VERMILLION, S.D. — A cherry on top of what was an incredible stretch of softball from the South Dakota softball team in the month of May sees the Yotes jump into the Softball America top-25 mid-major poll for the first time in program history at No. 19 in the final poll of 2026.
In a loaded Lincoln Regional that featured three top-30 RPI teams, with all three nationally ranked heading into the weekend, the Coyotes posted a 1-2 record on the weekend. South Dakota picked up their first-ever NCAA Tournament win with a 4-2 victory over No. 24/25 Louisville in the first elimination game of the regional.
Additionally, the Yotes were the only team to score a run against the top-ranked Cornhuskers – and hold a lead against Nebraska – on the weekend with Autumn Iversen’s solo home run in the fourth inning off Alexis Jensen to give the Yotes the 1-0 lead.
In all three games, South Dakota held a lead in their first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance against some of the nation’s top teams. For the second time this season, USD dropped just a one-run defeat to a 50+ win Grand Canyon squad.
On the weekend, sophomore Ella McGee had a team-high .571 batting average in the three games going 4-for-7 with two doubles and three runs scored. Iversen hit an even .500 (3-for-6) with four runs scored, a double, and her third home run of the season. Kiya Johnson drove in a pair of runs with a .286 average with one run scored.
In the circle, Madison Evans posted a stellar 2.69 ERA against a pair of top-15 offenses (Nebraska & Louisville) with 13.0 innings of work and allowing just five earned runs. She had seven strike outs and gave up 12 hits in the two starts with opponents hitting just .235 off her.
The 2026 season marked the first season of Softball America’s mid-major rankings, with the final 2026 rankings being South Dakota’s first-ever ranking in the Division I era. Though the record says otherwise, a phenomenal finish for South Dakota to the campaign, sees the Coyotes finish 21-36-1 with the program’s first-ever Summit League tournament title.