In 2024-25, it was a year for some of the greatest athletes in the history of Concordia University, Nebraska to shine across the scope of the entire athletics department. As it turned out, no record was safe as some of the most hallowed achievements in school history were surpassed by the latest Bulldogs on the scene. The past year saw a wrap on the careers of Concordia’s most prodigious power hitter, most productive basketball scorer and most prolific passer, all of whom not stopping until they ascended above the greats that came before them.
Below is a rundown of some of the most notable records that fell during the 2024-25 academic year. On the topic of great athletic achievements, seven Bulldog athletes combined to win nine GPAC Athlete of the Year awards over the past year. In an impressive double that has happened only one other time in GPAC history, Tristan Smith swept conference player and defensive player of the year accolades. In grand style, the athletic year ended with Adrianna Rodencal putting on a show at the 2025 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships.
Said NACDA Athletics Director of the Year Devin Smith, “I couldn’t be prouder as an athletic administrator of everyone involved with Concordia University, Nebraska Athletics. We create unique experiences. We have great scholars, and we have great competitors.”
Notable school records achieved by Bulldogs in 2024-25
Santiago Abadia, Tennis
Record broken in 2024-25: Doubles wins in a season (16).
Summary: On senior day (April 16), Santiago Abadia rose to the top of the men’s tennis doubles record board for a single season when he claimed his 15th doubles victory. A junior from Bogotá, Colombia, Abadia spent most of the season teaming up with Ben Chisholm at the No. 2 spot on the doubles court. Abadia broke the previous record of 14 formerly shared by Tim Marshall and Glen Gutz (set in 1992-93).
Mark Arp, Football
Record broken in 2024-25: Rushing touchdowns in a season (13); tied the record shared by Cleve Wester.
Summary: Behind a senior-laden offensive line, Mark Arp enjoyed one of the top seasons ever by a Bulldog running back. The senior from McCook, Neb., ran more times (239) than any back in Concordia’s history in a single season and equaled a 40-year school record for rushing touchdowns in a season originally set by Cleve Wester in 1984. Wester played in three games for the Detroit Lions in 1987 as an NFL replacement player during the strike of that year. As part of his ’24 season, Arp rushed for 1,195 yards, third most in program history.
Peyton Atwood, Football
Record broken in 2024-25: PATs in a single season (44).
Summary: As the offense piled up points at a school record pace, sophomore kicker Peyton Atwood earned plenty of PAT chances. The Grand Island, Neb., native converted 44 of 47 tries and broke Adam Meirose’s record (40/42) that had been set in 2014. Atwood also made all four field goal attempts and finished the year with 56 points.
Zackery Day, Baseball
Record broken in 2024-25: Stolen bases in a career (82).
Summary: As just a freshman in 2023, Zackery Day broke the program record for stolen bases in a single season with 36. This past season, Day rose to the top of the career thefts list by running his total to 82 by the finish of his junior campaign. The Simi Valley, Calif., native moved past the career standard formerly owned by Jerry Dittenber, who swiped 69 bags from 2002-05. Day will be looking to reach triple digits in 2026.
Ishane Derman, Tennis
Record broken in 2024-25: Singles wins in a season (18).
Summary: A special season for Concordia Women’s Tennis was made possible by special individual efforts, such as the one put forth by Ishane Derman in her freshman year. The native of Togo, Africa, burst her way onto the scene with 18 singles victories while splitting time at the Nos. 3 and 4 spots. The former school record was 17 singles wins by Marlene Maier in 2018-19. Derman and her teammates celebrated a GPAC tournament title and NAIA national tournament appearance this spring.
Taryn Ganstrom, Softball
Record broken in 2024-25: Triples in a season (9).
Summary: Let’s be honest. Taryn Ganstrom knew what she was doing when she ignored the stop sign from Head Coach Brock Culler and motored into third base in action versus Bellevue on April 23. The three-bagger gave the junior from Seneca, Kan., a school record nine triples on the season. The former record had been eight by both Stephanie Hinrichs (1982) and Celine Lassaigne (2003). Ganstrom batted .364 on the season and earned Second Team All-GPAC honors.
Kierstynn Garner, Soccer
Record broken in 2024-25: Game-winning goals in a career (18) and points in a season (57).
Summary: There’s no player more electric on the Bulldog Women’s Soccer team than Kierstynn Garner. The three-time All-GPAC honoree has tallied more game-winning goals than anyone in program annals, as she flew past the standard of 13 by Jessica Skerston. Garner also broke a season record for points, breaking the record of the most prolific scorer in school history, Jennifer Davis. Garner enters her senior year with 49 career goals scored.
Christian Gutierrez, Baseball
Records broken in 2024-25: Wins in a career (30); innings pitched in a career (290.1).
Summary: He’s toed the rubber more than any Bulldog pitcher ever. The La Mirada, Calif., native pushed to the top of the program’s all-time lists for career wins and innings pitched as a senior. The school records in those categories were previously owned by Nick Little with 27 wins and 253.1 innings. Christian Gutierrez has starred during an era when Head Coach Ryan Dupic’s baseball program has thrived at an unprecedented level. Worth noting, Gutierrez also tied a single season record with nine wins in ’25.
Rylee Ladd, Powerlifting
Records broken in 2024-25: Bench press (97.5kg) for weight class (52kg); lift was a national record for a female in her weight class and part of a national title winning performance.
Summary: Rylee Ladd packs a punch into her small frame. In back-to-back years, the Chetek, Wis., native has broken the female national bench press record for her weight class. She set the bar at 97.5 kilograms at the 2025 Collegiate Powerlifting National Championships. Ladd also owns the school record for total (bench press, deadlift and squat combined) for her weight class. Ladd has one more year of collegiate competition remaining for Head Coach Freddie Myles’ ascending powerlifting program.
Adysen McCarter, Track & Field
Record broken in 2024-25: Triple jump (39’ 1 ¾”).
Summary: Breaking a school record as a freshman is no small feat, especially for a track & field program with the historic excellence of Concordia’s. Adysen McCarter (Overton, Neb.) broke the school triple jump record multiple times in 2025, ultimately landing at 39’ 1 ¾” at the GPAC Championships. Prior to this season, the record was held by Charista Zehnder with a jump of 38’ 9 ½” in 2010.
DJ McGarvie, Football
Records broken in 2024-25: Passing touchdowns in a season (28), pass completion percentage in a season (60.2); passing yards in a career (9,045), passing touchdowns in a career (82), pass completions in career (761) and pass attempts in a career (1,318).
Summary: Essentially, DJ McGarvie owns every major passing record on the books. The signal caller from Valparaiso, Neb., added a single season record in 2024 by firing for 28 touchdowns, 10 of which went to NAIA First Team All-American receiver Austin Jablonski. McGarvie completely obliterated program standards for career passing yards and career passing touchdowns. No. 2 on those lists is Jarrod Pimental for yards (6,435) and Pimental and Von Thomas for touchdowns (49 apiece). McGarvie already owned those career records by the end of his junior season. After breaking the records, McGarvie gave credit to his linemen and receivers, saying, “It’s their record as well as mine.”
Kaiden Mima, Weightlifting
Record broken in 2024-25: Total (212kg) within his weight class (61kg), resulting in a national title.
Summary: A transfer at semester in January 2025, Kaiden Mima wasted little time in making his presence felt. The Colorado Springs, Colo., native claimed the second national title in the history of Concordia Weightlifting (following Evan Fukuhara in 2024) while setting a new standard for his 61-kilogram weight class. Mima’s story is a unique one in that he began his collegiate career as a wrestler at a junior college. Mima is only getting started on a promising run with Head Coach Freddie Myles’ program.
Jaidan Quinn, Baseball
Record broken in 2024-25: Home runs in a career (98).
Summary: Joey Grabanski’s reign at the top lasted only one year as his former teammate took the title of home run king in 2025. Jaidan Quinn pulverized his 89th career home run on April 18 while leapfrogging Grabanski (88 career home runs). Quinn finished with 25 home runs in his senior season, moving his career total to 98, the second most ever by an NAIA player. Said Quinn on the day he broke Grabanski’s record, “It means a lot. When Joey did it, it was a really big thing. Then you have Charlie Munoz (of Cumberlands in Kentucky) – the guy’s been crushing it out there. Congrats to him. I’m happy where I’m at. I’m glad I did finally beat Joey. That was a fun one. I’ll probably be hearing about it later … Right when I got in the dugout, I think I got about 40 hugs. That’s a really good sense of team right there.”
Alexa Richert, Tennis
Record broken in 2024-25: Doubles wins in a season (15; tied).
Summary: Sophomore Alexa Richert put her name alongside Ella Dean in the record book with her 15 doubles wins as part of a GPAC tournament title and national tournament qualifying season for women’s tennis. Richert spent most of the season pairing with Tessa Blough at the No. 3 spot in the doubles lineup. In tandem, the duo went 14-7. Richert also posted one win with another teammate to equal 15.
Adrianna Rodencal, Track & Field
Records broken in 2024-25: 60-meter hurdles (8.44), 100-meter hurdles (13.37), 400-meter hurdles (58.90) and 4x100-meter relay (47.32); broke GPAC meet records in each of the hurdles events.
Summary: Adrianna Rodencal enjoyed as phenomenal of a 2024-25 season as any Concordia athlete. In 2025, Rodencal reset her own school standards and took home All-America awards in every single hurdles event. The NAIA national runner up in the 400 hurdles, Rodencal swept GPAC Athlete of the Year awards in 2025, just as she did as a freshman in 2023. The Lincoln Lutheran alum will take aim at these records again as a senior in 2026.
Noah Schutte, Basketball
Records broken in 2024-25: Points scored in a career (2,340) and rebounds in a career (948).
Summary: A farm tough young man from Laurel, Neb., Noah Schutte owns two of the most sought-after school records one can own on the basketball court – points scored and rebounds. Schutte took full advantage of the ‘COVID exemption’ on his way to racking up 2,340 points and 948 rebounds in a career that will never be forgotten. The scoring record was seized from Concordia Athletics Hall of Famer Jon Ziegler at Doane on Jan. 8. Said Schutte afterwards, “I was more focused on getting the win. Doane’s a gritty team. There was a lot of game left when I reached that milestone. After the game, my teammates and coaches embraced me and congratulated me in the locker room. I got a little emotional celebrating with them.” Then at the national tournament, Schutte snared the career rebound record from Matt List. Schutte will go down as one of the program’s all-time greats.
Tristan Smith, Basketball
Records broken in 2024-25: Points scored in a game (48) and in a season (677).
Summary: To date, there may not be a better season in Concordia Men’s Basketball history than the one put together by Tristan Smith in 2024-25. It included two new scoring records: points in a game and points in a season. The Elizabeth, Colo., native’s 48-point outburst came in the GPAC quarterfinals versus Midland and broke another record formerly held by Jon Ziegler, who went off for 47 in an upset win over Sioux Falls in 2007. Smith averaged 20.5 points and 8.6 rebounds per game while shooting 68.8 percent from the floor in his final season as a Bulldog. His college career will continue at the University of Northern Iowa in 2025-26 (after exhausting his NAIA eligibility). Said Smith after his 48-point game, “It was pretty surreal in that moment. It’s not something you think about until you’re in that moment. I never thought about breaking the school record before.”
Nick Velders, Tennis
Record broken in 2024-25: Singles wins in a season (19).
Summary: Like Santiago Abadia, Nick Velders became a record holder on April 16 as he set the new standard for singles wins in a season, eclipsing the previous mark of 16 by Jeremy Jank (2009-10) and Gabe Pohling (2016-17). The junior from Gelderland, Netherlands, went a sparkling 19-2 in singles matches and earned GPAC Player of the Year and NAIA Second Team All-America accolades while spurring Head Coach Lisa Hart’s squad to 14 team wins on the season.
NOTE: School records for powerlifting and weightlifting were broken across the board. At the 2025 powerlifting national championships, program standards were reset within their respective weight classes by Teya Badger, Jack Hedke, Taylor Hedke, Wyatt Hosick, Rylee Ladd and Abigail Lockingen; in weightlifting, school record totals were produced at the national championships by Taylor Hedke, Kenzie Houser, Gracy Johnson, Nolan Graupmann, Adrian Hernandez, Enzo Mancini and Kaiden Mima.