Bulldog Athletic Association Athletes of the Week
Male: Jesse Garcia, Baseball
Garcia, who hails from El Cajon, Calif., equaled a school single game standard last week by drilling three home runs in a 17-5 win over Dakota Wesleyan. As a team, the Bulldogs set a new school record with seven home runs in that contest. Garcia is hitting .315 with five home runs and a .667 slugging percentage.
Female: Tori Homolka, Softball
Homolka, a native of Swanton, Neb., stayed hot at the plate by going 6-for-8 with four runs scored, a double, a stolen base, a home run and three RBIs as part of a doubleheader sweep last week at Ottawa University. On the season, Homolka is hitting .449 with a .755 slugging percentage, six doubles, three triples and a home run.
Previous Athletes of the Week
March 17 – Grace Barry (basketball)
March 3 – Alberto Garcia (wrestling) / Jacee Pfeifer (track & field)
FEBRUARY Athletes of the Month: Josiah McAllister (track & field) / Taylor Cockerill (basketball)
Feb. 26 – Wade Council (baseball) / Philly Lammers (basketball)
Feb. 19 – Josiah McAllister (track & field) / Jacee Pfeifer (track & field)
Feb. 12 – Isaac Howes (tennis) / Quinn Wragge (basketball)
Feb. 5 – Cam Devers (wrestling) / Taylor Cockerill (basketball)
JANUARY Athletes of the Month: Brevin Sloup (basketball) / Taylor Grove (track & field)
Jan. 29 – Mario Ybarra (wrestling) / Taylor Grove (track & field)
Jan. 22 – Michael Stann (wrestling) / Addie Shaw (track & field)
Jan. 15 – Brevin Sloup (basketball) / Leah Larson (track & field)
Jan. 8 – Zack Moistner (wrestling) / Mackenzie Koepke (basketball)
DECEMBER Athletes of the Month: Tanner Shuck (basketball) / Philly Lammers (basketball)
Dec. 31 – Brevin Sloup (basketball) / Philly Lammers (basketball)
Dec. 18 – Taylor Cockerill (basketball) / Michael Stann (wrestling)
Dec. 11 – Deandre Chery (wrestling) / Philly Lammers (basketball)
Dec. 4 – Tanner Shuck (basketball) / Taylor Grove (track & field)
NOVEMBER Athletes of the Month: Alberto Garcia (wrestling) / Quinn Wragge (basketball)
Nov. 27 – Alberto Garcia (wrestling) / Taylor Grove (cross country) / Quinn Wragge (basketball)
Nov. 13 – Zac Walter (football) / Grace Barry (basketball)
Nov. 6 – Jack Bennett (soccer) / Tori Cera (soccer)
OCTOBER Athletes of the Month: Carlos Ferrer (soccer) / Maria Deeter (soccer)
Oct. 30 – Carlos Ferrer (soccer) / Taylor Cockerill (basketball)
Oct. 23 – Josiah McAllister (cross country) / Jenna Habegger (volleyball)
Oct. 16 – Carlos Ferrer (soccer) / Maria Deeter (soccer)
Oct. 9 – Kordell Glause (football) / Brynn Suddeth (soccer)
Oct. 2 – Zac Walter (football) / Maria Deeter (soccer)
SEPTEMBER Athletes of the Month: Ryan Durdon (football) / Emmie Noyd (volleyball)
Sept. 25 – Roger de la Villa (soccer) / Erin Lokke (shooting sports)
Sept. 18 – Lane Napier (football) / Emmie Noyd (volleyball)
Sept. 11 – Ryan Durdon (football) / Marissa Hoerman (volleyball)
Sept. 4 – JP Verissimo (soccer) / Lauren Martin (soccer)
Aug. 28 – Garrett Perry (soccer) / Jenna Habegger (volleyball)
News and notes:
Outdoor track and field season now set to open Sunday: Head coach Matt Beisel’s squads are all set to open up the outdoor track and field season this Sunday at the Bronco Invite hosted by Hastings. The first action is slated to go off at 10 a.m. CT. The Bulldogs backed out of last week’s Wildcat Classic hosted by Wayne State College due to poor road/travel conditions caused by recent flooding in Nebraska. Concordia is fresh off of ninth place NAIA national indoor finishes by both the men and women. The women were also GPAC indoor champions.
Shooting sports opens up action at national event: Head coach Scott Moniot’s shooting sports team began action today (March 26) at the ACUI National Championships in San Antonio, Texas. The Bulldogs have entered 17 competitors into the national competition. The event will cap off the 2018-19 season for shooting sports, which means the end of a remarkable collegiate career for senior Erin Lokke.
Spring golf heats up this week: The men’s and women’s golf programs are both set to return to action with events this week. The women are getting ready to host the now one-day Concordia Spring Invitational this Thursday at Highlands Golf Course in Lincoln, Neb. (shotgun start at noon). Meanwhile, the men will take part in the Concordia-Doane Cup at Beatrice Country Club in Beatrice, Neb., on Sunday (pushed back one day due to expected inclement weather on Saturday). It will be the first event of the spring for the men. The women got the spring season started over spring break with the Seminole State Spring Break Invite (March 5-6) in Lake Mary, Fla.
Women’s basketball reflects on national title: All coaches and players who were present during the Concordia University women’s basketball team’s five-game national tournament run provided reflection on winning a national championship and what made the 2018-19 squad so special. The realization of what was accomplished has begun to set in for NAIA Division II National Coach of the Year Drew Olson’s group. Read what about the thoughts of those who made the achievement possible HERE.
Soccer schedules unveiled for 2019 seasons: The 2019 schedules for the men’s and women’s soccer programs are now available online. The programs coached by Jason Weides and Greg Henson are both set to make their official 2019 debuts on Aug. 24. The nonconference slates will be challenging for both teams. Check out the schedules by clicking the links below.
-Men’s Soccer Schedule
-Women’s Soccer Schedule
Bulldog Coaches Show airs every Thursday at 5:30 p.m. CT: The Bulldog Coaches Show is underway in its fourth year of existence. The show airs live for a half hour every Thursday beginning at 5:30 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 Max Country app. Throughout the 2018-19 season, Bulldog football, men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball contests will be aired live on Max Country. Tyler Cavalli serves as the host of the coaches’ show as well as the play-by-play voice for football and basketball. Frank Greene is in his fourth season calling Concordia volleyball.
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.
Tennis
- The Concordia men’s and women’s tennis teams dipped outside of conference play this past Thursday (March 21) to take on former GPAC rival Nebraska Wesleyan University. The men recorded their second 9-0 victory in a row while the women took care of the Prairie Wolves, 7-2. Head coach David DeSimone’s squads have put together solid 10-match starts to the season. The women stand at 7-3 overall while the men are 6-4 (1-0 GPAC). For more information on Bulldog tennis: Men | Women.
- With a nice run through the conference schedule, the women could challenge the school record of 13 wins that they put up in 2018. Behind No. 1 player Marlene Maier, Concordia has been successful while up against a schedule with a unique mix of opponents. The Bulldogs are 4-1 versus NCAA foes. Each of their last four matches have put them up against NCAA opponents, including three that took place in Colorado over spring break.
- The singles win streak has reached eight for Maier, who has been a force at the top of the Bulldog lineup. She took care of her opponent, 6-2, 6-0, versus Nebraska Wesleyan. Meanwhile, her teammates set the tone in doubles play. Junior Kirsten Wagner paired with sophomore Allison Marshall on a dominant 8-1 victory at No. 1 doubles. Concordia led 2-1 after doubles with the help of an 8-6 triumph by the duo of junior Lindee Schultz and sophomore Angela Bell at No. 3.
- Maier has not fallen against any of her NCAA singles competition. Her only loss this season came by a 6-3, 6-4, decision at Grand View University (Iowa) on Feb. 8. The majority of Maier’s wins have come in the type of dominant fashion that was displayed last week. Over spring break, the Uppsala, Sweden, native managed to pull off two victories in battles that went to a third-set tiebreaker. Maier was an all-conference performer at NCAA Division I Alcorn State University before transferring to Concordia.
- The Bulldogs made it a fairly comfortable team win over Nebraska Wesleyan by getting singles wins from Maier, No. 3 Wagner, No. 4 Marshall, No. 5 Bell and No. 6 Ansley Gates. Bell was particularly impressive while breezing to a 6-0, 6-0, decision. All six singles matches were decided in two sets. It marked the first time this season that Concordia has won a match by a 7-2 score. It was coming off a 5-4 victory over Colorado College two weeks earlier.
- Two 9-0 wins in a row for the men have been a nice response after a challenging spring break against tough NCAA competition. Concordia has played three of its past four matches against NCAA squads, including two from the D-III level. The Bulldogs are 5-1 against NAIA opposition with the only loss being a 7-2 decision at Ottawa University (Kan.). The Concordia-Northwestern match is the lone contest played within the GPAC so far.
- The men’s doubles lineup underwent some recent changes that carried over to the Nebraska Wesleyan match. So far the results have been perfect. At the No. 1 position, reigning GPAC Player of the Week Jeremy Berryman and senior Thomas Greeff combined for an 8-5 victory. Additionally, junior Luke Zoller and freshman Jack Kitson at No. 2 and freshman Isaac Howes and sophomore Joshua Miller at No. 3 were winners. The singles lineup, in order, included Greeff, Zoller, Berryman, Howes, senior Conner Works and Kitson. In terms of score, Kitson was the most dominant, taking a 6-1, 6-1, win at No. 6.
- On the women’s side, the Bulldogs are a collective 34-26 in singles and 19-11 in doubles matches. Maier (9-1) is the team singles wins leader followed by Bell (5-2) and Katelinn Wurm (4-3). The top doubles marks belong to Marshall (7-2) and Wagner (6-3). On the men’s side, Concordia is a combined 30-30 in singles and 15-15 in doubles. The singles wins leaders are Berryman (6-4), Works (6-4) and Howes (4-6). In doubles, the top performers have been Kitson (5-5) and Howes (5-5).
- Both Bulldog teams are scheduled to be at home twice this week. Up next is Wednesday’s men’s/women’s clash with Hastings at 4 p.m. CT. Then on Saturday, Concordia will take on Morningside with first serve set for 12 p.m. The team’s home matches, as weather permits, are played at the Bulldog Tennis Courts located near the southeast part of campus.
Softball
- While the Bulldogs continue to wait for their home diamond at Plum Creek Park to be ready for action, they did manage to play a pair of games on March 22 at Ottawa University (Kan.). Despite having not played for nearly two weeks, Concordia swept the host Braves, winning by scores of 10-5 (eight innings) and 5-3. The results extended the win streak to 10 for head coach Shawn Semler’s squad, which has moved to 11-3 overall. The Bulldogs postponed last week’s scheduled home twin bill with Nebraska Wesleyan University For more information on Concordia softball, click HERE.
- Semler has presided over a squad that has been statistically dominant in nonconference play. Through 14 games, the Bulldogs have outscored their opponents by a combined total of 100-45 and have outhit them, .320 to .263. From a cumulative perspective, Concordia has not been outscored in any inning this season. It has done an impressive job of getting on top of teams early in games. The Bulldogs have put up 22 runs in the first inning. They rank 18th nationally in runs scored per game (7.1).
- One the biggest breakout stars to this point has been sophomore Tori Homolka, who has split time playing shortstop and first base. Over the past five games, Homolka has been especially hot. During that stretch, she is 12-for-18 (.667) with nine runs scored, four doubles, a home run, eight RBIs and three stolen bases. Among regulars, Homolka tops the team with a .449 batting average. She has already delivered 10 extra base hits and owns a .755 slugging percentage.
- Known best for her ability as a pitcher, Camry Moore has also been sizzling at the plate. Since getting only one hit in her first 11 collegiate at bats, the Crete High School product has gone 12-for-23 at the dish. She has collected exactly two hits in four games in a row while holding down a spot in the middle of the lineup. She’s also been the ace pitcher and has logged 38.2 innings. She is 3-3 with a 3.08 ERA.
- York High School product Kylee Nixon played so well when given her shot in Arizona that it’s made it tough for Semler not to write her name in the lineup. Nixon emerged with two more hits in the first game of the doubleheader at Ottawa. She has played in 13 games (seven starts) and is 12-for-23 at the plate with eight runs, four doubles, a home run and 10 RBIs. Primarily a catcher in high school, Nixon has played second base at Concordia. There is exceptional depth at that spot with senior Leah Kalkwarf also a proven performer.
- The 11-3 start is even slightly better than the 10-4 record over the first 14 games put together by the 2017 Bulldogs. That team enjoyed a 34-14 campaign during which its longest win streak was eight. The 34 wins were just two shy of the school record of 36 by the 2005 squad coached by Frank Greene. The 2019 team’s current win percentage of .786 would be a new school standard if it holds up throughout the year. The 1998 team is responsible for the program’s best win percentage. It went 33-10 (.767).
- In the early going, Concordia ranks favorably among conference teams in virtually every key statistical category. On the GPAC leaderboard, the Bulldogs sit No. 1 in fielding percentage (.962), second in runs per game (7.1), second in slugging percentage (.472), third in ERA (2.63) and fourth in batting average (.320). Homolka ranks third in the GPAC in batting average while Grace Bernhardt ranks second among league pitcher in lowest batting average allowed (.196).
- Hhana Haro continues to be a consistent threat in the heart of the order. She’s driven in at least one run in six of the past seven games and leads the team with 14 RBIs on the season. The numbers through the first 55 collegiate games for the native of Garden Grove, Calif., are eye popping. In her career, Haro is hitting .465 with a .505 on-base percentage, .722 slugging percentage, 23 doubles, two triples, eight home runs and 52 RBIs. Last year she broke school single season records for hits (76) and doubles (20).
- In a change of venue, Concordia is set to open up conference play at Crete High School against Doane (8-10, 0-0 GPAC) on Wednesday. First pitch is set for 5 p.m. CT from Trey Thallman Field. Then on Saturday, Concordia will be headed to Orange City, Iowa, to play a 1 p.m. CT doubleheader at Northwestern (7-10, 0-0 GPAC). The Bulldogs are looking to improve upon their seventh-place GPAC finish last season.
Baseball
- The opening weekend of conference play went about as well as anyone in the program could have hoped. The Bulldogs swept doubleheaders from Mount Marty and Dakota Wesleyan with two of the four victories coming in blowout fashion. The March 22 twin bill in Yankton, S.D., marked the team’s first action since finishing up its run at the Tucson Invitational on March 9. Fifth-year head coach Ryan Dupic’s squad is now 4-0 in the GPAC (10-10 overall). Every other team in the GPAC has at least two league losses. For more information on Concordia baseball, click HERE.
- The Bulldogs are 4-0 in conference play for the first time since the 2010 campaign. In that particular season, Concordia wound up finishing at 11-13 in league play (eighth place). The start is a much more positive one than even the 2017 GPAC championship squad got out to. That team lost its first three conference games before going 19-6 over the final 25 GPAC regular-season contests. Under Dupic, the Bulldogs have finished at .500 or better in league play in each of the past three seasons with a cumulative GPAC mark of 47-31 since the beginning of the 2016 season.
- It was a record setting day on March 24 that saw Concordia smash seven home runs in the second game of the doubleheader with Dakota Wesleyan. That broke the previous program record of six home runs in a game that was set in 2017 versus Waldorf University (Iowa). The home runs on Sunday were hit by Jesse Garcia (three), Keaton Candor (two), Christian Meza (one) and Beau Dorman (one). It was a particularly special performance by Garcia, who went 4-for-5 with four runs scored and seven RBIs.
- Garcia became the fourth player in program history to blast three home runs in a game. That feat had not been accomplished by a Bulldog since Mike Schoettlin in 2004. The other Concordia sluggers to do it were Paul Reinisch and Andy Schwich both in 1980. A freshman from El Cajon, Calif., Garcia has pounded five home runs this season and is hitting .315 with a .449 on-base percentage and .667 slugging percentage. His 17 RBIs are tied for the team lead along with Wade Council and Meza.
- The power surge on Sunday pushed the Bulldogs up on several team and individual leaderboards. Among GPAC players, Candor is No. 1 with six home runs with Garcia and Evan Bohman right behind him with five home runs apiece. As a team, Concordia has already connected for 24 home runs and ranks ninth nationally in home runs per game (1.2). Within the GPAC, the Bulldogs rank first in slugging percentage (.497), first in home runs, second in runs per game (6.5) and sixth in batting average (.291).
- Bohman has been one of the breakout performers of the season to this point. He’s already had nine multi-hit games and has supplied plenty of power in the heart of the order. He is currently hitting .351 with six doubles, five home runs and 14 RBIs. The junior first baseman from Appleton, Wis., is the lone Wisconsin native on the roster. Bohman first began to crack the lineup last season. He has hit eight home runs in his first 60 collegiate games.
- Meza just keeps on hitting. The senior from San Diego, Calif., went a combined 8-for-15 with two doubles, three walks, a home run, four runs scored and four RBIs over last week’s action. He has now pushed his career hit count to 180, placing him two hits behind Tim Ahlman for No. 5 on the program’s all-time list. Meza is also now equal with Kaleb Geiger for the program career doubles record (44). Additionally, he sports school all-time rankings of third in RBIs (118) and 11th in runs scored (97).
- While the hitting numbers were eye-popping over the weekend, the pitching staff also did its part. Dupic got at least seven innings of quality work each from Jason Munsch, Sasha Jabusch and Jake Fosgett. In his first season as a starting pitcher, Fosgett is finding a groove. He tossed a two-hit shutout against Mount Marty back on March 8. Then on Sunday against Dakota Wesleyan, he was one out away from another shutout before allowing a home run. In the seven-inning complete game, Fosgett surrendered only four hits and one walk while striking out 11. Fosgett has fanned 35 hitters in 24 innings of work this season.
- In a makeup rescheduled doubleheader, Concordia will take on Midland (7-12, 2-2 GPAC) at 12 p.m. CT on Wednesday at Lewis and Clark Park in Sioux City, Iowa. Another four-game weekend within the GPAC is also coming up with a home doubleheader scheduled with Briar Cliff (15-11, 6-2 GPAC) on Saturday and an away twin bill slated for Sunday in Hastings (5-12, 2-4 GPAC). First pitch is set for 1 p.m. CT on both days. Concordia has yet to play at home in 2019. Thirteen home games are on the schedule for the month of April.