VERMILLION – The history-making South Dakota volleyball team that will be playing in the school's first-ever NCAA tournament is distinctively competitive, the coach says. Public evidence of that is in what the Coyotes have accomplished this year.
In private, it's the way they play the board game "Catch Phrase", which doubles as a pre-game warmup. To borrow from an actual catch phrase, it keeps them on their mental toes.
Wilson, a native of Corydon, Ind., began her college career at Stonybrook and transferred to South Dakota for her junior season. She was greeted by an environment unlike what she'd experienced before. She's since been reminded that good chemistry can lead to good seasons. Or, in this case, a great one.
The Coyotes will need to tap into that chemistry against Creighton, seeded No. 9 nationally, at 6 p.m. on Friday at D.J. Sokol Arena in Omaha. The Bluejays' roster includes senior Taryn Kloth, a former O'Gorman standout who will go down as one of Creighton's all-time greats. The Bluejays, putting it simply, are big favorites.
There will be moments where the Coyotes will see things they just don't see too often against Summit League competition. How they react in those moments will have a lot to do with how they perform.
The Coyotes did not begin the season with the school's first-ever NCAA berth an obvious target. Or maybe they thought that but no one else did. A five-game losing streak leading up to the start of the conference season appeared to confirm that 2018 would be a year where USD would do the best with what it had with an eye toward the future.
The Coyotes will try to challenge the Bluejays with a persistent defense that is not fazed by the occasional tough spot. This has applied while games are going on and for the whole season.
The Coyotes have seven freshmen on the roster, several of whom have made increasingly valuable contributions as the year has gone on. Regardless of age, however, the squad has taken on an attitude and a style of play that has meant the difference between another good year and the unique experiences of 2018.
The plan for hanging in there against the Bluejays includes lots of defense. In this sport that means keeping the ball off the ground more often than the other team – in this case a top-10 program – is comfortable dealing with.