The Concordia University, Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2025 was officially inducted on Friday, Oct. 10 in a ceremony held in conjunction with homecoming weekend on campus. Complete bios for each of the inductees are included below.
Sarah Kortze ’14 | Cross Country / Track & Field
An individual GPAC champion in both cross country and track & field, Sarah Kortze carved out her own place amongst the top distance runners in a long line of them in Concordia’s history. In cross country, Kortze placed inside the top 15 at the national championships in back-to-back years (13th in 2011 and 14th in 2012) while earning All-America status. As a senior in 2012, Kortze won the GPAC championship with a 5k time of 17:11.30 and was named GPAC Cross Country Runner of the Year. She was a three-time GPAC All-Conference runner in cross country. On the track, Kortze claimed four GPAC titles (three in the 10k and one in the 5k) and one All-America award and was a six-time NAIA national qualifier. At the time of induction, Kortze holds school records for the indoor 5,000 meters (17:30.57) and outdoor 10,000 meters (36:33.47). She was selected by the Lincoln Journal Star as the 2012-13 State College Female Athlete of the Year and earned an NAIA National Runner of the Week award in 2012. Kortze was a five-time NAIA Scholar-Athlete between cross country and track.
Sarah graduated from Concordia with degrees in Biology (Physical Science) and Secondary Education. She proceeded to earn her master’s in Secondary Physics Education from Western Governors University. In her professional career, Kortze has taught science at Lutheran High School in St. Peters, Missouri. She is active in the community as a volunteer, Bible study leader and in spiritual formation. She attends Historic Trinity Lutheran Church in St. Louis. Said Kortze of her Concordia experience, “Whenever I went there, I felt like there was a place for me, like I was part of a community and whatever I was bringing to the table mattered.”
Philly Lammers ‘20 | Women’s Basketball
Arguably the most accomplished player in women’s basketball program history, Philly Lammers earned NAIA All-America recognition all four years with three first team accolades and one second team mention. The Omaha native led the 2018-19 squad to the program’s first ever national championship. That season, Lammers was honored as GPAC Player of the Year and an NAIA First Team All-American. The Omaha native was honored as GPAC Freshman of the Year in 2016-17 and GPAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2019-20. At the time of induction, Lammers owns all-time school rankings of second in points (2,033), second in blocked shots (181), third in rebounds (1,026) and fourth in steals (357). In addition, Lammers earned two Academic All-America awards from College Sports Communicators and was a three-time All-Nebraska Team Honorary Captain, as selected by the Omaha World-Herald. Local media outlets also tabbed her as 2019-20 State College Female Athlete of the Year (Lincoln Journal Star) and Midlands College Female Athlete of the Year (OWH). For her academic and athletic excellence, Lammers earned the 2018-19 NAIA Emil S. Liston Award. She powered Head Coach Drew Olson’s squads to a combined four-year record of 137-10 (63-1 at home) with eight total GPAC championships, three national semifinal advancements and two national championship game appearances. The Bulldogs were ranked No. 1 in March of 2020 when the national tournament was canceled due to COVID-19.
Lammers earned her Bachelor of Science in Physics and Biology with a minor in Chemistry from Concordia. She then obtained a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Grand Canyon University and serves as a registered nurse at Banner Del Webb Hospital in the Phoenix area. Lammers attends St. Bernadette Catholic Church. In reflection of her time as a Bulldog, Lammers wrote, “My friends from CUNE basketball will be with me for the rest of my life. From Coach Olson, the best way to sum up what he taught was ‘leave things better than you found them’ and ‘success is a choice.’”
Courtney Meyer ‘65 | Lifetime Service
Referred to as “Mr. Concordia” by longtime equipment manager and athletic trainer Stan Schlueter, Courtney Meyer has served and supported Concordia Athletics in numerous roles as a coach, administrator, instructor, student-athlete and fan. The longest tenured (1990 through 2008) and winningest head football coach (70 career wins) in school history, Meyer guided the 2001 Bulldogs to a GPAC championship and advancement to the NAIA playoff national quarterfinals. Meyer also spent seven years as defensive coordinator and helped the 1981 squad win a NIAC championship. Outside of coaching, Meyer has been active in university projects and as part of committees. Meyer took a lead role on the 2016 Concordia Football Reunion, helped establish the Bulldog Golf Classic and Concordia Athletics Hall of Fame and was heavily involved in the redesign of Bulldog Stadium. Meyer continues to support the Bulldog Athletic Association and serves on the Hall of Fame committee. He was honored by Concordia with the school’s Lifetime Service Award in 2019. As a student-athlete, Meyer was named Concordia Senior Athlete of the Year for 1964-65. He played football and baseball as a Bulldog.
Including his time spent as a high school coach and as head coach at Concordia University Wisconsin (1984-1990), Meyer coached football for 54 years. He graduated from Concordia Teachers College in 1965 after transferring from St. John College of Winfield, Kansas. Meyer’s coaching and teaching stops took him to Maspeth Queens, New York, Long Island, New York, Mayer, Minn., Mequon, Wis., and Seward. Courtney and his wife Connie have three adult children: Caleb, Joshua and Anna. Joshua and Anna are CUNE graduates. Courtney is a member of St. John Lutheran Church and is active in Kiwanis and other community groups. Said Meyer of how Concordia has influenced his life, “The spiritual climate and overriding mission of Concordia impacted my life, my family, and was the guiding purpose of my life.”
Randy Pospishil ’73 | Football
The first 1,000-yard rusher in football program history, Randy Pospishil starred for Bulldog teams coached by John Seevers in the 1970s. Pospishil led all NIAC players in rushing in 1972 when he carried the ball 175 times for 1,085 yards and 10 touchdowns. At the time of induction, Pospishil continues to share the school record for most rushing yards in a single game (266 versus Dana College in 1972). Pospishil set another program record when he ran 95 yards for a touchdown against Dana. Following the ’72 season, Pospishil was named the team’s Most Valuable Player and recognized with All-NIAC and All-NAIA District 11 team accolades while also being tabbed to the Lutheran All-America and All-Nebraska teams. Pospishil played two seasons at Concordia after transferring from Wayne State College in the spring of 1971.
Pospishil graduated from Concordia with his Bachelor of Science in Education. He earned his Master of Science in Education from Wayne State College. Randy’s teaching career spanned 47 years with the majority of that time spent at Norfolk High School and Norfolk Catholic High School. While coaching simultaneously, Pospishil helped teams win state championships in basketball and football. Randy has a daughter Stevie and son Colton. His special memories of Concordia revolve around teammates and friendships. Pospishil attends Christ Lutheran Church in Norfolk.
2014-15 Men’s Track & Field
The 2014-15 Concordia Men’s Track & Field team made history in May of 2015 as the first in the annals of Concordia Athletics to seize a team national title. At the 2015 NAIA Outdoor National Championships, Head Coach Kregg Einspahr’s squad totaled 59 points, holding off national runners up Wayland Baptist and Indiana Tech with 55 points apiece. Zach Lurz came away with National Championships Most Valuable Performer honors after he placed second in the shot put and hammer throw and fifth in discus. Cody Boellstorff won the hammer throw national title as the Bulldogs went 1-2-3-8 in that event. Additionally, Lucas Wiechman placed as the decathlon national runner up. The meet ultimately came down to the final event as Concordia placed fifth in the 4x400-meter relay. Also in 2015, the Bulldogs won the GPAC outdoor conference title. During the indoor season, Concordia finished second in the GPAC and fifth at the NAIA national meet. Both Lurz (shot put) and Josh Slechta (weight throw) were 2015 NAIA indoor national champions.
Einspahr was assisted on the coaching staff by Ed McLaughlin, Mark Samuels, Jason Berry, Nick Mann and Craig Saalfeld. Additional All-Americans on the national championship winning team were Matthew Chapa, Brandon Cook, Trey Farmer, CJ Muller, Tai Pleasant, Brandon Ramos, Josh Slechta and Jaap van Gaalen. Others on the outdoor national qualifying roster were Trey Barnes, Brock Braniff, Philip Kreutzer and Jose Rojas. The 2015 Bulldogs produced a combined 18 All-America awards between indoor and outdoor. Said Einspahr of winning the national title, “To do that was a dream come true for the whole program and for myself. It’s the culmination of working and not thinking you’re making progress. For that to finally come to fruition was really exhilarating. It was a dream come true for our coaches and athletes. It was a great collection of student-athletes in that bunch.”