SEWARD, Neb. – Liz King and Josh Slechta have joined elite company. As a result of a vote by athletic department staff members, King has been named the 2015-16 Concordia Senior Female Athlete of the Year and Slechta the 2015-16 Concordia Senior Male Athlete of the Year. Both King and Slechta are individual national champions that contributed heavily to team national titles as standout competitors for Bulldog track and field.
“Liz and Josh were outstanding performers throughout another tremendous season for Bulldog athletics in 2015-16,” Director of Athletics Devin Smith said. “Their superior talents, leadership, work ethic and Christian character led each of their teams to astounding heights as the track and field programs added to the trophy case. These student-athletes are fierce competitors who have influenced their coaches, teammates, peers and opponents in a positive manner. I thank each of them for their service to Concordia and for the joy they brought to Bulldog fans, alums and fellow students. These two impressive young leaders have set new standards for how future successes will be measured.”
King’s accomplishments are unprecedented for Concordia throwers. Named the 2016 NAIA Women’s Outdoor National Field Athlete of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, the native of Billings, Mont., claimed her second career national title in 2016 by winning the hammer throw competition in Gulf Shores, Ala. Known for her inviting personality, King also placed as the national runner up in the javelin in leading Concordia women’s track and field to its first-ever team national title.
“Liz is the type of person Concordia was created to educate and send out into the world,” said assistant track and field coach Ed McLaughlin, who specializes in the throws. “She is our mission statement, a Christ-centered person who lives a life of learning, service and leadership in the church and the world. She does it not only in athletics but in her everyday life.
“Simply put, Liz is the best competitor I have ever seen. She is the friendliest person to be around, but when the time came to compete, she could flip a switch like no one I’ve ever seen. She didn’t always win, but she was always at her best. She worked on her craft every day she was here. Her personality is what stood out the most. She was always willing to help others, and work with new kids on technical issues. She was always willing to give her free time to help out teammates outside of practice. She is the leader of this team that won a national title. She brought that group together to achieve a goal that was more of a dream to the rest of us.”
The list of achievements rattles on for King, a six-time GPAC champion who won the javelin at the conference championships in each of her four collegiate seasons. She also won GPAC titles in the hammer as a junior and senior and owns conference meet records in the hammer and javelin. She broke loose with the first-ever national title by a Concordia thrower when she bested the national field in the javelin as a sophomore in 2014. The seven-time All-American has twice earned national runner-up javelin awards during her distinguished career. She has eight total all-conference awards and the school javelin record to her credit. In 2014 she garnered the GPAC Performance of the Meet award for her record-breaking javelin toss. Also a two-time NAIA Scholar-Athlete, King graduated this May with degrees in secondary education, history and Spanish.
Slechta’s senior season was particularly impressive when considering he shook off a torn pectoral injury suffered during football season, then quickly returned to competition to qualify for the indoor national championships, where he earned All-America honors in the weight throw. The native of Kennard, Neb., elevated his performance during an incredible 2016 outdoor season that saw him produce two GPAC titles (hammer and discus), a conference meet record (hammer), two school records (hammer and discus) and two All-America plaques (including a national runner-up finish in the hammer).
“Josh is the new standard bearer for Concordia athletics – intelligent, determined, athletic, and equipped to handle multiple challenges with dignity,” McLaughlin said. “He is the type of person we love to work with at Concordia, Christ-centered, a servant to others and a leader. He is a mature man that will be a great ambassador of our sport and our school.
“Originally I was simply amazed by his level of athleticism and height, but as I got to know him I become equally aware of his no quit attitude. He is a very quiet person but he has an insatiable desire to win, which overrides his natural instinct to protect his body. The two things that will always stand out for me about Josh, are number one his winning the 2015 indoor weight title, not just because he won it, but because he was seeded sixth coming in. He bombed a PR to take the lead early. Then in the final he gets passed and on the next throw Josh PR’s again, taking the lead for the final time. The other moment was when I found out he had possibly torn his pectoral muscle during football last fall. He came back, almost a month ahead of schedule, and was able to not only compete during indoor but get his third All-American award, which I believe set up his amazing outdoor season.”
Also a tight end for head coach Vance Winter’s squad, Slechta surprised many with his 2015 national title in the weight throw, one of his five career All-America awards. The school record breaker is also a 12-time all-GPAC honoree and member of three GPAC championship track and field teams at Concordia. A 2015 hammer throw All-American, Slechta contributed to the 2015 outdoor team national title, the first for any sport in school history. On the football field, Slechta totaled 52 receptions for 788 yards and three touchdowns as a four-year starter. In 2013 he was named honorable mention all-GPAC and was selected to the Omaha World-Herald’s NAIA All-Nebraska football team.
King and Slechta are invited to attend the annual Concordia Athletics Hall of Fame banquet. Both will be recognized at this fall’s ceremony, which will take place the night of Friday, Oct. 7 in the Cattle Conference room inside the Janzow Campus Center.
Other nominees for 2015-16 senior athletes of the year were:
--Men: Justin Lawrie (soccer), Jr Lule (wrestling)
--Women: Claire White (volleyball), Kim Wood (cross country/track & field)
Concordia Male Senior Athletes of the Year (since 2000)
2015-16: Josh Slechta, Football / Track & Field
2014-15: Enrique Barajas, Wrestling and Von Thomas, Football
2013-14: Ben Hinckfoot, Track & Field
2012-13: Colin Morrissey, Cross Country / Track & Field
2011-12: Zak Goodrich, Baseball
2010-11: Dana Schmidt, Cross Country / Track & Field
2009-10: Zach Meineke, Cross Country / Track & Field
2008-09: Michael Saalfeld, Track & Field
2007-08: JaMaine Lewis, Football
2006-07: Jon Ziegler, Basketball
2005-06: Andrew Walquist, Cross Country / Track & Field
2004-05: Jason Jisa, Basketball
2003-04: Rick Dietz, Basketball
2002-03: Drew Olson, Basketball / Tennis
2001-02: TJ Kloster, Track & Field; Jarrod Pimentel, Baseball / Football
2000-01: Quinton Furr, Track & Field
Concordia Female Senior Athletes of the Year (since 2000)
2015-16: Liz King, Track & Field
2014-15: Bailey Morris, Basketball
2013-14: Sarah Kortze, Cross Country / Track & Field
2012-13: Katie Rich, Basketball / Track & Field
2011-12: Amber Kistler, Basketball
2010-11: Beth Sutton, Track & Field
2009-10: Charista Zehnder, Track & Field
2008-09: Whitney Stichka, Basketball
2007-08: Katie Werner, Volleyball / Track & Field
2006-07: Gentri Brown, Soccer
2005-06: Jennifer Davis, Soccer / Softball
2004-05: Molly Engel, Cross Country / Track & Field and Kari Saving, Basketball
2003-04: Stephanie Beberniss, Track & Field
2002-03: Sara Schuelke, Cross Country / Track & Field
2001-02: Rachel Kirchner, Volleyball / Basketball
2000-01: Rachael Geidel, Cross Country / Track & Field