Bulldog Athletic Association Member (BAAM) Athletes of the Week
Female: Jerzi Rowe, Softball
Rowe, who hails from Gretna, Neb., fired a seven-inning complete game in a 4-2 victory over Dordt last week. As part of the outing, Rowe allowed two earned runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out three. Rowe owns a record of 4-4 with a 4.40 ERA on the season.
Male: Alec Blakestad, Baseball / Eduardo Luzzi, Tennis
An Omaha native, Blakestad led the offensive attack last week as Concordia took three of four from Northwestern. During the series, Blakestad went 6-for-14 (.429) with three runs, two doubles, five RBIs, two walks and a stolen base. He’s batting .410 with seven doubles, two home runs and 25 RBIs on the year.
A freshman from Belo Horizonte, Brazil, Luzzi triumphed in both singles and doubles at the No. 1 spot last week while helping the Bulldogs to a 4-3 win at Morningside. Luzzi won by a 6-2, 6-2, score in singles and teamed up with Juan Rabellino for a 6-2 victory in doubles. Luzzi and Rabellino have gone 5-2 as a combo this season.
Previous BAAM Athletes of the Week
March 22 – Joey Grabanski (baseball) / Noah Schutte (basketball) / Camry Moore (softball)
March 15 – Noah Schutte (basketball) / Josie Puelz (track & field)
March 1 – Carter Kent (basketball) / Shelby Timmerman (cheer)
Feb. 22 – Gage Smith (basketball) / Josie Puelz (track & field)
Feb. 15 – Calvin Rodhe (track & field) / Kendal Brigham (basketball)
Feb. 8 – Taysha Rushton (basketball) / AJ Watson (basketball)
Feb. 1 – Calvin Rohde (track & field)
Jan. 25 – Calvin Rohde (track & field) / Gage Smith (basketball) / Rylee Haecker (track & field)
Jan. 18 – Carter Kent (basketball) / Rylee Haecker (track & field)
Jan. 11 – Carter Kent (basketball) / Mackenzie Toomey (basketball)
Dec. 14 – Carter Kent (basketball) / Sarah Lewis (track & field)
Dec. 7 – Carter Kent (basketball) / Gabi Nordaker (volleyball)
Nov. 30 – Noah Schutte (basketball) / Taysha Rushton (basketball)
Nov. 16 – Korrell Koehlmoos (football) / Bree Burtwistle (volleyball)
Nov. 9 – Camden Sesna (cross country) / Gabi Nordaker (volleyball)
Nov. 2 – Carter Kent (basketball) / Camryn Opfer (volleyball)
Oct. 26 – Peyton Mitchell (football) / Lexie Kreizel (volleyball)
Oct. 19 – Lane Napier (football) / Kalie Ward (soccer)
Oct. 12 – Caydren Cox (football) / Kalee Wiltfong (volleyball)
Oct. 5 – DJ McGarvie (football) / Sarah Schwacher (shooting sports)
Sept. 28 – Wyatt Hambly (shooting sports) / Gabi Nordaker (volleyball)
Sept. 21 – Camden Sesna (cross country) / Lina Kirst (soccer) / Grace Reiman (cross country) / Carly Rodaway (volleyball)
Sept. 14 – Caydren Cox (football) / Mikeila Martinez (soccer)
Sept. 7 – Drew D’Ercole (golf) / Ivan Yabut (golf) / Erica Heinzerling (volleyball)
Aug. 31 – Martin Herrera (soccer) / Camryn Opfer (volleyball)
BAAM Athletes of the Month
February – Gage Smith (basketball) / Josie Puelz (track & field)
January – Carter Kent (basketball) / Rylee Haecker (track & field)
December – Carter Kent (basketball) / Sarah Lewis (track & field)
November – Noah Schutte (basketball) / Gabi Nordaker (volleyball)
October – Lane Napier (football) / Camryn Opfer (volleyball)
September – Caydren Cox (football) / Gabi Nordaker (volleyball)
News and notes:
BAAM luncheons are held every Tuesday at 12 p.m. CT inside the Dog House Grill, located in the Janzow Campus Center. The luncheons feature reports from head coaches who are in season at the time.
Game/event days on campus: Concordia Athletics continues to welcome fans to its venues for sporting events. Currently, there are no attendance limits. Before visiting road venues involving Bulldog teams, fans should be sure to check the spectator policies on those particular campuses. Other locations may require the use of face coverings. Once again, fans attending varsity sporting events at Concordia are able to purchase advance tickets online via HomeTown Ticketing. Tickets will also be sold on site on the day of events. Should any policies or protocols for fans change, updated information will be available on the athletics fan information page HERE.
Kent and Rushton named All-Americans, men’s basketball honored with sportsmanship award and Schutte tabbed all-tournament: As announced late last week by the NAIA, Concordia Basketball standouts Carter Kent and Taysha Rushton were named NAIA All-Americans. Kent landed on the second team while Rushton was chosen as an honorable mention award winner. Other honors that rolled in last week for the men’s basketball program included Dr. James Naismith-Emil S. Liston Team Sportsmanship Award at the national tournament and an NAIA Men’s Basketball National Championship All-Tournament Team selection of Noah Schutte. For more on the sportsmanship award, click HERE.
Shooting Sports places fifth at ACUI national championships while winning national titles in Doubles American Skeet and International Skeet: In the wrap up to the 2021-22 season, the Concordia University Shooting Sports team traveled 25 competitors to the 2022 ACUI Collegiate Clay Target National Championships that played out over the course of a week and concluded on March 26. Out of 17 teams in the Division 2 breakdown of the national shoot, the Bulldogs placed fifth while cracking a total of 2,774 targets. Concordia captured national titles in Doubles American Skeet and International Skeet and Emily Uitermarkt took home an individual championship in women’s Doubles American Skeet. A team inspired and pushed forward by the late Scott Moniot beat out rival Midland while moving up from last season’s seventh-place national finish. At the 2022 event, the Bulldogs placed behind only the University of Tennessee Southern, Emmanuel College (Mass.), Fort Hays State University (Kan.) and Angelo State University (Texas). Once again, the national championships were staged at the National Shooting Complex in San Antonio, Texas. For more on Concordia Shooting Sports, click HERE. A recap from the national championships can be found HERE.
Winter sports rewind: The winter sports season of 2021-22 saw Concordia teams again make waves while continuing to carry out the mission and vision of Bulldog Athletics. Most notable from a sheer results standpoint were the GPAC championships captured by the Men’s Basketball and Women’s Track & Field teams. Those two programs also experienced success on the national stage as Women’s Track came home with a third-place national trophy and Men’s Basketball made a run to the NAIA national quarterfinals. Meanwhile, Women’s Basketball qualified for the national tournament and Wrestling sent two athletes to the national tournament. For a complete breakdown of the winter sports season, click HERE. Concordia Athletic Communications has also begun rolling out sport specific seasons-in-review. The wrestling season recap can be found via the link below.
-Wrestling Season-In-Review
Timmerman a rising star for Concordia Cheer: She’s a rising star for a Bulldog team on the rise. No, she doesn’t play basketball. Or volleyball. Or softball. Wilber-Clatonia High School alum Shelby Timmerman is a versatile and skilled athlete who happens to be one of the top competitive cheer performers in the GPAC. She’s reached that level after just two seasons of collegiate cheer. Naturally, there’s plenty of reason to believe the best is yet to come. Timmerman is exactly the type of student-athlete Head Coach Mandi Maser has been looking for while pushing a program forward that is still young in terms of its status as an official varsity sport. A deeper look lends insight into why Timmerman’s presence has coincided with a major improvement in the Concordia Cheer program as a whole. For more on Timmerman, click HERE.
Bulldog Coaches Show airs every Thursday at 5:30 p.m. CT: The Bulldog Coaches Show is underway in its seventh 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 2021-22 season, Bulldog football, men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball contests will be aired live on Max Country. Parker Cyza 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 seventh season calling Concordia volleyball.
Concordia Sports Network: Live webcasts for most home varsity contests can be accessed by visiting https://www.cune.edu/athletics/watch-bulldogs at game time. Beginning in 2019-20, Concordia Athletics partnered with PrestoSports for live video and statistical streaming. For more details on this change, click HERE. Check team schedules/results pages for webcast dates. Scrimmages, exhibitions and junior varsity events are not broadcasted.
Baseball
· Now two weeks into conference action, the Bulldogs have already established themselves as a GPAC title contender once again. Following doubleheader sweeps of Dakota Wesleyan and Hastings the previous week, Concordia took three of four in a series with Northwestern that was played March 24-25 at Plum Creek Park. The Bulldogs won the first three games of the set, taking them by scores of 4-3, 4-3 and 7-5, respectively. The Red Raiders rallied to win a wild finale, 14-13. Head Coach Ryan Dupic’s squad has moved to 18-7-1 overall (7-1 GPAC). For more information on Concordia Baseball, click HERE.
· New sets of GPAC and NAIA national rankings were released last week. In the official conference rating, the Bulldogs were tied with Doane for the No. 1 spot. Concordia also landed just outside of the NAIA top 25 in the latest national coaches’ poll (listed second among “others receiving votes”). In addition, the NAIA publishes a new national “Bo Chip” ranking that shows the Bulldogs at No. 46. Meanwhile, Massey Ratings currently lists Concordia as the NAIA’s 24th best team. Both Bo Chip and Massey Ratings are based on computer generated formulas.
· There was late-inning drama in every single one of the contests last week with Northwestern. In game one, the Red Raiders made a seventh inning push and had the tying run on base with one out before the game ended on a strike-‘em-out-throw-‘em-out double play. Game two concluded when Alec Blakestad blooped a walk-off RBI single over the glove of the shortstop. In game three, Jesse Garcia lined a two-run, walk-off homer to right field. Finally, Northwestern rallied from a 12-4 deficit after seven innings with a nine-run ninth in the series finale. The bottom of the ninth ended on a strikeout with a runner at first.
· Chilly and blustery conditions made for less-than-ideal hitting conditions during the series with Northwestern. Over the four games, the Bulldog offensive attack batted .269 with a .450 on-base percentage and .471 slugging percentage. While Concordia was limited to ‘only’ five home runs for the series, the lineup showed how it can wear out an opposing pitching staff with patience. The Bulldogs took 27 walks and were hit by eight pitches over the four games. Last week, Joey Grabanski led the team with a .444 batting average. He drove in just one run, but was an on-base machine (five walks). Jay Adams led the way from a power perspective with two homers and a double in the series.
· Pitching and defense are the areas Concordia hopes to continue to improve upon as the GPAC season unfolds. Out of the four starting pitchers used last week, Alex Johnson and Christian Gutierrez worked the deepest into their outings. Johnson went five innings and allowed only one run on three hits and two walks while striking out eight. Gutierrez gave six strong innings and allowed four runs while striking out seven. Ten total pitchers were used over the course of the four-game series. On the first day of the series, Shane Whittaker appeared in both games and earned a win and a save.
· Now the program’s all-time record holder in home runs (35) and RBIs (153), Keaton Candor is chasing another career milestone. He’s recorded 193 hits, putting him on course to join Zak Goodrich (234) and Christian Meza (216) as the only players in school history to reach 200 career hits. In order to hold onto the career home run lead, Candor will have to keep pace with current teammates. Garcia’s career homer total has reached 33 while Grabanski has belted 25 homers while still in the middle of his second collegiate season. As for the 2022 season, the team leaders in home runs are Adams and Jaidan Quinn with nine apiece.
· The schedule this week allows for a chance to rest up prior to four-game weekend series with Midland (18-3, 5-1 GPAC). The two sides will meet in Fremont, Neb., for a 1 p.m. CT doubleheader on Saturday. They will then relocate to Seward for another 1 p.m. twin bill on Sunday. The improved Warriors are already close to matching their win total of 22 from last season. Concordia won three of four games from Midland in 2021.
Softball
· Because of hit-and-miss weather, the schedule has been fairly light since the Bulldogs returned from the Tucson Invitational. A scheduled doubleheader with College of Saint Mary is now slated to take place next Monday. However, Concordia did manage to play at home for the first time in 2022 as it hosted Dordt on March 26 and split a well-pitched doubleheader. After a 2-0 loss in game one, the Bulldogs bounced back with a 4-2 win in game two. Head Coach Tatum Edwards’ squad stands at 12-12 overall (1-3 GPAC). For more information on Concordia Softball, click HERE.
· In game one of the twin bill with Dordt, the Bulldogs just couldn’t muster any offense against Defender ace pitcher Abby Kraemer. She allowed only two baserunners, which came courtesy of a single apiece from Caitlyn McGarvie and Camry Moore. In the circle, Moore put together a fine performance of her own. She surrendered only one earned run on six hits (eight strikeouts) in a seven-inning complete game. Dordt (11-8-1, 1-1 GPAC) got all the offense it needed with one run in the second and another in the fifth. Kraemer finished with eight strikeouts and did not issue a free pass.
· In game two, Jerzi Rowe picked up the win in the circle while covering all seven innings. She allowed two earned runs on seven hits and two walks to go along with three strikeouts. The game ended in the top of the seventh with a flyout to right, leaving the bases loaded. Concordia’s offensive attack finally came to life as McGarvie tripled and scored on Moore’s RBI single in the first. Then in the fifth, the Bulldogs busted loose with thanks to a Kylee Nixon RBI single and Julia Van Wey two-run double. Moore and Nixon collected two hits apiece in the victory. All the runs came off Defender starting pitcher Taylor Knaack.
· One of the more impressive stats relating to Bulldog softball is the fact that Moore has walked only three batters in 71 innings pitched this season. In 415.2 career innings pitched, the Crete High School alum has walked a grand total of 34 batters. Her career pitching totals also include 46 wins and 294 strikeouts. She needs six more strikeouts to become the seventh pitcher in program history (on record) to notch 300 for a career. As a hitter, Moore has produced career numbers of 144 hits, 104 RBIs, 102 runs, 26 doubles, 14 home runs and seven triples.
· Nixon is the only other active Bulldog with at least 100 career hits. In 114 career collegiate games, Nixon has totaled 113 hits, 82 runs, 66 RBIs, 24 doubles, nine home runs and three triples. So far this season, the York, Neb., native is hitting .329 with four doubles, a triple, a home run and nine RBIs. She’s successfully fielded 69 of 73 chances in the field. Since the start of the 2019 program, Moore and Nixon have helped the program to a combined record of 84-39 with a national tournament appearance in 2021.
· As a team this season, Concordia is hitting .309 with a .353 on-base percentage and .412 slugging percentage. The Bulldogs are scoring an average of 5.1 runs per game. In addition to Moore (.472) and Nixon (.329), two other Concordia players are hitting above .300: McGarvie (.328) and Aubrey Bruning (.321). Meanwhile, the pitching staff sports a 3.28 ERA. Moore is now 7-6 with a 1.97 ERA on the season. Rowe improved to 4-4 last week with a 4.40 ERA in 11 appearances (43 innings).
· The Bulldogs are getting set to host Doane (6-13, 0-2 GPAC) in a 5 p.m. CT doubleheader today (March 29). Concordia will then be in Orange City, Iowa, on Saturday for a 1 p.m. twin bill at Northwestern (22-6, 1-3 GPAC). Next Monday, the Bulldogs will welcome College of Saint Mary to town for a makeup doubleheader. The remaining schedule features nine GPAC doubleheaders and one nonconference twin bill at Nebraska Wesleyan (April 6).
Track & Field
· The outdoor season is underway for the Bulldogs, who had roughly three weeks of a break from competition after the indoor national meet. Due to windy and cold conditions over the weekend, the Bulldogs cut back on their list of competitors while sending athletes to the Grand View Viking Relays and the Doane Icebreaker Throws Meet. Out of the distance, mid-distance and throws groups, Head Coach Matt Beisel’s squads came away with six event titles and four ‘B’ standard national qualifying marks (all from the throws). For more information on Concordia Track & Field, click HERE.
· A winner on the track in the 1,500 meters, Rylee Haecker came up just shy of a ‘B’ standard while clocking in with a personal best of 4:49.72 at the Viking Relays on March 26. She beat out a field of 20 runners. In another PR effort, Keri Bauer ran the 400 meters in 1:00.22 and took first place. Also noteworthy on the women’s side, seven Bulldogs ran the 3,000 meter steeplechase with Grace Reiman coming in as the runner up in a time of 12:43.23. Behind her in third place was teammate Katelyn Nix (13:26.37). In the 10,000 meters, Abi DeLoach ran a PR of 41:39.83 (No. 18 on the NAIA national list).
· On the men’s side of the action in Des Moines, Nathan Pennekamp put together a strong steeplechase race and placed second in a time of 10:41.86. Meanwhile, Charlie Hayden led the way in the 10k with his time of 35:40.27. In the 1,500 meters, Concordia’s most prominent men’s distance runners, Calvin Rohde and Camden Sesna, placed second (4:04.90) and fifth (4:05.93), respectively, in a large field of 46 competitors. The time for Rohde represented a personal best.
· The throws meet hosted by Doane included athletes solely from Concordia, Doane and Hastings. Both Jordyn Anderson (shot put) and Sara Huss (discus) emerged as event champions. The four ‘B’ standards were turned in by Anderson (43’ 5 ¼” in shot put), Mackenzie Ferrel (160’ 4” in hammer), Sarah Ragland (161’ 6” in hammer) and Chris Wren (178’ in hammer). Ragland was the Icebreaker runner up in the hammer. A total of 27 Bulldogs competed at the Icebreaker Meet this past Saturday. A year ago, Anderson and Huss both earned outdoor All-America awards.
· As a refresher, the 2022 indoor season saw the Concordia women win the GPAC title (sixth in a row) and place third at the NAIA national meet. Meanwhile, the men’s team turned in place finishes of fourth in the GPAC and 36th in the NAIA. Eighteen Bulldogs garnered All-America honors in one or more events. That group included school record pole vaulter Josie Puelz, who became the third women’s athlete in program history to have earned at least three individual national titles. Beisel was recognized as the GPAC Women’s Coach of the Year and as the USTFCCCA Midwest Region Women’s Coach of the Year.
· The dynamics change during outdoor season as the weather becomes a variable. Outdoor track also features different events such as the hammer throw, javelin, discus, steeplechase and longer hurdles races. In addition, there are more schools that host outdoor meets. That explains why Concordia goes from hosting four indoor meets to putting on two home outdoor meets. For a detailed breakdown of Bulldog outdoor track & field, click HERE.
· Next up is Saturday’s Central Nebraska Challenge co-hosted by the University of Nebraska-Kearney and Hastings. The meet is scheduled to get started at 11 a.m. CT from Kearney, Neb. Fans who attend the meet must purchase tickets online in order to be admitted. Tickets can be purchased HERE. The first home meet, the Concordia Outdoor Invite, is coming up April 8-9.
Golf
· Both the men’s and women’s golf teams have begun action this spring. The men played their third event of the spring this past weekend when 15 Bulldogs represented the program at the Doane Spring Invite (March 25-26). The ‘A’ team placed fourth out of 10 groupings in action held in both Eagle and Crete, Neb. Meanwhile, the women waited until Monday to get going again. The Concordia women are in the midst of the two-day Southwestern College Invitational in Kansas. For more information on the Concordia Golf programs, click here: MEN | WOMEN.
· The respective team scores for the Bulldogs at the Doane Invite were 326-304–630 for the ‘A’ group, 355-334–689 for the ‘B’ group and 352-552–704 for the ‘C’ group. A year ago, Drew D’Ercole won the Doane Invite when he shot a 73-73–146 (+3). This time around, the native of Papillion, Neb., turned in a score of 79-76–155 (+12) and placed ninth – 12 strokes behind the tournament champion from Morningside. Teammate Ivan Yabut was right on his heels with a score of 80-76–156. During the 2021-22 season, Yabut has placed in the top 10 of four tournaments while D’Ercole has three top 10 finishes to his credit.
· The rest of the Bulldog ‘A’ lineup at the Doane Invite featured Justin Webert (85-75–160; T-15th), Jake Hagerbaumer (82-80–162; T-18th) and Jacob Woodmancy (85-77–162; T-18th). Of the first grouping of five, Webert made the largest improvement from day one to day two. On the ‘B’ team, Taylor Johnson carded a 77 on day two. Johnson was the top player for the ‘B’ group while Gavin Buttshaw (82-88–170) was the top performer for the ‘C’ group. The complete individual totals can be found in the tournament recap HERE.
· Through seven events in 2021-22, the men’s team boasts six players who are averaging a score in the 70s: D’Ercole (75.3), Yabut (75.3), Webert (77.3), Jack Williams (77.9), Hagerbaumer (78.8) and Woodmancy (79.7). Back on Sept. 13 at the Siouxland Invite, Yabut broke the program record for lowest single round when he shot a seven-under-par 65. The varsity team scoring average for the season rests at 304.7 with a season low of 291 also coming at the Siouxland Invite.
· On the first day of action this spring at the Moundbuilder Invitational, the women’s team carded a score of 353 and resides in fourth place behind Dakota Wesleyan (336), Friends University (337) and the University of Science & Arts of Oklahoma (352). Kendra Placke paced the Bulldogs by shooting a 12-over-par 84 at Quail Ridge Golf Course in Winfield, Kan. Placke began Tuesday in a tie for eighth place, seven strokes out of the tournament lead. Another six golfers are representing Concordia at the tournament: Mya Nurse (87; T-13th), Emily Jensen (90; T-17th), Lauren Havalat (92; 19th), Logan Eschliman (97; 23rd), Sarah Wilson (105; 24th) and Ashley Gerczynski (117; 27th). The tournament field includes 27 golfers from six institutions.
· The women’s team is finishing up the Moundbuilder Invite today (March 29) before looking ahead to the Concordia Bulldogs Invite (April 5-6) next week. Meanwhile, the men will compete this Saturday and Sunday at the Bethel College Invite. The action on day one will begin at 1 p.m. CT from Hesston Golf Park in Hesston, Kan. Day two will shift to Sand Creek Station Golf Course in Newton, Kan., with the first tee times at 8 a.m.
Tennis
· Due to the postponement of nonconference action, the Bulldogs played only once last week. Men’s and women’s matches slated to be played at Kansas Wesleyan University on March 22 were postponed and moved to April 19. That meant the focus shifted to the March 26 GPAC openers at Morningside. The results were a 4-3 win for the Concordia men and a 6-1 loss for the women. Head Coach Cam Long’s squads enter this week with overall records of 3-6 (1-0 GPAC) on the men’s side and 2-7 (0-1 GPAC) on the women’s side. For more information on Concordia Tennis, click here: MEN | WOMEN.
· Considering the wealth of experience and talent back from last season, the Bulldog men expect to compete near the top of the conference. Beating the Mustangs was the first step. Concordia also edged Morningside by a 4-3 score in 2021. In the latest matchup, the Bulldogs gained the upper hand in doubles thanks to the work of Eduardo Luzzi and Juan Rabellino at No. 1 (6-2) and Joe Bindl and Jeremiah Berryman at No. 2 (6-4). The Mustangs triumphed at No. 3, 6-2. In singles, Rabellino clinched team victory when he took out Danny O’Brien, 6-1, 7-6 (5), in a match with hotly contested second set. Prior to win by Rabellino, Luzzi claimed victory at No. 1 (6-2, 6-2) and Isaac Howes stayed hot by taking a 6-3, 6-4, decision at No. 2. The rest of the Concordia lineup was filled by Shawn Springer at No. 3, Jack Kitson at No. 4 and Bindl at No. 5.
· Dating back to last season, the Bulldog men’s program has won six of its last seven GPAC regular season matches. The lone loss during that stretch came at the hands of Midland, 7-0, in the 2021 regular season finale. The ’21 Concordia squad started out 5-0 in the GPAC and reached the conference tournament championship match for the first time in program history. It appears that the Warriors remain the team to beat in the league. They began conference play last week with a dominant 7-0 victory at Mount Marty.
· Through nine dual matches this season, the men’s team has gone a combined 22-32 in singles and 14-13 in doubles matches. Individually, Jack Kitson (4-3) and Isaac Howes (4-5) pace the squad with four singles wins apiece. Eduardo Rojas (3-5) is close behind with three. In doubles, the most successful pairs have been Luzzi/Rabellino (5-2) and Berryman/Bindl (5-3). In addition, Kitson and Rojas (3-3) have teamed up for three doubles victories.
· The Bulldog women were unable to duplicate the 4-3 regular season win they earned last season over Morningside. In doubles action this past week, Morningside won by 6-2 scores at the Nos. 2 and 3 spots. The Bulldog duo of Sofia Morales and Tessa Blough was narrowly defeated at No. 1, 7-5. A native of Bogotá, Colombia, Morales is hoping to prove she’s one of the very best in the GPAC. She went head-to-head with the Mustangs’ Emily Clotfelter at No. 1 and emerged with a 6-3, 6-3, victory. Morningside came out on top in the Nos. 2 through 6 spots, which were held down in the Concordia lineup by Blough, Tara Ferrel, Brooke Hosick, Megan Hakes and Kylie Freudenburg, in that order. At No. 4, Hakes nearly forced a super tiebreaker in a 6-0, 7-5, decision.
· Morales moved to 4-5 in singles this season. She has played at the No. 1 spot in all nine dual matches. Three of her teammates have collected two singles wins: Blough, Ferrel and Hakes. The best results in doubles have come from the duo of Hosick and Julia Phillips, who have combined to go 3-2. Overall as a team, Concordia is 17-37 in singles and 7-20 in doubles matches.
· If all goes as planned, the Bulldog men and women will be in action twice this week for GPAC matches. Concordia will take on Mount Marty in Yankton, S.D., at 1 p.m. CT on Thursday before coming back home to host Northwestern at 11 a.m. on Saturday. The men are also slated to host NCAA Division III Central College (Iowa) at 4 p.m. on Friday.