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:
HomeTown Ticketing and 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. Fans are also encouraged to order advance tickets through HomeTown Ticketing. By purchasing tickets online, fans are guaranteed entrance on game days. Concordia is allowing 75 percent capacity in outdoor venues and 50 percent capacity in indoor venues.
Concordia Football delivers powerful message – Follow Us: Prior to the thrilling conclusion to last week’s overtime win over Hastings, the Concordia Football Team delivered a powerful message. Before kickoff, a video played from the stadium videoboard with members of the team speaking about the unity within the program and how it can be applied to the nation. Players wrote the script for the video that was produced by Aaron Nix. It can be viewed HERE. While the video was played, the team took a knee. The Bulldogs then rose as one for the National Anthem in a show of their unity.
Shooting Sports wins Midland Ice Out title: In a breakthrough performance, the Concordia Shooting Sports team took first place at the Midland Ice Out Invitational that unfolded over the weekend (Sept. 18-19) at Lincoln Trap & Skeet Club. The Bulldogs posted a team score of 1,881 by cracking 439 targets in sporting clays, 483 in skeet, 234 in super sporting, 241 in double skeet and 484 in trap. Wyatt Hambly led the way from a high overall perspective by knocking out 373 targets. The Bulldogs beat out a field of 10 teams at the event. For a full recap of the Midland Ice Out, click HERE.
Tennis programs post six titles at GPAC individual tournament: In individual bracket play against conference opponents, the Concordia University tennis squads came away with six championships in either singles or doubles. Singles winners included Claudia Miranda Viera (flight B), Katie Seja (flight C), Julia Phillips (flight D), Joe Bindl (flight C) and Octavio Velazquez (flight D). The doubles combo of Ansley Gates and Seja also won a title in flight B. The tournament provided an early look at where individuals stand in comparison with GPAC opponents.
Not satisfied, Zoller returns for fifth year of collegiate tennis: Now a graduate student, Luke Zoller was not satisfied with how the 2019-20 tennis season came to an abrupt end (due to the COVID-19 pandemic). Thus, Zoller has returned to Head Coach David DeSimone’s squad for 2020-21 and will use up his final season of eligibility. The native of Lenexa, Kan., owns 33 career singles victories. The Bulldogs got their season underway on Sept. 12 with a win over William Jewell College. For more on Zoller, click HERE.
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.
Volleyball
· For the first time this season, the Bulldogs had a two-match week. It was a fun one as Concordia went on the road to defeat Doane in straight sets, 25-16, 25-16, 25-14, on Sept. 16 before knocking off Hastings, 25-21, 25-21, 25-19, in the home opener on Sept. 19. Through three matches this season, Head Coach Ben Boldt’s squad has not dropped a single set having also defeated Midland in three in the season opener. This marks the first time the Bulldogs have started 3-0 in the GPAC under Boldt. For more information on Concordia Volleyball, click HERE.
· The Bulldogs have turned the tables on their in-state GPAC rivals. Before wins last season over Hastings and Midland, Concordia had suffered eight-match series losing streaks against both opponents. The Bulldogs have now won back-to-back matchups with Midland and have taken two of the last three from Hastings. Meanwhile, Boldt’s program has triumphed in five-straight against Doane, including all three meetings in 2019. Currently, Concordia has won six matches in a row against in-state conference foes.
· It’s early – and some NAIA programs around the nation aren’t playing – but the Bulldogs continue to rank highly on the national statistical leaderboards. As a team, Concordia sports NAIA national rankings of fourth in kills per set (14.67), sixth in hitting percentage (.291), 14th in blocks per set (2.33) and 18th in aces per set (2.0). On the NAIA individual ratings, Tara Callahan ranks second in assists per set (12.22), Gabi Nordaker ranks third in hitting percentage (.552), fifth in blocks per set (1.67) and 17th in kills per set (3.989), Camryn Opfer ranks 26th in hitting percentage (.344) and Marissa Hoerman ranks 28th in digs per set (5.11) and 29th in aces per set (0.67).
· So far, no one has figured out Nordaker. In the first three matches of her career, Nordaker has posted respective kill totals of 12, 10 and 13 to go along with respective hitting percentages of .545, .500 and .611. She also has piled up 15 total blocks. Her play has helped make up for the loss of All-American Emmie Noyd in the middle of the front row. As a prep at Millard West High School, Nordaker accumulated 733 kills, 312 blocks, 187 digs and 39 aces. She was also a letter winner in swimming and track and field.
· During last season’s national tournament run, five Bulldogs reached the 200-kill mark. This team makes use of similar balance on the attack. Five individuals have at least 20 kills so far in 2020: Nordaker (35), Opfer (27), Kara Stark (24), Arleigh Costello (21) and Kalee Wiltfong (20). Those five players have accounted for 127 of the team’s total 132 kills. Costello enjoyed her best outing this season by notching nine kills on 20 swings versus Hastings. In the victory at Doane, five Concordia players recorded seven or more kills (three had exactly nine kills).
· The Bulldogs look like an early contender in the GPAC title race. The program is 3-0 in conference play for the first time since 2005 (finished 9-7 in the GPAC). The next hurdles to clear in order to reach the standing goal of winning the GPAC may be Northwestern and Jamestown, the two squads that placed 1-2 in the final 2019 standings. The Red Raiders have not yet started conference play (due to postponements) and the Jimmies have not played a single match at all in 2020. Every other GPAC team that has begun conference play, with the exception of Dordt, has lost at least one match. In the history of the GPAC (2000-present), Concordia has one conference championship to its credit (2000 co-GPAC regular season champions).
· Due to this season’s unique circumstances, there has yet to be an official national poll released by the NAIA. However, the NAIA did announce dates for the first conference (Oct. 12) and national (Oct. 14) polls of the 2020 season. By that point, the Bulldogs will have played six additional matches. It will be a difficult task to put together a national ranking considering less than half (97 of 222) of the NAIA volleyball teams listed on the official qualification plan have played this fall.
· Callahan is not far off from becoming the third player in program history to reach 3,000 career assists. She stands at 2,864 entering the week. The only Bulldogs to produce more assists are Stacy Stuckenschmidt (4,949) and Alayna Kavanaugh (4,485). A native of Brady, Neb., Callahan racked up 1,299 assists last season for the fourth-highest single-season total in school history.
· One GPAC test will make up this week’s slate. Concordia was originally scheduled to host Mount Marty (5-6, 0-2 GPAC) at 7:30 p.m. CT on Wednesday, but that match has been postponed until a date to be determined. Up next will be a battle at College of Saint Mary (7-1, 2-1 GPAC) at 5 p.m. on Saturday. The Flames (2019 national tournament qualifier) have just one loss – at Hastings.
Golf
· Very few days have gone by lately without either the men or women competing. The biggest highlight of the season to date occurred over the weekend as Seward High School product Kendra Placke won the individual title at the Lila Frommelt Fall Classic while nearly breaking the school record for lowest score in a single round. As a team, the Concordia women placed fourth amongst a field of 14 squads at the Lila Frommelt Classic. The men began a two-day event in Lawrence, Kan., on Monday. They were seven strokes off the lead entering today (Sept. 22)’s round. For more on Concordia Golf click here: Men | Women.
· Placke continues on a path that leads to her being one of the greatest golfers in program history. She won the Lila Frommelt Classic by six strokes with her two-round score of 72-77–149 (+7). It marked the second career tournament win for the Seward High School product, who also took first place at last year’s Nebraska Wesleyan Fall Classic. In 15 career events, Placke has failed to place inside the top 10 only twice. A two-time All-GPAC honoree, Placke owns a career scoring average of 81.04.
· As a team, the Bulldog women shot a solid 337 on day two of the Frommelt Classic and moved up to fourth place behind only Morningside, Iowa Western Community College and Jamestown. Concordia has carded team scores of 366, 339, 350 and 337, respectively, through four rounds of action. The Bulldogs placed seventh out of 13 teams at the Mount Marty Invite (Sept. 10-11). Last season’s team average was 348.1.
· Placke was followed at the Frommelt Classic by teammates Andrea Peterson (93-79–172; T-21st), Logan Eschliman (90-91–181; T-38th), Lauren Havlat (95-90–185; T-45th), Emily Jensen (97-94–191; T-57th), Mya Nurse (100-97–197; 65th) and Ashley Gerczynski (104-100–204; 71st). Peterson made a huge improvement on day two by cutting 14 strokes off her total from day one. She was the team’s No. 3 golfer last season behind Placke and Murphy Sears with an 18-hole average of 88.5.
· The men turned in a season low on Monday by shooting a 304. That total put them within range of first-place Kansas Wesleyan University (297). Concordia kept close to the top thanks to having three players shoot 75 or lower: Drew D’Ercole (73), Jayden Neal (73) and Ivan Yabut (75). D’Ercole and Neal entered the second day one stroke off the individual lead. The rest of the varsity lineup also included Nate Auffet (83) and Landon Walkenhorst (84).
· In the first five rounds of the season, the Bulldogs turned in team scores of 356, 319, 314, 321 and 304, respectively. The 304 marked the team’s lowest single-round total since shooting a 303 a year ago at the Siouxland Invitational. Concordia’s season average in 2019-20 was 316.4 (10 rounds). The 73 that D’Ercole and Neal carded on Monday equaled the lowest total of any Bulldog from last season. D’Ercole tied a career low while Neal set a new personal best.
· On the women’s side, with four rounds (two events) in the books, the team leaders in scoring average are Placke (78.0), Peterson (86.0), Havlat (89.0), Eschliman (91.8) and Jensen (94.0). Placke has carded the team’s three best individual scores (72, 77 and 78). Peterson also cracked the 70s with her 79 this past Saturday. The team average is currently 348.0.
· Both squads were in action on Tuesday as a busy month of September continued. Following action today (Sept. 22), the men will look forward to the start of the GPAC Championships on Sept. 28-29 in Elkhorn, Neb. The women have one more event prior to conference play. They will be at the Buena Vista Fall Invite on Saturday in Storm Lake, Iowa.
Football
· Through two weeks of action, the Bulldogs are enjoying the ride with victories over rivals Doane and Hastings. Last week’s contest came with plenty of drama as Concordia squeaked by the Broncos in overtime, 34-28. In the back-and-forth barn burner, neither team held a lead greater than seven points at any moment. The key for the Bulldogs was the ground attack with Jonah Weyand and a plus-two turnover margin. Head Coach Patrick Daberkow’s squad is 2-0 to begin the season. For more on Concordia Football, click HERE.
· The Bulldogs went 2-4 last season in games decided by one-score margins. That record included the four-overtime slog at Jamestown (a 13-10 loss). Not since 2015 had Concordia played an overtime game inside Bulldog Stadium (23-20 defeat versus Doane). The program’s most recent overtime victory came in 2015 when the Bulldogs rallied and beat Midland in Fremont, 41-38. Last season’s two close wins were 16-14 over Briar Cliff and 24-17 over Dakota Wesleyan.
· From an individual standpoint, redshirt sophomore running back Jonah Weyand has stolen the show. He has been a workhorse the past two weeks. Against Hastings, Weyand rushed 35 times for 177 yards and five touchdowns. That final score clinched the victory in overtime and tied the GPAC conference record for most rushing touchdowns by an individual in a single game (also believed to be a Concordia single-game record). Through two games, Weyand has rushed for 346 yards and seven touchdowns on 56 carries.
· Not all programs across the NAIA are playing football this fall, but Weyand can currently claim the national lead for rushing yards per game (173.0) while sharing the lead for touchdowns scored with Morningside’s Reid Jurgensmeier. The Concordia school record for most touchdowns scored in a single season is 19 by Bernard Arkebauer, who found the end zone 19 times during an undefeated season in 1931. Previous Bulldogs to rush for four touchdowns in a game included Ryan Durdon in 2017 and JaMaine Lewis in 2007.
· Korrell Koehlmoos may have been overshadowed by Weyand’s record-setting night, but the receiver from Pilger, Neb., made plenty of big plays. Koehlmoos turned in a 70-yard kickoff return and made a critical 24-yard catch on a fourth-and-12 play in the fourth quarter. That conversion led to a Weyand touchdown that tied the game, 21-21. Koehlmoos wound up with four receptions for 104 yards and 237 all-purpose yards (133 on returns). It was the third career 100-yard receiving game for Koehlmoos.
· Hastings found some success in the passing game at times with three completions that went for 38 or more yards. However, the Bulldog defense managed to limit the Broncos to 3.1 yards per carry. It was another active night for All-American linebacker Lane Napier, who made 10 tackles, including two for loss and had a sack. Defensive end Payton Kidder contributed 10 tackles (one for loss), Jourdhin Smith made an acrobatic interception and transfer Karson Dickson collected a pair of sacks. Safety Peyton Mitchell ensured Hastings did not score on its overtime possession when made the tackle following a botched hold on a field goal try.
· The close battle with Hastings was reflective of what the recent series between the two programs has been like. Entering last week, the two sides had split the previous 10 meetings right down the middle. Last year was a bit of an outlier in that the Bulldogs won going away, 44-0. That point spread was the largest in the history of the Concordia-Hastings series. In 2018, the Broncos emerged from Bulldog Stadium with a 21-13 win.
· When requested for an interview following the victory over Hastings, quarterback Blake Culbert preferred that the credit go to the offensive line. However, Culbert deserves some of the credit for helping the Bulldog offense move towards respectability. The first-year starter has completed 33-of-66 passes for 365 yards and one touchdown over the first two weeks. Perhaps most importantly, Culbert has not committed a single turnover while managing a run-first offense. Culbert had one career start entering this season.
· Another road challenge awaits on Saturday when Concordia will be at Briar Cliff (0-1) for a 1 p.m. CT kickoff. The Chargers play their home games at Memorial Field in Sioux City, Iowa. Briar Cliff began its season last week with a 13-6 slugfest of a loss at Doane. The Bulldogs are 14-3 all-time versus the Chargers. On homecoming last season, Concordia edged Briar Cliff, 16-14. After going 0-11 in 2017, the Chargers improved in a big way with records of 6-5 in 2018 and 5-6 in 2019.
Women’s Soccer
· After nine-straight days without an official game, the Bulldogs returned to action at Mount Marty and breezed to a 12-0 victory in Yankton, S.D., on Sept. 19. The outburst came 10 days after Concordia was shut out, 1-0, in an overtime loss to Bellevue University in the season opener on Sept. 9. The win marked the first for Thomas Goines as head coach of the Bulldogs. Concordia moved to 1-1 overall while beginning GPAC play with a win. For more information on Bulldog Women’s Soccer, click HERE.
· Concordia still has yet to lose to Mount Marty in program history, which dates back to 1996. The Bulldogs are a perfect 19-0 against the Lancers all-time. The 12 goals scored in last week’s victory were the most for Concordia since it put up the same number in the 2018 meeting. Last season was a much closer battle with the Bulldogs triumphing by a 3-0 score in Seward. Mount Marty placed above both Doane and Presentation in the 2019 GPAC standings.
· Considering Concordia scored 19 goals for the entire 2019 season, the 12 goals at Mount Marty were a big deal. It has taken some time for the program to recover from saying goodbye to two major offensive threats after the 2018 campaign (Maria Deeter and Lauren Martin). The ’18 team ranks third in program history for goals scored in a single season (65) following the 2014 (80) and 2016 (67) squads.
· The goal scoring this past Saturday came from Grace Soenksen (5’), Jaiden Beecher (7’), Mikeila Martinez (11’ and 30’), Aliyah Aldama (34’), Jennika Chapman (36’), Lina Kirst (41’), Bethany Fuchs (45’), Sydney Rogers (61’), Sydney Ross (64’), Chapman (67’) and Kirst (88’). In sum, two goals apiece were delivered by Kirst, Chapman and Martinez. First career goals were notched by Aldama, Chapman, Fuchs (had previous goals at a junior college), Kirst, Rogers and Ross.
· The program has become accustomed to winning in conference play. Since the start of the 2014 season, the Bulldogs have gone 45-11-10 in GPAC regular-season action. During that stretch they won two GPAC tournament titles (2014 and 2016) and a GPAC regular-season title (2017) while reaching the conference championship game five-straight seasons. Concordia made national tournament appearances in 2014 and 2016.
· This team figures to keep getting better as it gets closer and closer to full strength. Star senior Tori Cera is still waiting to make her 2020 debut. While not necessarily an attacking player, Cera owns the most career goals of anyone on the current roster with 14. She’s a two-time first team All-GPAC performer. Cera is one of the team’s most experienced players along with the likes of multi-year starters such as goalkeeper Lindsey Carley and midfielder Michaela Twito. Those three players own a combined 176 career games of experience.
· In a period of uncertainty, every single GPAC women’s soccer program has played at least one game so far. Briar Cliff is 2-0 in GPAC play as the early conference leader. In perhaps the most surprising result to date, perennial league power Hastings suffered a 3-2 loss at Dakota Wesleyan. Reigning GPAC champ Midland is 1-1 in conference play with a loss at Jamestown. Doane is the lone team in the league to have yet to play a GPAC opponent.
· Two conference matchups are coming up this week. The Bulldogs will hit the road to play at Dordt (1-2-1, 0-1-1 GPAC) for a 5 p.m. CT kickoff on Wednesday. Concordia will then be back at home to host Northwestern (0-2-1, 0-2 GPAC) at 1 p.m. on Saturday. Last season the Bulldogs tied Dordt, 2-2, and defeated Northwestern, 1-0.
Men’s Soccer
· It was a relatively light week for Concordia, which was idle over the weekend. The Bulldogs won for the second-straight outing back on Sept. 16 when they pulled away from Kansas Wesleyan University for a 4-0 home win. Thirteenth-year Head Coach Jason Weides’ squad also owns a nonconference victory over MidAmerica Nazarene University (Kan.). Concordia stands at 2-1 with GPAC regular-season play coming up next. For more information on Bulldog Men’s Soccer, click HERE.
· This marked the fourth-straight season that Concordia and Kansas Wesleyan have met up on the field. The Bulldogs defeated the Coyotes in 2017 and 2018 before suffering a 2-1 overtime loss in the 2019 meeting. All three of those meetings were decided by a single goal. In the latest matchup, Concordia turned a 1-0 halftime advantage into a lopsided victory. KWU has been a strong program that reached the national tournament in 2018 after winning a conference title.
· Weides has run his career coaching win total to 119 (most in program history). He’s led the program to at least 10 victories in each season since the start of the 2011 campaign. Extending that streak will be a challenge with a regular season that has been reduced to 14 games. Weides steered the 2017 squad to a 16-3-1 overall mark for a school record for most wins in a single season. The 2015 team won the GPAC tournament title and earned a bid to the national tournament.
· Through three games, the Bulldogs have scored a total of seven goals with six different players breaking into the scoring column. The only multi-goal scorer is freshman Ryan Wokutch, who has put home a goal in back-to-back games. In last week’s victory, a goal apiece was chipped in by Carlos Orquiz (23’), Garrett Perry (54’), Wokutch (72’) and Moises Jacobo (79’). In addition, David Moreno and Isaiah Shaddick each have one goal on the season. Jacobo has been credited with three assists.
· Federico Andrea Simonetti has started in goal in back-to-back games and has taken hold of the role. The only goal he’s allowed in 166+ minutes came via a penalty kick. Simonetti has collected six saves, including a particularly noteworthy one at the end of the first half versus Kansas Wesleyan. Santiago Esparza also saw action at keeper in that contest. Callum Goldsmith started the season opener in goal versus Bellevue University on Sept. 9.
· Six Bulldogs have started each of the first three games: Yessine Bessaies, Iker Casanova, Jacobo, Decker Mattimoe, David Moreno and Joao Pedro Verissimo. Concordia is glad to have Verissimo back on the field after he missed the majority of the 2019 season due to injury. Verissimo is a staple of the back line and serves as a team captain. Jacobo and Mattimoe are returning starters while Bessaies, Casanova and Moreno are all new to the program. Moreno played extensively at the University of Northwestern Ohio in his first three collegiate seasons.
· The Bulldogs dominated the shot count versus Kansas Wesleyan, 17-5. The count was similar a few days earlier at MidAmerica Nazarene where Concordia had a 17-8 edge. The Bulldogs were outshot by Bellevue, 14-8, in the season opener. Last season the Bulldogs just barely outshot their opponents, 225-223, though they held a 38-21 overall advantage in goals scored. The current balance in goal scoring is similar to recent years for the Bulldogs.
· Two games make up this week’s slate. Concordia will be at Dordt (0-3, 0-1 GPAC) for a 7:15 p.m. CT kickoff on Wednesday before hosting Northwestern (2-1, 0-1 GPAC) at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. The Bulldogs would be happy to duplicate last year’s results against these opponents. They defeated Northwestern, 3-1, and Dordt, 5-0, in 2019.
Cross Country
· Head Coach Matt Beisel’s cross country programs are three 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. They had last week off from competition. 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 first NAIA national rankings of 2020 are scheduled to be unveiled on Oct. 1.
· 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 on Sept. 12. 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.
The most significant regular season competition to date is coming up on Saturday with the Dean White Invitational hosted by Doane set to get started at 10 a.m. CT from Crete. 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).