WHO: Denver (10-5-2, 4-1-2 Summit) at South Dakota (3-7-6, 1-2-4 Summit)
WHAT: DU's regular-season finale
WHERE: First Bank & Trust Soccer Complex (Vermillion, S.D.)
WHEN: Sunday, October 27, at 1 p.m. CT/12 p.m. MT
 
LAST TIME OUT:
Denver earned its first-ever win at South Dakota State with a 2-1 victory over its Summit League rival on Thursday night. All three of the match's goals were scored in a nine-minute span in the second half, beginning with sophomore Liv Moritz 's fifth of the season in the 65^th minute. SDSU found an equalizer off a corner kick in the 69^th before senior Payten Ivins reclaimed the DU lead in the 74^th with her first collegiate goal.
 
SUMMIT LEAGUE SCENARIOS:

• The six-team field for the 2024 Summit League Women's Soccer Championship is complete: Denver, North Dakota State, South Dakota State, Omaha, Oral Roberts, South Dakota.
• SEEDING:
  • The top five seeds are all up for grabs. Only South Dakota has locked in its seed at No. 6.
  • Denver and North Dakota State are the only teams able to secure the No. 1 seed.
  • Seeding ranges for each of the six teams are:
    • Denver: 1-4
    • North Dakota State: 1-2
    • South Dakota State: 2-5
    • Omaha: 2-5
    • Oral Roberts: 2-5
    • South Dakota: 6
• FORMAT (new for 2024):
  • The top two seeds receive a first-round bye.
  • Quarterfinals (November 2-3): The No. 3 seed will host the No. 6 seed, and No. 4 seed will host the No. 5 seed.
  • Semifinals/Final (November 7-10): The No. 1 seed will host the No. 2 seed and the winners of the two quarterfinals.
• REGULAR-SEASON TITLE RACE:
  • Only three teams remain in the race for the 2024 Summit League regular-season title: Denver, North Dakota State and South Dakota State.
  • Denver will win the Summit League regular-season title outright with a win at South Dakota AND a North Dakota State loss against St. Thomas.
  • DU and NDSU will share the regular-season crown with a Denver win at USD AND a North Dakota State draw with UST.
    • In this scenario, Denver would take the tournament's No. 1 seed by way of a head-to-head tiebreak with NDSU.
  • South Dakota State and North Dakota State will share the regular-season title with an SDSU win over Oral Roberts AND an NDSU loss to UST AND a Denver loss/tie at USD.

QUICK HITS:

• DU has a chance to notch its 90^th Summit League win in Sunday's match. The Pioneers currently own an 89-16-15 all-time league record including 41-10-7 in road matches.
• Denver's win at South Dakota State was the program's first in Brookings, bringing DU's record at SDSU to 1-4-3.
  • DU now owns a two-match win streak against its league rival.
• For the seventh time in the last eight seasons, Denver has won at least 10 matches.
  • Denver's four one-goal wins so far in 2024 are its most since having eight in the pandemic-delayed 2020 season.
  • In total, seven of Denver's 17 matches so far have been decided by a single goal.
• Graduate student Vanessa Murray moved into a tie for fourth in Denver's Division I record book for most matches played (91) on Thursday night.
  • Fifth-year student Jordan Crockett can join her as one of six Pioneers to play in at least 90 career matches should she play on Sunday.
• DU has won the Summit League regular-season title eight times including the last five outright.

SCOUTING THE COYOTES:
South Dakota pulled a 1-1 draw at home against Oral Roberts on Thursday night. The Coyotes trailed for the majority of the match after conceding a 20^th-minute goal to ORU but drew level off an own goal in the 87^th minute. With the point earned, USD is locked into the No. 6 seed for the Summit League tournament.
 
Ashby Johnston leads the team in points (10) and shares the team lead in goals (4) with Izzy Quintaville. Brooklyn Bordson's three assists on the season are best on the USD roster.
 
Denver holds an 11-1-2 record against South Dakota including two consecutive wins, most recently claiming a 3-1 victory over the Coyotes at home on October 8, 2023. The last time DU made the trip to Vermillion (October 2, 2022), Denver came away with a 4-2 win.
 
WHAT'S NEXT:
Denver has secured a spot in the six-team Summit League Women's Soccer Championship field and is guaranteed a top-four seed. Final seeding for the tournament will be determined following Sunday's slate of matches and will dictate when and where DU's next match will be held.
 
Denver's Home for College Sports
Like Denver Pioneers and Denver Women's Soccer on Facebook
Follow @DU_Pioneers and @DU_WSoccer on Twitter
Follow @denverpioneers and @DU_WSoccer on Instagram