batting percentage (.300), No. 3 in hits (384), No. 2 in triples (12), No. 3 in stolen bases (36).
• The Yotes rank No. 2 in ERA (2.79), are tied for first with 10 shutouts, No. 2 in hits allowed (297), No. 3 in strikeouts (261) and No. 2 in opponents' batting average (.254).
• Tatum Villotta leads the Summit League in hits with 61 and carries a .389 batting average.
  • Villotta has hit 37 of 47 games this season and has 18 multi-hit games with six of those being three hit performances.
  • Villotta tallied her 200^th career hit as a Coyote in the series against South Dakota State on April 5.
  • Villotta also leads the Yotes with four triples on the season, has 13 extra-base hits and is tied for third with 20 RBIs.
• Delaney White has a team leading .400 batting average and has a team high 10 doubles. White is the the leader on the squad with 27 RBIs.  
  • White is tied with Villlotta for the team lead with 18 multi-hit contests. Four of those games, White tallied three this.
  • In the series against North Dakota on March 22-23, White went 5-for-6 from the plate against the Fighting Hawks and had four RBIs.
  • In the series finale last weekend against NDSU, White went 3-for-5 from the plate and scored one run.
  • In Summit League play, White has elevated her play at the plate as she's batting .426 against conference opponents.
• McKenna Young has earned a pair of Summit League Peak Pitcher of the Week honors this season and carries the second lowest ERA in the Summit League (2.40).
  • Young is No. 2 in the conference and No. 39 in the NCAA with 139 strikeouts on the season.
  • She carries an 11-8 overall record in 26 appearances and 23 starts with nine complete games and four shutouts.
• Clara Edwards has started in the pitcher's circle in 23 of her 26 appearances and has a 12-11 record in 148.1 innings of work.
  • Edwards is No. 2 in the conference with 13 complete games, which ranks No. 55 in the NCAA, and has struck out 85 batters.
  • Edwards also holds a .245 batting average with two home runs and 20 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.
  • Edwards' name appears often in the programs record book as she ranks inside the top-three in career wins, complete games, innings pitched, starts in the circle, strikeouts and saves. Edwards is number three all-time with 51 wins and No. 2 in games started in the circle with 114.
• Autumn Iversen is second on the team with 22 RBIs and has a .282 batting average. She has 12 extra base hits with eight doubles, two triples and two home runs.
• Rylie Jones has started every game at shortstop for the Yotes and holds a .330 average at the plate. Jones is 4-for-6 on stolen base attempts and has scored 21 runs.
• Ella McGee is fourth with a .328 hitting percentage with four doubles, three triples and tallied her first inside-the-park home run against the Fighting Hawks.
• McGee earned her first monthly award from the conference, as she was named the Kwik Star Summit League Female Newcomer of the Month for March.
  • Batted .383 during the month of March, including a .429 clip in six Summit tilts
  • Went 5-for-10 and scored seven runs during a series win over North Dakota
  • Registered five multi-hit games and three multi-RBI games during the month
• Following strong performances against the Fighting Hawks, McKenna Young and Ella McGee swept the Kwik Star Summit League Peak Performer of the Week honors a week ago.
  • McGee collected the first weekly honor of her career. Posted a .500 batting average across three games against UND.
  • Scored two or more runs in all three games against the Fighting Hawks. Extended her hit streak to nine games.
  • Young captured her second career weekly accolade. She earned a pair of a complete-game victories in the series win over North Dakota.
  • Threw 12.0 innings in two starts while posting a 0.58 ERA with 16 strikeouts. Allowed just one earned run and seven hits.
  • It's the second time this season that the Yotes have swept the Summit League weekly awards as Clara Edwards and Tatum Villotta were named the Peak Performers of the Week on March 3.
• 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 KANSAS CITY

• The Roos hold a 5-39 record on the season and are 1-14 in Summit League play.
• Gianna Lickel holds a .319 batting average to lead the Roos and has started in 34 of 42 games she's appeared in. Lickel has three doubles and nine RBIs on the season.
• Katie Noble and Grace Batdorf are tied for second on the squad with a .286 batting average. Batdorf has three home runs, six doubles and 11 RBIs, while Noble has a pair of doubles and eight RBIs.
• Riley Bebb has made the most appearances in the circle for the Roos (34) and has made 17 starts. Bebb is 2-16 on the season with a 7.81 ERA in 100.1 innings of work. Maddy Duvall and Hannah Burks have each made 10 starts in the circle and have thrown a combined 108.2 innings.