Bulldog Weekly Report (Sept. 15)

By Jacob Knabel on Sep. 15, 2020 in Athletic Announcements

Bulldog Athletic Association Athletes of the Week: Due to the absence of the weekly BAAM meetings, Athletes of the Week will not be announced. When it is determined that BAAM meetings can resume, members will be notified.

2019-20 BAAM Athletes of the Month
January – Rachel Battershell (track & field) / Tanner Shuck (basketball)
December – Emmie Noyd (volleyball) / Mario Ybarra (wrestling)
November – Carter Kent (basketball) / Kara Stark (volleyball)
October – Tara Callahan (volleyball) / Lane Napier (football)
September – Derek Tachovsky (football) / Emmie Noyd (volleyball)

News and notes:

Concordia Athletics makes long-awaited return: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly six months went by between official Concordia Athletics Contests. When cross country opened up the 2020 season on Sept. 5, a Bulldog drought that began after a baseball doubleheader on March 13 finally came to an end. In the weeks leading up to the new academic year (which began on Aug. 10 at Concordia), the GPAC announced its commitment to proceeding with fall intercollegiate athletics. Thus, all fall Bulldog sports teams have gotten their seasons underway.

Fan protocols for home events: Fans who plan to attend Concordia Athletics home events are advised to read through our protocols HERE. All fans are expected to self-screen and are required to wear masks while viewing contests in either Bulldog Stadium or Walz Arena. Non-family members are welcome to be present on our campus during these contests.

Concordia Athletics recognized with 226 NAIA Scholar-Athletes and 19 NAIA Scholar-Teams: As announced on Sept. 15, Concordia Athletics has been recognized with 226 NAIA Scholar-Athletes and 19 NAIA Scholar-Team award winners. The Scholar-Athlete total shatters the previous school record of 117 achieved in 2018-19. For a complete list of Scholar-Athletes, click HERE.

Concordia named Champions of Character Five-Star Gold Award Winner: Concordia University, Nebraska has been named a Champions of Character Five-Star Award winner for the 2019-20 academic year, as announced by the NAIA on Wednesday (Sept. 9). With perfect score of 100, the Bulldogs earned status as a “Gold” institution. Concordia is one of 68 NAIA institutions to garner a perfect score on the Champions of Character measure.

Shooting Sports opens 2020-21 season with tri-event: The Concordia University Shooting Sports Program had some adjustments to its schedule, but the season did get underway this past weekend (Sept. 12-13) with a tri-event that included Iowa Western Community College and Midland. While cracking 1,626 targets as a team, Concordia placed second behind Midland (1,641). Iowa Western (1,614) placed third. Junior Russell Malterud hit all 100 targets in trap as the lone perfect performance of the entire weekend. Head Coach Scott Moniot entered 28 total competitors into the event. For a recap of the competition, click HERE.

Tennis programs claim wins over William Jewell: The bulk of the tennis seasons will take place in the spring, but the first official matches of 2020-21 were held on Sept. 12 when both the Bulldog men and women claimed victories over NCAA Division II William Jewell College. The team scores were 5-2 in the women’s match and 4-3 in the men’s contest. In the women’s clash, Concordia singles winners included Sofia Morales, Ansley Gates, Kaitlin Seja and Madi Smith. The doubles combos of Katy Krejci and Allison Marshall and Luisa Esquivel and Smith were also victorious. On the men’s side, singles winners were Luke Zoller, Isaac Howes, Juan Rabellino and Joseph Bindl. The Bulldogs lost the doubles point although Zoller and Rabellino came out on top at the No. 2 spot. Up next for both teams is the GPAC Individual Tournament on Friday and Saturday in Lincoln, Neb.

Bulldog Coaches Show airs every Thursday at 5:30 p.m. CT: The Bulldog Coaches Show is underway in its fifth 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 2020-21 season, Bulldog football, men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball contests will be aired live on Max Country. Evan Jones 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 sixth 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.

Football

·        After months of debate about whether college football would take place this fall, the season is off and running for Head Coach Patrick Daberkow’s squad. The Bulldogs controlled the line of scrimmage while toppling rival Doane, 24-7, at Al Papik Field in Crete on Sept. 12. Concordia outgained the Tigers, 374-195, in the process of taking care of a program that has been a thorn in its side (lost 13 of the previous 14 meetings). The Bulldogs are now 2-2 in season openers under Daberkow. For more on Concordia Football, click HERE.

·        The running of Jonah Weyand and the blocking of an experienced offensive line emerged as one of the top storylines from the evening in Crete. The running game was a major point of emphasis in the offseason after the Bulldogs averaged just 65.8 rushing yards per game in 2019. In the first half alone, Weyand piled up 152 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries. Weyand played only sparingly in the second half when Lyle Whitney and Devin Zeigler shared carries. As a team, Concordia rushed for 229 yards with an average of 4.9 per carry.

·        Following the game, Weyand (a Crete High School alum) gave credit to the offensive line. There were times when the holes were literally big enough to drive a truck through. The starting group up front includes four players with prior starting experience: tackles Cole Baumgartner and Gavin Mull, guard Keegan Hornung and center Johnny Robinson. Sophomore Christian Schlepp also started at one guard spot. Their work at the line of scrimmage could go a long way in determining how much the Bulldogs improve from their 3-7 record of last season.

·        Concordia went through another quarterback battle this fall camp. Blake Culbert, a redshirt junior from Garden Grove, Calif., emerged as the starter. He took every snap at Doane and finished 15-for-33 for 145 yards and a touchdown. Culbert threw a pretty 15-yard touchdown pass to Brady Fitzke (first career touchdown) late in the first quarter. Culbert also made a series of key third down strikes that resulted in first downs. Mostly, he just had to stay out of the way with the running game and defense playing at a high level.

·        So far so good for that Bulldog D, which graduated some significant pieces from 2019, including top pass rusher Aaron Rudloff and three starting linebackers. Of course All-American linebacker Lane Napier remains a constant. He notched seven tackles and broke up a pass at Doane. The defense allowed just 3.9 yards per play (inflated by one 56-yard rush) and forced two turnovers. Karson Dickson caused a fumble that was recovered by Jorge Ochoa and AJ Jenkins picked off a pass.

·        The rivalry with Doane clearly means a lot to Daberkow and his players. The previous two seasons resulted in frustratingly close losses to the Tigers – 21-16 in 2018 and 17-10 in 2019. Although Doane has won the majority of the matchups over the past 15-20 years, many of them have been tight. Of the last five defeats suffered at the hands of the Tigers, four have been decided by one-score margins. Concordia’s 17-point margin of victory was its largest over Doane since 1970 when the score was 35-0. That win in ’70 snapped Doane’s 38-game unbeaten streak.

·        The Bulldogs would like to believe they can outperform their GPAC preseason ranking of seventh – which was really just a reflection of where they finished a year ago. There are no official preseason ratings, but Concordia is currently 27th nationally in the computer formula calculated by Massey Ratings. That would put them fourth among GPAC teams behind Morningside (1), Dordt (12) and Northwestern (16). The Bulldogs last finished a season ranked in the NAIA top 25 in 2016 when they checked in at 19th in the postseason poll.

·        The passing game showed signs of being dangerous as well. There were multiple near misses on deep balls that attempted to connect with Concordia receivers running free in the secondary. Six different Bulldogs caught a pass at Doane: Cayden Beran (five for 36), Korrell Koehlmoos (three for 24), Garrett Schardt (two for 40), Fitzke (two for 21), Lane Castaneda (two for 3) and Cole Schaedel (one for 21). Beran garnered second team All-GPAC honors in 2019.

·        Another in-state rivalry game is coming up on Saturday when Hastings will be in town for a 6 p.m. CT kickoff. It will be the lone home night contest of 2020. This will mark the 53rd all-time matchup between the Bulldogs and Broncos. Concordia would be thrilled if it could follow a similar script as last season when it won 44-0 at Hastings. The series has been extremely competitive overall over the past 10 seasons (five wins apiece). The Broncos are coming off a 45-7 win over Dakota Wesleyan last week.

Cross Country

·        Head Coach Matt Beisel’s cross country programs are two weeks deep into official 2020 action having competed at the Sunflower Opener (Sept. 5) in Sioux Center, Iowa, and the Bronco Stampede (Sept. 12) in Hastings, Neb. Now in year five leading the Bulldogs, Beisel hopes both teams can make a run at GPAC title contention. At the Sunflower Opener, Concordia placed third out of nine teams for both men and women. Then at the Bronco Stampede, the men claimed victory over a field of five squads while the women placed runner up. For more on Bulldog Cross Country, click HERE.

·        Like all NAIA fall sports, there are currently no national ratings to publicize. Coming off a GPAC championship and 12th-place NAIA national finish, the Concordia women very likely would have earned a preseason national ranking. In terms of conference positioning, the Bulldogs have gotten an early feel for where they stand. At the Sunflower Opener (hosted by Dordt), Concordia’s women placed third behind Dordt and Morningside (also beat out five GPAC rivals at the meet). Meanwhile, the men placed behind Dordt and Northwestern (and outpaced five GPAC foes). That just means there is work yet to be done in order to get to the top.

·        The men have now been crowned champions of the Bronco Stampede in two of the past three years (2018 and 2020). In this year’s 8k race, the Bulldogs outran rival Doane and held the Tigers off by a margin of 13 points (host Hastings placed fourth and was 63 points off the pace). In terms of runners who factored into team scoring, Concordia had four top-10 finishers: Camden Sesna (first), Calvin Rohde (seventh), Jordan Lorenz (eighth) and Wyatt Lehr (ninth).

·        Beisel has been especially pleased with the progress of Sesna, who has become the team’s top runner in the early part of the season. The sophomore from Kearney, Neb., placed 27th in the GPAC last season as a freshman and could be primed to become an All-GPAC performer this fall. So far in 2020, Sesna has clocked 8k times of 26:34.84 and 26:19.32. As a high school athlete, Sesna turned in a seventh-place Nebraska Class C state cross country finish.

·        The women’s team was without its top runner (sophomore Kylahn Heritage) at the Bronco Stampede. Heritage placed 16th out of 128 runners at the Sunflower Opener before sitting out this past weekend. In her place, freshman Grace Reiman filled in admirably at the No. 1 spot. She placed eighth out of the runners who counted towards team scoring and finished the 5k in 20:18.75. Senior Lydia Cook followed close behind and timed in at 20:24.81 in Hastings. With 63 team points, the Bulldogs placed 39 points behind meet champion Friends University (24 points).

·        Breaking down the men’s side, the team’s top five finishers at the Sunflower Opener were: Sesna (26:34.84), Rohde (26:56.21; 28th), Owen Dawson (27:31.51), Jordan Lorenz (27:42.86) and Antonio Blaine (27:47.86). A week later, the top five at the Bronco Stampede were Sesna (26:19.15), Rohde (27:18.13), Lorenz (27:33.09), Lehr (27:33.59) and Blaine (27:41.88). Rohde, a native of Reed City, Mich., is clearly going to be an impact freshman this fall.

·        Breaking down the women’s side, the team’s top five finishers at the Sunflower Opener were: Heritage (19:16.21), Reiman (19:45.73), Cook (20:28.48), Alyssa Fye (20:45.68) and Keri Bauer (20:50.16). This past weekend at the Bronco Stampede, the top five were: Reiman (20:18.75), Cook (20:24.81), Amie Martin (20:44.02), Fye (20:54.13) and Bierwagen (21:15.04). The Bulldogs are still waiting to bring back Sydney Clark, a 2019 all-conference runner.

·        Concordia will have this week off from competition before focusing in on the Dean White Invitational hosted by Doane on Sept. 26. The meet figures to be full of GPAC squads. At last year’s Dean White, the women enjoyed a major breakthrough by winning the meet (edged both Dordt and the University of Nebraska-Kearney) while the men placed fifth. Four regular-season meets are left on the schedule prior to the GPAC Championships (Nov. 7).

Volleyball

·        The season has moved at a trickle in the early going as the Bulldogs ease into the 2020 campaign. A number of nonconference matches have fallen through (due to factors outside of Concordia’s program), but Concordia did not let that affect its play on Sept. 9 when it handled host Midland in straight sets, 25-19, 25-21, 25-23. The Bulldogs have now won back-to-back meetings with the Warriors (both in Fremont) while getting over a significant hump. Head Coach Ben Boldt’s squad was idle over the weekend and sits at 1-0 overall. For more information on Concordia Volleyball, click HERE.

·        Midland has been an arch nemesis during much of the GPAC era. An important step in an earning a bid to the 2019 national tournament was finding a way to beat the Warriors. In last season’s first meeting, the Bulldogs were clipped by Midland in five sets inside Walz Arena. A few weeks later, Concordia avenged that defeat and knocked off the Warriors in four sets. It was a crucial victory that helped separate the two sides in terms of national tournament aspirations. Midland wound up being one of the last teams out of the field. Prior to the 2019 victory in Fremont, the Bulldogs had lost eight in a row in the series.

·        The GPAC preseason poll was mostly a reflection of how last season’s standings finished. Concordia has been picked third behind Northwestern and Jamestown. A spot in the top three of the GPAC ratings virtually guarantees a spot in the NAIA national poll. However, the NAIA has not released a national poll yet in 2020. Last season the Bulldogs were ranked 14th in the NAIA postseason poll (12th in Massey Ratings).

·        Fans of the Bulldogs will notice plenty of familiar names and faces on this year’s roster. The program has welcomed back four of the five players were garnered All-GPAC recognition in 2019. That list includes Tara Callahan (first team), Camryn Opfer (second team), Marissa Hoerman (honorable mention) and Kara Stark (honorable mention). Callahan also earned honorable mention All-America accolades and Opfer was named the GPAC Freshman of the Year. Four returners had 200 or more kills last season: Opfer (316), Stark (293), Kalee Wiltfong (275) and Arleigh Costello (213).

·        It was actually a newcomer who stole the spotlight at Midland. Freshman middle blocker Gabi Nordaker showed no signs of stage fright while powering down 12 kills without a single error. She also got in on six of the team’s nine blocks. Nordaker was one of two Bulldogs to make their college debut last week (sophomore Kennedy Vanscoy played varsity for the first time). A Millard West High School grad, Nordaker accumulated 733 kills and 312 blocks in her high school career.

·        As a team, the Bulldogs hit a rock solid .248 against a Midland team that figures to again be a national tournament contender. Callahan spurred the attack with her 39 assists. Most of those went to either Nordaker (12 kills), Stark (12 kills) or Opfer (eight kills). Meanwhile, Concordia limited the Warriors to a .168 hitting percentage. Hoerman patrolled the back row and racked up 24 digs. Sydney Morehouse (12 kills) was one of the lone Midland players to have success on the attack.

·        A look around the GPAC and NAIA landscapes shows a wide variance in terms of quantity of action. Most teams in the conference have played three or more matches with Mount Marty having already played eight times. Several other NAIA leagues have postponed fall sports until the spring. Of the 193 NAIA volleyball programs listed on the official qualification plan, 72 have begun their 2020-21 seasons with at least one match. The NAIA national championship tournament will not begin until April 2021.

·        GPAC play will heat up this week with Concordia slated to play in-state rivals Doane and Hastings. The Bulldogs will be at Doane (3-1, 1-1 GPAC) for a 7:30 p.m. CT first serve on Wednesday. Boldt’s crew will then host Hastings (2-1, 1-0 GPAC) at 3 p.m. on Saturday. Inside conference play, Doane has beaten Mount Marty and lost to College of Saint Mary. Hastings owns a victory over College of Saint Mary (a 2019 national qualifier).

Men’s Soccer

·        The 13th season of Jason Weides’ head coaching tenure got underway last week with a pair of nonconference matchups. Following a 3-1 home defeat to Bellevue University on Sept. 9, the Bulldogs regrouped and won at MidAmerica Nazarene University (Kan.), 2-1, on Sept. 12. Concordia is coming off a 2019 season that culminated with a 10-6-2 overall record and a sixth-place finish in the GPAC standings. The campaign concluded with a 3-0 loss at Hastings in the GPAC tournament quarterfinals. For more information on Bulldog Men’s Soccer, click HERE.

·        One of the nation’s more consistent programs, Concordia has earned the right to expect to compete with the top teams in the GPAC. The Bulldogs were picked fifth in the conference preseason poll. They enter the season having won at least 10 games in nine-straight years (overall record of 100-56-19 over that stretch). The victory at MidAmerica Nazarene marked the 118th of Weides’ career. He is the winningest coach in program history.

·        Considering the familiarity within the program, Concordia seemed to be an outfit capable of being less affected by the lack of a spring practice season than other programs. Not only do they have a veteran coach, the Bulldogs also bring back three all-conference players in Renzo Bozzo, Moises Jacobo and Garrett Perry. On the other hand, Concordia is tasked with replacing its goalkeeper and a 2019-20 senior class that featured four-year starter Carlos Ferrer.

·        The starting lineups Weides has used so far have varied between the two games. He has sprinkled in a number of newcomers. For example, freshman Federico Andrea Simonetti got the start in goal over the weekend. He notched three saves and was just one penalty kick goal away from recording the clean sheet. Newcomers who have started at least one of the two games include Yessine Bessaies, Iker Casanova, Michael Lindberg, Victor Meneses and David Moreno.

·        Sixteen different players contributed to the team’s 38 goals scored in 2019. The team leader was Jacobo, who knocked in six goals. Through two games in 2020, the team’s three goals have each come from a different player – Moreno, Isaiah Shaddick and Ryan Wokutch. In terms of shots, Bessaies (seven) and Jacobo (six) have been Concordia’s most active attackers. Bessaies, Jacobo and Casanova have each recorded one assist apiece.

·        The Bulldogs are one of six teams within the GPAC to have played twice in 2020. The other six conference members have yet to take the field this fall. According to the official NAIA qualification plan, 176 NAIA institutions sponsor men’s soccer. Fifty-one of them had played at least one game, as of the weekend. Several NAIA conferences have postponed the soccer seasons until the spring. The national tournament will begin in April 2021.

·        Due to the schedule reduction that was announced during the summer, Concordia will play only three nonconference games this fall. In a typical season, the Bulldogs would play up to 18 regular-season matches. The total was reduced to 14 due to COVID-19 and financial considerations. In addition, Concordia had two separate scheduled Sept. 5 games (vs. Oklahoma City and at Central Methodist) fall through.

·        The final nonconference game will be on Wednesday when Kansas Wesleyan University (0-0) makes its way to Seward for a 7 p.m. CT kickoff. This will mark the fourth-straight season that the two programs have met up (the Bulldogs have won two of the previous three meetings). Concordia will then open up GPAC play on Saturday at Mount Marty (0-0). Kickoff from Yankton, S.D., is slated for 3:30 p.m. The improving Lancers went 5-11-1 overall in 2019.​​​​​​​

Women’s Soccer

·        A new head coaching era began last week when the Bulldogs hosted Bellevue University on Sept. 9. Despite the absences of several key players, Concordia went toe-to-toe with the perennially strong Bruins. A 95th-minute goal in overtime sank the Bulldogs by a 1-0 final score. It marked the second season in a row that Concordia had fallen to Bellevue in an overtime matchup. Former head coach at Concordia-Chicago and Barton College (N.C.), Thomas Goines presided over his first game since being hired in December. For more information on Bulldog Women’s Soccer, click HERE.

·        Concordia was unable to fill an opening on the first eligible date of play (Sept. 5), so they waited until Wednesday of last week to get the season started. Of late, Bellevue has had the Bulldogs’ number. Concordia managed to clip then 16th-ranked Bellevue, 2-1, in 2015. Since then, the Bruins have won each of the past five meetings (the last three have each been decided by one-goal margins. Over the weekend, Bellevue dropped a 1-0 decision at Columbia College (Mo.), which finished 2019 ranked 25th in the NAIA.

·        Goines brought eight prior years of collegiate head coaching experience with him to Seward. A native of Fort Wayne, Ind., Goines became the winningest coaching in CU-Chicago history after spending just four seasons in River Forest. His overall head coaching record now stands at 73-56-16. Goines graduated from Concordia-Wisconsin (where he also played soccer) and holds a master’s degree from Concordia-Irvine.

·        Prior to 2019, the program had reached the GPAC tournament championship game in five-straight seasons. During that run, the Bulldogs won two GPAC postseason titles and one conference regular-season championship. In other words, Concordia is no stranger to winning. However, the Bulldogs dropped back to sixth place in the 2019 league standings. Seniors such as Lindsey Carley, Tori Cera and Michaela Twito were key pieces of the 2017 GPAC championship squad.

·        Cera was unavailable for the game last week. As a team still seeking answers on the attack, Concordia played more of a defensive style against Bellevue. The shots were limited to a 10-6 count in favor of the Bruins. Goines started two freshmen in Annika Munch and Sydney Ross and a transfer in Bethany Fuchs. The latter could help in the goal scoring department. Fuchs notched eight goals while starting 17 games last season at Western Nebraska Community College.

·        The Bulldogs are one of 10 teams within the GPAC to have played at least once in 2020. The other three conference members have yet to take the field this fall. According to the official NAIA qualification plan, 183 NAIA institutions sponsor women’s soccer. Fifty-five of them had played at least one game, as of the weekend. Several NAIA conferences have postponed the soccer seasons until the spring. The national tournament will begin in April 2021.

·        No varsity contests took place over the weekend, but Goines did travel the entire team to Columbus, Neb., on Sunday for a “reserve game” against Central Community College. The goal was to get more game action for everyone, the top performers included. It was the final opportunity against another opponent prior to the start of conference play. Back in the summer, the schedule was reduced to a maximum number of 14 varsity matches.

·        The Bulldogs will be idle in the middle of this week before opening GPAC play at Mount Marty (0-1) at 1 p.m. CT on Saturday. The Lancers began their season on Sept. 9 with a 5-0 loss at Dordt. Concordia is 18-0 all-time against Mount Marty. The matchup will be the first of 12 GPAC regular-season games.​​​​​​​

Golf

·        The men’s and women’s squads have both competed in at least one event as they got the fall portion of the 2020-21 season underway. The men got started first while co-hosting the Blue River Classic (Sept. 8-9) along with Doane. The Bulldogs placed ninth out of 13 teams at the event. The men returned to action on Monday and Tuesday (Sept. 14-15) at the Siouxland Invite (tournament still in progress as of mid-day Sept. 15). Meanwhile, the women placed seventh out of 13 squads in a tightly bunched field at the Mount Marty Fall Invite (Sept. 10-11). For more on Concordia Golf click here: Men | Women.

·        Looking back at last season, the Bulldogs had barely gotten started in March when the rest of the seasons were wiped out by the COVID-19 pandemic. The GPAC decided to make the results from the fall conference championships final (without the additional two rounds of GPAC spring championships). As a result, Concordia placed third in the GPAC (336-345–681) on the women’s side and seventh (336-329–665) on the men’s side. The women put together a solid season that also included a tournament title at the Nebraska Wesleyan Fall Classic and a second-place finish at the Midland Invite.

·        At the Blue River Classic, the men’s team shot a 356 on day one before slashing its total down to 319 on the second day. Nate Auffet put together the top tournament from an individual standpoint by shooting a score of 87-75–162, good for a tie for 15th place. Omaha native Ivan Yabut is clearly a welcome addition to the lineup. He carded a two-day total of 84-80–164 and placed in a tie for 22nd. Yabut may end up battling Drew D’Ercole for the No. 1 spot in the lineup this season. D’Ercole shook off a first-round 90 in tough conditions at Beatrice Country Club and shot a 75 in round two. He finished one stroke behind Yabut and placed 27th.

·        The remainder of the ‘A’ team group featured Jayden Neal (88-83–171; T-40th), Jack Williams (94-81–175; T-48th) and Jacob Woodmancy (94-85–179; T-56th). A strong performer in 2019-20, Williams cut 13 strokes off his day one total. Following Auffet on the ‘B’ team, Landon Walkenhorst (92-81–173; T-45th), Gavin McWhorter (97-85–182; T-61st), Harrison Helmer (102-82–184; T-65th) and Taylor Johnson (113-86–199; 73rd) also competed in the Blue River Classic.

·        Spurred by the efforts of Lauren Havlat and Kendra Placke, the Concordia women shot a score right in line with its season bests from 2019-20 while in action on the second day of the Mount Marty Invite. The team total finished at 366-339–705 (+129) with both days taking place at Fox Run Golf Course in Yankton, S.D. In round two, Havlat topped her previous best 18-hole score by seven strokes and moved up to 14th on the individual leaderboard (89-82–171). Her average last season sat at 95.3. Meanwhile, Placke recorded a top 10 finish thanks to her total of 85-78–163. The seventh-place claim signaled Placke’s 12th career top 10 tournament placement (out of 14 events).

·        Next in line for the Bulldogs in Yankton were Emily Jensen (97-88–185; 36th), Logan Eschliman (95-91–186; T-37th), Mya Nurse (105-92–197; T-53rd) and Ashley Gerczynski (100-103–203; 62nd). Jensen, Nurse and Gerczynski each made their collegiate debuts at the Mount Marty Invite. Though Concordia placed seventh, it was not far off the teams that placed second through sixth – Dakota Wesleyan (678), Briar Cliff (691), College of Saint Mary (699), Jamestown (700) and Northwestern (701). Muller believes his squad can compete for a top-two spot in the GPAC.

·        The men were hoping to move up on the second day of the Siouxland Invite. Muller entered 10 Bulldogs into the event. In round one, Yabut paced Concordia by shooting a three-over-par 74 (eagle on six and birdie on 18). Two other Concordia players shot in the 70s: Landon Walkenhorst (78; T-26th) and Jayden Neal (79; T-32nd). The rest of the ‘A’ team included Drew D’Ercole (83; T-44th) and Nate Auffet (84; T-49th).

·        Next on the slate for the women is the Lila Frommelt Classic hosted by Briar Cliff this Friday and Saturday. Golf is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. CT both days from Two Rivers Golf Course in Dakota Dunes, S.D. The men will have the rest of this week off from competition before competing at the Ottawa University Fall Invite next Monday-Tuesday (Sept. 21-22) in Lawrence, Kan. Conference championships are coming up fast – Sept. 28-29 for the men and Oct. 5-6 for the women.