Bulldog Weekly Report (Nov. 28)

By Jacob Knabel on Nov. 28, 2017 in Athletic Announcements

Bulldog Athletic Association Athletes of the Week

Female: Quinn Wragge, Basketball

Wragge, a native of Crofton, Neb., garnered GPAC player of the week accolades following a 27-point performance in a win at No. 8 Dakota Wesleyan on Nov. 18. She leads the team in scoring with an average of 15.7 points per game. The junior forward enters the week needing seven points to join the program’s 1,000-point club.

Male: Jake Hornick, Basketball

Hornick, who hails from Loveland, Colo., totaled 37 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists over last week’s victories over Mount Marty and Colorado Christian University. He also put up 26 points in the overtime exhibition loss at NCAA Division II Colorado School of Mines. Hornick is averaging 17.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.1 assists this season.

Previous athletes of the week
Nov. 14 – Cameron Devers (wrestling) / Jeannelle Condame (soccer)
Nov. 7 – Tarence Roby (football) / Emily Deschaine (cross country)
Oct. 31 – Ryan Durdon (football) / Kaitlyn Radebaugh (soccer)
Oct. 24 – Marcelo Hernandez (soccer) / Lindsey Carley (soccer)
Oct. 17 – Carlos Ferrer (soccer) and Grady Koch (football) / Sami Birmingham (soccer)
Oct. 10 – Micah Lehenbauer (soccer) / Kaitlyn Radebaugh (soccer)
Oct. 3 – Micah Lehenbauer (soccer) / Maria Deeter (soccer)
September Athletes of the Month: Tarence Roby (football) / Lindsey Carley (soccer)
Sept. 26 – Kordell Glause (football) / Emily Deschaine (cross country)
Sept. 19 – Lewis Rathbone (soccer) / Victoria Cera (soccer)
Sept. 12 – Tarence Roby (football) / Murphy Sears (golf)
Sept. 5 – Jack Bennett (soccer) / Lindsey Carley (soccer)

News and notes:

Blue-White intrasquad meet set for Saturday: Concordia University’s track and field programs will host their annual Blue-White intrasquad meet at 11 a.m. CT in the Fieldhouse on Saturday (Dec. 2). The meet is scheduled to run until approximately 3 p.m.

Wrapping up the fall season of Concordia athletics: The fall athletics season included an outright GPAC regular-season title for women’s soccer and another run to the conference title game for the men’s soccer program. It also included a solid first season as head coach for Patrick Daberkow, who guided the football team to a 6-4 overall record. For a complete recap of the fall athletics season, click HERE.

Looking back at banner seasons for soccer programs: Last week we took an in-depth look at the 2017 seasons for the men’s and women’s soccer programs. Both teams won at least 15 games and both advanced to conference tournament championship games. For a recap of the men’s season, click HERE. The women’s season recap can be found HERE.

Spring golf schedules announced: Spring 2018 schedules for the men’s and women’s golf programs were made available on Monday. Following the fall season, head coach Brett Muller’s men’s team sits fourth in the GPAC while the women are in ninth in the conference standings.
-Spring schedules: MEN | WOMEN.

Bulldog Coaches Show airs every Thursday at 5:30 p.m. CT: The Bulldog Coaches Show is underway in its third 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 2017-18 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 again calling volleyball action.

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.

Men’s Basketball

  • Thanksgiving break on the Concordia campus did not mean a light week for Bulldog men’s basketball. Concordia began last week by blowing away Mount Marty, 105-63, on Nov. 21. It proceeded to Golden, Colo., for a weekend stay at Colorado School of Mines. The Bulldogs fell by an 86-84 overtime final at NCAA Division II No. 6 Colorado Mines (exhibition game for Concordia) on Nov. 24 before claiming a 79-66 neutral court victory over Colorado Christian University, another D-II opponent. Fifth-year head coach Ben Limback’s squad has moved to 7-2 overall and to 2-1 in conference play. For more information on Bulldog men’s basketball, click HERE.
  • Concordia’s 7-2 mark represents the best nine-game start to a season since Limback became head coach prior to the 2013-14 season. His previous records after nine games were 3-6 in 2013-14, 5-4 in 2014-15, 6-3 in 2015-16 and 5-4 in 2016-17. The last time the Bulldogs won at least seven of their first nine games was 2010-11 when then head coach Grant Schmidt’s squad got out to an identical 7-2 record before finishing at 16-13 overall. Limback’s record at Concordia now stands at 70-60. Combined with his nine seasons as head coach at Concordia-Ann Arbor, Limback has amassed 185 career coaching victories.
  • Lincoln East High School product Clay Reimers enjoyed a monster week. In the two games that were official regular season contests, the 6-foot-8 post totaled a combined 41 points, 24 rebounds and eight assists while making 17-of-24 (.708) shots from the floor. The team leader in scoring (17.5) and rebounding (9.4), Reimers now tops all GPAC players in rebound average. On a national scale, Reimers ranks 18th in field goal percentage (.628) and 19th in rebounding.
  • The treys keep falling for a team that has canned nine or more 3-point field goals in all but one game this season – the 75-72 season-opening win at Kansas Wesleyan University. The Bulldogs produced a season high 16 triples in the blowout of Mount Marty. In four home games, all wins, Concordia has nailed a combined 51 3-point shots. The team’s top outside marksmen is sophomore Tanner Shuck, who is 30-for-69 (.435) from beyond the arc this season.
  • The home win streak has now grown to 10 as the Bulldogs have made Walz a more challenging venue for the opposition. Concordia won its final six home games of the 2016-17 season and are now 4-0 at home in 2017-18. Over the active 10-game streak, the Bulldogs have an average margin of victory of 22.0. Three of their four home wins this season have come by double digit spreads. Since the start of the 2015-16 season, Concordia owns a home record of 28-7.
  • Senior Kyle Pierce has heated up from long range. His four 3-point field goals in the win over Mount Marty were a career high while his 16 points equaled a career best. Since going 1-for-8 from beyond the arc over the season’s first two games, Pierce has made 12-of-21 (.571) attempts from 3-point range. His season average of 9.8 points per game is by far a career high, surpassing averages of 3.4 as a sophomore and 3.7 as a junior.
  • Last week’s trip to the Denver area was a homecoming of sorts for several members of the team. The varsity roster contains six natives of The Centennial State, including starters in Cordell Gillingham (Greeley), Jake Hornick (Loveland) and Pierce (Haxtun). Limback and his staff also brought in three freshmen from Colorado: Matteo Busnardo (Lakewood), Ryan Holt (Highlands Ranch) and Alex May (Arvada).
  • The Mount Marty win marked the first time this season that Concordia has reached the 100-point barrier. The 2016-17 team that broke the program record for scoring average (88.7) put up 100 or more points seven different times. While this season’s team has been less prolific offensively (82.3 ppg), it has improved defensively. Last season the Bulldogs allowed opponents to score 78.8 points per game and to shoot 46.1 percent from the field. Those figures have declined to 73.0 points and 43.7 percent so far.
  • Concordia will have a mid-week bye before returning to action this Saturday with a road trip to Dordt (6-5, 1-0 GPAC) for a 4 p.m. CT tipoff in Sioux Center, Iowa. The Defenders opened up conference play with a 73-67 win at No. 10 Dakota Wesleyan on Nov. 15. The Bulldogs swept the season series with Dordt last season. The matchup in Sioux Center resulted in a 100-91 Concordia win.

Women’s Basketball

  • The week of Thanksgiving featured just one game for the Bulldogs, who drubbed Mount Marty, 84-42, on Nov. 21. Concordia raced out to a 50-18 halftime advantage in the process of Concordia earning its fifth victory this season by a margin greater than 20 points. Still unbeaten, 12th-year head coach Drew Olson’s team has moved to 7-0 overall and to 3-0 in conference play. For more information on Concordia women’s basketball, click HERE.
  • The Bulldogs have not been challenged in any of their first four home games. Their average margin of victory at home is 37.8 points. Inside Walz, Concordia has claimed wins by spreads of 58, 29, 22 and 42 points, respectively. The Bulldogs enter this week with an active 25-game home win streak that dates back to the final four home outings of the 2015-16 campaign. The 2016-17 national semifinalist squad then went a perfect 17-0 inside Walz. That run included a CIT championship and a classic GPAC championship overtime triumph over Dakota Wesleyan.
  • Due to a family situation, junior forward Quinn Wragge missed last week’s game. The native of Crofton, Neb., had her membership into the 1,000-point club delayed. She has tallied 993 points over 75 career collegiate games since becoming a Bulldog in 2015. She was named the GPAC player of the week on Nov. 21 after putting up 27 points in the 70-66 road win over No. 8 Dakota Wesleyan. Wragge is leading the team with a scoring average of 15.7.
  • While Wragge did not play last week, senior guard Mary Janovich returned to the starting lineup and made her first appearance of the season. She saw 15 minutes of action, going 3-for-4 from the field on her way to eight points. Janovich figures to be next in line after Wragge as a 1,000-point scorer. Janovich has totaled 898 points in her 87 career games. She earned GPAC Defensive Player of the Year accolades last season as a junior.
  • Sophomore Philly Lammers registered a solid line of 13 points, eight rebounds, four blocked shots and two steals in last week’s victory. Lammers has been a stat sheet stuffer throughout her young college career. She is currently leading the team in rebounding (9.0), steals (2.57) and blocked shots (1.29). A second team All-American, Lammers grabs 4.1 offensive rebounds per game (16th best in the nation) and is the primary reason why Concordia ranks 16th among NAIA Division II teams in rebound margin (+9.6).
  • Freshman Rebecca Higgins was an in-season addition to the varsity roster. The native of Thedford, Neb., reached double figures in scoring (10) in just her second career game. She only needed seven minutes of action to get there. She went 4-for-6 from the floor and completed a three-point play at the foul line. As a prep at Thedford High School, Higgins twice led her team to the state semifinals.
  • Mount Marty shot just 27.3 percent (15-for-55) from the field, marking a season low for Concordia opponents. Only one opponent has managed to crack the 40 percent figure – University of St. Francis (.444). Three other foes have shot lower than 35 percent: Viterbo University (.281), Mayville State University (.327) and Dakota Wesleyan (.333). The Bulldogs rank 18th nationally in field goal percentage defense (.346).
  • Senior Sydney Feller helped pick up the slack while Janovich was sidelined. She equaled Lammers for a team high with 13 points in last week’s victory. The native of Papillion, Neb., has a much larger role in terms of both playing time and scoring this season. She’s averaging a career best 9.3 points per game and is shooting 41.0 percent (16-for-39) from 3-point range. Feller also sports averages of 2.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 0.9 steals per game.
  • This week brings about a return to the usual Wednesday-Saturday format. Concordia will host College of Saint Mary (0-8, 0-3 GPAC) at 7 p.m. CT on Wednesday. It will then travel to play at Dordt (5-6, 1-2 GPAC) at 2 p.m. CT on Saturday. Dordt’s lone conference win came over College of Saint Mary, 74-69, in Omaha.

Wrestling

  • Head coach Andrew Nicola’s grapplers have been idle since 21 Bulldogs competed at the University of Nebraska-Kearney Holiday Inn Open on Nov. 18. As part of the loaded field of wrestlers, Concordia combined for 20 victories. The event marked the team’s third tournament of the season having also taken part in the Dan Harris Open (Nov. 5) and the Grand View University Open (Nov. 11). For more information on Bulldog wrestling, click HERE.
  • The NAIA released fresh team and individual conference and national ratings during the week of Nov. 13. The Bulldogs moved back from 16th to 20th in the national poll. Five individuals appeared in the national rankings: No. 12 Giovanni Castillo (133), No. 20 Keanu Tom (157), No. 16 Jon Lado (165), No. 9 Josh Nelsen (184) and No. 12 Alexander Reimers (197). Currently ranked third in the GPAC, Concordia possesses nine wrestlers ranked at the conference level, including Lado, the GPAC’s top-rated 165-pounder.
  • In terms of sheer number of victories, sophomore Deandre Chery reigned supreme among Bulldogs at the UNK Open. A native of Miami Gardens, Fla., Chery went 4-2 at 174 pounds in the “amateur” division of the tournament. After a loss in the opening round, Chery won four matches in a row, including three by pin. Chery’s season record stands at 9-5 with a team high six pins. He picked up a third-place finish at the Dan Harris Open.
  • In terms of rankings, senior Victor Haro turned in the team’s most impressive single win of the day. The 157-pounder from Tucson, Ariz., defeated No. 12 Brandon Lawson-Archuleta, 10-5, on the backside of the “elite” division. It was a positive sign for Haro, who carried a 2-4 record into last weekend’s tournament.
  • Other Bulldogs with multiple wins on the day included Cody Lambert (2-2 at 149), Blake Castillo (2-2 at 174) and Micahel Duffy (2-2 at 285). Kirk Kaliszewski (165) and Josh Nelsen (184) both earned pins over NCAA competition. Kaliszewski wiped out Air Force’s Luke Boyle in 1:27 while Nelsen took care of New Mexico Highlands’ Jacob Hawthorne in 2:42. In matches against GPAC opponents, Concordia went a combined 6-8, including 3-0 against Midland grapplers.
  • One of the team’s most pleasant surprises of the early season, sophomore Cam Devers did not compete at UNK. The native of Holly Springs, N.C., appeared at No. 6 in the most recent GPAC ratings at 141 pounds. He owns the team’s highest winning percentage thanks to an 8-1 start that includes place finishes of first (Dan Harris Open) and third (Grand View Open). Devers’ eight wins have already equaled his total from his freshman season.
  • Devers and several other Bulldogs are within striking distance of cracking double figure win totals on the season. The team wins leaders are Chery (9-5), Lambert (9-6), Devers (8-1), Darrin Miller (7-5), Nelsen (7-5) and Castillo (7-6). The bar for the school single-season wins record was set exceptionally high by Andrew Schulte in 2015-16. He went 40-6 on his way to a 141-pound NAIA national title that season.
  • After enjoying Thanksgiving week off from competition, the Bulldogs now look forward to Thursday when Dakota Wesleyan will visit Seward for a GPAC dual at 7 p.m. CT. The Tigers were ranked ninth in the most recent conference ratings. Winner of GPAC dual and postseason titles three years in a row, the Bulldogs will be aiming to extend an active streak of 21-straight GPAC dual wins. Concordia has gone 7-0 in its GPAC duals in three-consecutive seasons.