South Dakota volleyball releases full 2025 schedule

VERMILLION, S.D. — South Dakota volleyball and the Summit League announced the 2025 fall schedule Tuesday afternoon. The Coyotes will play 28 matches with 12 nonconference opponents and 16 Summit League regular season games.
 
Prior to the regular season, the Coyotes will host Northern Iowa for an exhibition at the Sanford Coyote Sports Center at 2 p.m. on August 23.
 

The nonconference schedule features four tournaments, including two in Vermillion at the SCSC. The Yotes head to Bozeman, Montana to kick off the season for a three-day tournament hosted by Montana State. In addition to facing the Bobcats, the Yotes will also take on Oregon and Prairie View A&M from August 29-31. The following weekend, South Dakota heads east to Storrs, Connecticut for a tournament including Colgate, Ball State and host team UCONN.

South Dakota’s home opener will be on day one of the Coyote Invitational on September 11 against Green Bay at 7 p.m. The Yotes face Florida Gulf Coast on September 12 at 7 p.m. and matchup with Kansas on September 13 at 5 p.m.

 

The Coyotes are back in Vermillion for the second weekend in a row when they welcome Villanova, Wichita State and Drake to the SCSC for the South Dakota Classic from September 18-20.

 

Of the 12 nonconference opponents, nine ended the 2024 season ranked inside the top-100 RPI and two were ranked inside the top-25 RPI (Kansas and Oregon). Five nonconference foes were NCAA Tournament Teams in 2024. Oregon was a Sweet 16 team and would fall in five to eventual National Champion Pittsburgh. Kansas advanced to the Round of 32, while Colgate, FGCU and Wichita State all fell in the first round.

The Yotes play four of the first six conference matches on the road against North Dakota (Sept 25), at Denver (Oct. 4), at Omaha (Oct. 11) and at Kansas City (Oct. 16). The conference home opener is that Saturday, September 27 when Oral Roberts visits the SCSC.

 

USD plays three of the last five matches in October in Vermillion starting with South Dakota State on Saturday, October 18 for a 6 p.m. match. The Yotes make a quick trip up to Fargo to face North Dakota State on Tuesday, October 21 before returning home for two straight home matches against Denver on Thursday, October 23 and North Dakota on Saturday, October 25. The Coyotes hit the road the following week for matches at St. Thomas (Oct. 30) and at South Dakota State (Nov. 1).

 

The final two weeks of the regular season has the Yotes in Vermillion in three of the final four matches starting on November 6 with USD hosting Omaha and on November 8 against Kansas City in the SCSC. South Dakota in on the road on November 15 at Oral Roberts, before returning home for the regular season finale against North Dakota State on November 18.

The top six teams of the Summit League standings will compete in the Summit League Tournament November 23-25 in Brookings. The Yotes won their fifth tournament championship in the last seven years last fall with a 3-2 win over SDSU. The winner of the tournament earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.