MITCHELL, S.D. – The conference run for Concordia University, Nebraska Baseball has been about as dominant as it gets. The 15th-ranked Bulldogs polished off the 2025 regular season on Saturday (April 26) by completing a four-game sweep of Dakota Wesleyan in Mitchell, S.D. The latest victories for the GPAC champs came by scores of 10-4 and 12-2. Matt Rhoades punished Tiger pitching by homering twice and reaching base in seven of nine plate appearances.
Head Coach Ryan Dupic’s squad has broken a GPAC conference record for most league wins in a single season. At 25-3 in GPAC play (37-9 overall), Concordia won the GPAC regular season title by a full six games.
“It was good to get a lot of different guys in,” Dupic said. “It was good to play a couple tight games, especially in the early-to-mid portions of both games. It was good for us to feel that again and be in those situations. It was a little bit different day. Game one was decent weather and then game two we had a lot of rain. It made it tough on both teams to play clean. Fortunately, our guys were able to do that. I thought Seth Claybourne did a good job coming in and putting a stop to things. Micah Sweeton did a nice job and the offensive guys got it going in the sixth inning of game two.”
Compared to Friday’s routs (19-6 and 22-4), the two contests on Saturday were like nail-biters. The Bulldogs found themselves in a quick 3-0 in game three of the series and then trailed 2-1 after five innings in the series finale. Eventually, Concordia wore down the Tigers like it does to so many opponents. In the twin bill, the Bulldogs produced 15 hits and worked 19 more walks (compared to 10 strikeouts) while grinding away.
While Brad Hallock and Jaidan Quinn have seized plenty of attention for their prolific exploits, Rhoades has gone about his business with a super sophomore campaign. The Monument, Colo., native struck for a two-run homer in the sixth inning of Saturday’s game one before unloading for a three-run shot in the sixth frame of game two. Rhoades notched four hits and eight RBIs for the day. Of course, Hallock and Quinn also continued their tormenting of GPAC hurlers. Quinn launched his 23rd homer of the season (tying Hallock for the team lead) in a 4-for-8 day. Meanwhile, Hallock went 3-for-6 with three runs and three RBIs.
Concordia quickly erased the three-run deficit to start the day as it tallied three runs in the first inning, three more in the third, two in the fourth and two in the sixth. Tanner Tompkins doubled home two teammates as part of the three-run third. In the series finale, the Bulldogs turned a competitive contest into a run-rule affair with a 10-run sixth. It started with Rhoades’ three-run bomb and continued with a Ty Nekoliczak bases-loaded walk, Hallock two-run double and a Rhoades two-run single.
After surrendering a three-run homer to Caleb Myers in the first inning of game three of the series, Christian Gutierrez locked in and threw five shutout innings. He finished with five strikeouts against no walks. Gutierrez earned career win No. 29. In the capper, Micah Sweeton threw four innings with just one run allowed as he improved his record to 7-1. Rhoades actually started the game on the mound. In relief, Seth Claybourne, Sam Rambajan and Daiten Schmidt held DWU off the scoreboard.
Since March 22, the Bulldogs have lost only one game (22-1). Concordia rolled over its conference foes by a combined score of 291-101 over the 28-game run. That type of dominance could result in the Bulldogs earning a lofty seed come national tournament selection day.
Said Dupic, “It’s pretty incredible. We’re 25-3 and all three of our losses were one-run games. The guys have been really consistent. I’m really proud of them in terms of their approach. I think that’s the main thing. They have a great approach to playing the game and put themselves in a great position because of it.”
Postseason play is up next. As the GPAC’s top seed, the Bulldogs will host conference tournament action this coming Wednesday through Friday from Plum Creek Park. In hosting for the seventh time in the past eight seasons, Concordia will welcome No. 4 Briar Cliff, No. 5 Midland and No. 8 Dakota Wesleyan to Seward.