Tournaments in Las Vegas, San Diego and Orlando, and a doubleheader against two-time defending national champion Florida in Gainesville highlight the 2016 South Dakota softball schedule released this week by Coyote Head Coach Amy Klyse.
The 53-game schedule includes five games at five different tournaments starting Feb. 12 and leading up to the opening weekend of Summit League play on March 25. The home opener comes 33 games into the schedule on April 2. Series with Western Illinois, Creighton, IUPUI, Kansas City and North Dakota State comprise the home slate at Nygaard Field.
There are seven 2015 NCAA Tournament teams on the schedule including Florida, which will host the Coyotes for a doubleheader on March 9. South Dakota will face tournament qualifiers California, San Diego State and Kentucky in consecutive games at the start of the Campbell Cartier Softball Tournament in San Diego, Calif., which runs Feb. 19-21.
