Bulldog Weekly Report (Jan. 17)

By Jacob Knabel on Jan. 17, 2017 in Athletic Announcements

Bulldog Athletic Association Athletes of the Week

Male: CJ Muller, Track & Field

Muller, who hails from Omaha, raced to an automatic national qualifying time of 1:20.98 in the 600 meters at the University of Nebraska Holiday Inn Invite. At the same meet, Muller collaborated another national qualifying time that came in 4x400 meter relay. Muller ranks third in the NAIA in the 600.

Female: Allie Brooks, Track & Field

Brooks, a Seward native, turned in automatic national qualifying marks in both the pole vault (11’ 10 ½”) and the high jump (5’ 5”) at last week’s Nisely Classic hosted by Doane. With those marks, Brooks ranks fourth nationally in the pole vault and sixth in the high jump.

Bulldogs set to host 2017 Concordia Invitational Tournament: The Concordia Invitational Tournament makes its return to Seward in 2017. Defending champions of both the men’s and women’s 2016 events, the Bulldogs will welcome Concordia-Ann Arbor, Concordia-Chicago and Concordia-Wisconsin to Walz Arena, which will host a total of eight basketball games Jan. 27-28. For more information on #CIT2017, click HERE.

Five Seward Bluejays set to join track and field program: Five current seniors at Seward High School have signed up to compete for head coach Matt Beisel’s track and field program. The group includes Anna Baack, Dalton Berry, Mika Brees, Logan Craig and Zach Potratz. Said Beisel, “They’re awesome kids and I want to have them be part of our program and contribute as leaders.” For more on the bunch of Bluejays, click HERE.

Barnes tabbed All-American by VSN: Another honor came in for senior defensive lineman Trey Barnes. On Monday, Victory Sports Network announced the Seward High School product as one of its All-America selections. Barnes has also been named an NAIA All-American by the American Football Coaches Association.

Tucson Invitational slates set for baseball/softball: The Tucson Invitational schedules have been released for both the baseball and softball programs. Head coach Ryan Dupic’s baseball team is slated to play 10 times in Tucson, Ariz., between March 4 – 10. Meanwhile, head coach Todd LaVelle’s softball squad is set to play nine games in Tucson between March 5 – 10. View the complete baseball schedule HERE and the softball schedule HERE.

How to purchase Cultivating Men of Faith and Character: The book, Cultivating Men of Faith and Character: The History of Concordia Nebraska Football, remains available for purchase online HERE. For more than 90 years, the Concordia football program has cultivated men of faith and character. This journey through the program’s entire history takes a narrative, coach-by-coach approach in bringing back to life the memorable plays, players and moments in Bulldog football history. Win or lose, Christian character has guided a storied football tradition in Seward, home to the “college in the cornfield.”

Bulldog Coaches Show airs every Thursday at 6 p.m. CT: The Bulldog Coaches Show is in its second year of existence. The show airs live for a half hour every Thursday beginning at 6 p.m. CT on KTMX-FM 104.9 Max Country. The weekly feature can also be heard live via 104.9 Max Country’s website or by downloading the TuneIn Radio app and searching “Max Country.” Throughout the 2016-17 season, Bulldog football, men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball contests will be aired live on Max Country.

Concordia Sports Network: Live webcasts for most home varsity contests can be accessed by visiting http://www.cune.edu/csn at game time. Check team schedules/results pages for webcast dates. Scrimmages, exhibitions and junior varsity events are not broadcasted.

Track & Field

  • The first season of Matt Beisel’s tenure as head coach officially got underway last weekend at the Scott Nisely Memorial Classic hosted by Doane. Four Bulldogs also competed at the University of Nebraska’s Holiday Inn Invitational on Jan. 14. By Saturday’s end, Concordia’s athletes produced 11 national qualifying marks, five event titles, six event runner-up finishes and 48 personal bests. For more on information on Bulldog track and field, click HERE.
  • Event titles were won at the Nisely Classic by the men’s 4x800 meter relay, Cody Boellstorff (weight throw), Allie Brooks (pole vault), Ben Hulett (60 meter hurdles) and Patrick Wortmann (1,000 meter run). Boellstorff, a two-time national champion (once in the weight throw), is the early national leader in the weight throw with his mark of 63’ 10 ¼.” Boellstorff is the school record holder with his personal best of 69’ 9” that came at the 2016 national championships.
  • Sophomore Allie Brooks enjoyed arguably the best day of any Bulldog at the Nisely Classic. She blew away her previous indoor personal record in the pole vault with an automatic national qualifying clearance of 11’ 10 ½.” Additionally, she qualified for nationals in the high jump for the first time in her career with a leap of 5’ 5.” On the NAIA national leaderboards, Brooks ranks fourth in the pole vault and sixth in the high jump.
  • On the track, CJ Muller got his senior season off to a rousing start inside the Bob Devaney Sports Center in Lincoln. Muller clocked a national qualifying time of 1:20.98 in the 600 meters, an event he has earned All-America honors in each of the last two years. Later in the afternoon, Muller teamed up with Jake Rodgers, Lucas Wiechman and Nathan Matters on another national qualifying time, checking in at 3:20.59 in the 4x400 meter relay. Concordia is one of only three men’s 4x4 relays that have qualified for nationals so far this season.
  • Once again, the Bulldogs possess a talented group of throwers. Three-time shot put national champion Zach Lurz qualified for nationals in both the shot put and the weight throw. Collectively, the throwers combined for seven automatic marks and one ‘B’ mark. A newcomer to the collegiate scene, freshman Adrianna Shaw tossed the shot put 44’ 5 ½” to lock up her spot at nationals. Shaw won a shot put state championship as a senior at Rock County High School.
  • Concordia track and field enters this season with high expectations thanks to its big performances on the national stage in recent years. At the 2016 indoor national championships, the Concordia men placed third and the women took fifth. Then at last year’s outdoor championships, the women won their first-ever national title and the men finished as the national runner up. The men’s program, which won the outdoor national title in 2015, has finished inside the top five at four-straight national championship meets. The women have turned in top-five finishes at three-consecutive national championships.
  • Below is the list of 11 automatic national qualifying marks and the two ‘B’ standard qualifying marks recorded by Concordia athletes during the opening weekend of the 2017 indoor season.
    • Men’s 4x400m relay (A, 3:20.59)
    • Cody Boellstorff: weight throw (A, 63’ 10 ¼”)
    • Allie Brooks: high jump (A, 5’ 5”); pole vault (A, 11’ 10 ½”)
    • Ben Hulett: 60 meter hurdles (B, 8.41)
    • Philip Kruetzer: weight throw (A, 56’ 1 ¼”); shot put (B, 49’ 9”)
    • Zach Lurz: shot put (A, 54’ 10 ¼”); weight throw (A, 59’ 5 ¾”)
    • Sydney Meyer: weight throw (A, 53’ 3 ¾”)
    • CJ Muller: 600 meters (A, 1:20.98)
    • Kali Robb: shot put (A, 46’ 2 ¾”)
    • Adrianna Shaw: shot put (A, 44’ 5 ½”)
  • Up next is the Nebraska Wesleyan Prairie Wolf Invite on Friday. Action from the Devaney Center is set to get started at 11 a.m. CT. The Bulldogs will make their first home appearance on Sunday, Jan. 29 when they host the annual Concordia Indoor Classic.

Women’s Basketball

  • Due to the winter storm that struck over the weekend, the second-ranked Bulldogs played just once last week. They extended their winning streak to 18 by trouncing Midland, 95-38, inside Walz Arena on Jan. 11. Eleventh-year head coach Drew Olson’s dominant group has won 16 games by double-digit margins this season. Alone atop the GPAC standings, Concordia stands at 18-1 overall and at 11-0 in conference play. For more information on Bulldog women’s basketball, click HERE.
  • Concordia continues to chase down the 2002-03 team in regards to the program’s longest unbeaten run through the GPAC. The 02-03 squad went a perfect 16-0 during conference regular-season action. During Olson’s tenure, the lengthiest win streak to begin GPAC play occurred in 2012-13 when Concordia jumped out to an 8-0 conference mark (15-0 overall) before being upset at Dordt in a double overtime game. During the GPAC era, the Bulldogs have won six conference championships (three regular season, three tournament).
  • This year’s team could go down as one of the best defensive squads in program history. Concordia suffocated Midland, which went just 12-for-56 (.214) from the field and committed 27 turnovers. The Bulldogs’ last three outings, since returning from the Hoop N Surf Classic, have been especially dominant. Over that stretch, Concordia has allowed its opponents to shoot just 27.8 percent while forcing an average of 32.3 turnovers per game. The Bulldogs top the GPAC in field goal percentage defense (.353).
  • Midland’s guard-oriented lineup struggled mightily to deal with freshman post Philly Lammers, who equaled a career high with 21 points in last week’s blowout. She also grabbed 11 rebounds in the process of recording the second double-double of her young career. A product of Millard West High School, Lammers leads Concordia in scoring (12.8), rebounding (6.3) and blocks (1.0). She’s been impressively efficient, shooting 61.2 percent from the field and 83.8 percent from the free throw line.
  • According to the NAIA’s official list of coaching wins leaders, Olson entered this season ranked 20th in overall wins among active coaches in NAIA Division II women’s basketball. With a career record of 266-89 (.749), Olson possesses a winning percentage loftier than all but three coaches on that list. Olson is the winningest coach in program history and has led the program to national tournament appearances in eight of his first 10 seasons. During that 10-year period, Concordia averaged nearly 25 victories per season.
  • Lammers was the only Bulldog to reach double figures in scoring last week. Nine of her teammates scored between five and nine points, continuing a season-long them of balance. Ten different players average more than four points per game, including four double-figure scorers: Lammers (12.8), Mary Janovich (11.4), Quinn Wragge (10.6) and Dani Andersen (10.1). On a still relatively young team, Janovich owns the most career points with 737 over her 71 games as a Bulldog.
  • Concordia ranks near the top of the nation in several statistical categories: second in steals per game (16.8), second in turnover margin (plus-10.3), third in scoring margin (plus-27.6), fourth in scoring offense (84.8), seventh in 3-point field goals per game (9.2), seventh in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.263), seventh in free throw percentage (.762), 10th in scoring defense (57.2), 12th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.11), 13th in field goal percentage defense (.353), 17th in field goal percentage (.438), 21st in blocks per game (3.8) and 24th in rebound margin (plus-5.7).
  • Janovich has been one of the most effective and efficient guards in the nation. Among all NAIA Division II players, she ranks sixth in assist-to-turnover ratio (plus-2.9) and 20th in steals per game (2.8). Due to the multitude of blowout wins, Janovich has only been needed for an average of 20.4 minutes per game. She’s made the most of that playing time, averaging 11.4 points, 3.5 assists and 3.4 rebounds. She is shooting 52.1 percent from the field and 42.4 percent from beyond the arc.
  • This week’s schedule will keep Concordia in the state of Nebraska. It will travel to Omaha on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. CT tipoff at College of Saint Mary (5-14, 1-11 GPAC). Then on Saturday, the Bulldogs will welcome No. 11 Morningside (15-5, 6-4 GPAC) for a contest set to start at 2 p.m. CT. Concordia will attempt to complete regular-season sweeps of both opponents. The Bulldogs pummeled the Mustangs, 80-52, in Sioux City on Dec. 7.

Men’s Basketball

  • In its only outing of last week, Concordia saw its five-game win streak come to an end. The Bulldogs misfired on their final nine field goal attempts and let a late seven-point lead slip away in a 64-59 home loss at the hands of No. 19 Midland on Jan. 11. It had been more than a month since Concordia suffered its most recent loss – a 93-89 overtime defeat versus No. 6 Northwestern. Fourth-year head coach Ben Limback’s squad now sits at 12-7 overall and at 4-6 in the conference (seventh place). For more information on Bulldog men’s basketball, click HERE.
  • Red hot Concordia cooled off in the loss to Midland. The Bulldogs had entered the contest ranked first in NAIA Division II in both field goal and 3-point percentage. The Warriors held them to 43.8 percent (21-for-48) shooting from the field and 14.3 percent (2-for-14) shooting from beyond the arc. Typically reliable outside marksmen Tanner Shuck and Eli Ziegler combined to go just 1-for-11 from 3-point range. Only Chris Johnstone (17) and Chandler Folkerts (16) managed to reach double figures in scoring as Concordia was held to a season low point total.
  • Though they were unable to close the deal last week, the Bulldogs have consistently proven capable of playing with and beating top-ranked teams. Concordia owns four wins over teams that held national rankings at the time they met: No. 10 Dakota Wesleyan, No. 17 York College, No. 21 St. Thomas University (Fla.) and No. 22 Florida Memorial University. The Bulldogs also topped Briar Cliff, currently ranked 24th, at home. On the other hand, they suffered two losses by a combined six points to GPAC-leading Northwestern.
  • Folkerts turned in his fifth double-double of the season while totaling 16 points and 13 rebounds in the loss to Midland. In that game, Folkerts moved past Jon Ziegler for third on the program’s all-time rebound list. With 768 career rebounds, Folkerts is just 13 behind Scott Beck (781) for second place. Matt List owns the school record with 928 career boards. On the program leaderboards, Folkerts also ranks third in blocked shots (128) and fourth in scoring (1,756). This season he is averaging 18.9 points and 7.9 rebounds.
  • Senior Justin Damme went 3-for-4 from the field while coming off the bench last week. Damme has had a reserve role each season during his four years as a Bulldog. This season he’s averaging career highs in points (6.7) and rebounds (2.6). He is shooting 63.4 percent from the floor. The native of Cook, Neb., totaled a career best 19 points in the win over Oglala Lakota College on Jan. 7.
  • Concordia may have had an off shooting night versus Midland, but it remains highly rated nationally in several offensive categories. Among all NAIA Division II teams, the Bulldogs rank first in field goal percentage (.526), third in 3-point field goal percentage (.429), 10th in free throw percentage (.765), 14th in 3-point field goals per game (10.2) and 21st in scoring offense (87.9). Individually, Folkerts ranks fourth in field goal percentage (.682), Shuck ranks sixth in 3-point field goal percentage (.505) and Eli Ziegler ranks 22nd in 3-point field goal percentage (.468).
  • Midland and Northwestern are the only two opponents to escape Walz Arena with victories this season. Concordia is 8-2 at home this season. The home loss to Northwestern snapped what had been a nine-game home streak that began late in the 2015-16 campaign. Since the start of the 2015-16 season, the Bulldogs own a home record of 18-6.
  • Concordia’s shooting percentage of 43.8 versus Midland was its lowest since producing a 43.1 clip in the season-opening win over Dickinson State University. The Bulldogs then went 17-consecutive games without shooting lower than 47 percent from the floor. During their recent five-game win streak, they shot 50 percent or better in each instance. Concordia shot a season high 58.6 percent in the 100-91 win at Dordt on Jan. 6.
  • This week’s lone contest is scheduled for 4 p.m. CT on Saturday when Morningside (14-6, 4-5 GPAC) will be in town. The Mustangs defeated the Bulldogs, 92-88, in Sioux City on Dec. 7. That game was one of the five conference tilts that Concordia has dropped by a margin of five points or less.

Wrestling

  • The 11th-ranked Bulldogs last competed on Jan. 5 when they ventured to Fort Wayne, Ind., the hometown of first-year head coach Andrew Nicola, for the NWCA NAIA National Duals held at the War Coliseum. Seeded 10th in the 16-team bracket, Concordia dominated seventh-seeded Wayland Baptist University (Texas), 36-7, but was then eliminated from the tournament due to losses to No. 2 Indiana Tech, 31-18, and to No. 9 Missouri Valley College, 21-18. The Bulldogs are 6-4 overall and 2-0 in conference duals. For more information on the Concordia wrestling program, click HERE.
  • Each of the Bulldogs’ last eight duals have come against teams with national rankings. Concordia has gone 4-4 in those duals, claiming wins over No. 8 Campbellsville University (Ky.), No. 11 Wayland Baptist (twice) and No. 17 (NJCAA) Northwest Kansas Technical College. Three of the Bulldogs’ four losses this season have come at the hands of NAIA top-10 ranked squads while the other defeat was handed out by the 14th-ranked team in NCAA Division II, University of Central Oklahoma.
  • From an individual perspective, second-ranked 197-pounder Ken Burkhardt Jr. and fourth-ranked heavyweight Ceron Francisco again shined for Concordia. Burkhardt Jr. (22-5) ran his personal winning streak to 12 while going 3-0 at the National Duals where he earned victories over Wayland Baptist’s eighth-ranked Riley Williams and Indiana Tech’s 10th-ranked Oscar Martinez. The Milford native also squeaked by Missouri Valley’s Alex Destra, 5-4. Burkhardt Jr.’s career record now stands at 108-53.
  • Francisco appears to be next in line to join Burkhardt Jr. as the only wrestlers in program history to achieve 100 career wins. The native of Fayetteville, N.C., ran his career mark to 87-51 by also going 3-0 at the National Duals. Francisco added a win over a ranked foe to his ledger when he defeated No. 16 Justin Smith (Missouri Valley), 4-1. Francisco is 13-1 overall this season with his lone loss coming at the Oklahoma City Duals. He is 5-1 in duals.
  • Also at the National Duals, 15th-ranked 125-pounder Dmitri Smith went 2-0, No. 12 Giovanni Castillo won his only bout at 125, No. 9 Kodie Cole went 2-1 at 133 and Jon Lado went 2-1 at 157. Collectively, the Bulldogs won 17 of 30 individual bouts. In Fort Wayne, one pin apiece was notched by both Francisco and Lado. Of the 11 Bulldogs to compete at the National Duals, 10 of them turned in at least one victory on the day. Castillo’s win came by major decision over Indiana Tech’s eighth-ranked Sawyer Miller.
  • Four Bulldogs also took part in the NUWAY College Open in Fort Wayne on Jan. 5. Three of the four recorded place finishes: Kolton Larsen (second at 157), DJ McIntyre (fourth at 285) and Cooper Bailey (sixth at 133). Sophomore Alexander Reimers did not place, but went 3-2 in the 197-pound bracket. Collectively, the quartet of Bulldogs went 14-7. Bailey and Larsen both won four bouts and McIntyre and Reimers secured three victories apiece.
  • Nine Bulldogs have piled up at least 10 wins this season (see list below). Concordia is topped by the 22 from Burkhardt Jr. Francisco (13-1) boasts the team’s top winning percentage. Burkhardt Jr. has placed at all four tournaments that he has competed in. He took first at both the Doane and Grand View Opens, fourth at the Dakota Wesleyan Open and sixth at the UNK Open. Francisco (two), Burkhardt Jr. (two) and Nate Bennett (one) have each won at least one tournament title. Five different Bulldogs own nine wins: Deandre Chery, Gabe Crawford, Walker Fisher, Lado and Smith.
    • Ken Burkhardt Jr. (197): 22-5
    • Kolton Larsen (157): 15-10
    • Ceron Francisco (285): 13-1
    • Kodie Cole (133): 13-5
    • Alexander Reimers (197): 13-9
    • DJ McIntyre (285): 12-8
    • Darrin Miller (174): 10-10
    • Kirk Kaliszewski (165): 10-11
    • Josh Nelsen (184): 10-13
  • Concordia will return to action this week. Next up on the schedule is the Missouri Valley College Invite on Jan. 20-21. The Bulldogs will have three GPAC duals on Jan. 28 in Orange City, Iowa. Their next home appearance is set for Feb. 2 when Briar Cliff visits Walz Arena.