SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – In returning to the site of their season opener from three weeks earlier, the Concordia University, Nebraska Cross Country squads posted solid place finishes. When the dust settled on Friday (Sept. 25) morning, the Bulldogs landed in 10th place (out of 20) on the women’s side and in 11th place on the men’s side (out of 19) at the Augustana Invitational. The race featured a men’s 8K followed by a women’s 6K with more than 550 total runners pacing a damp Yankton Trail Park in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Head Coach Matt Beisel’s teams were led on Friday by senior Aidan Limback and freshman Hope Beck, both top 50 finishers in a field including runners from the NAIA and all divisions of the NCAA. Concordia tested itself against GPAC rivals such as Dakota Wesleyan, Dordt, Northwestern and Mount Marty. The meet was added to the schedule after the cancellation of last week’s scheduled Greeno-Dirksen Invite. The teams departed from campus at 5 a.m. on Friday morning.
Said Beisel, “In general, this is what I told the athletes: we've had a three-week break, which is unusual, and this was our first 8K and our first 6K of the year. I'm very satisfied with what we did today, but I also believe we're all capable of better. With a couple more meets under our belts, I think that's going to come to fruition. I know there's going to be a learning curve with those race distances for both the women and the men who are new to them. Whatever they did today, we're going to see much better over the next couple of weeks. I feel really good about the returners' efforts, too. We had a lot of personal bests. You couldn't have asked for much better weather conditions with 60 degrees, cloudy skies and no wind. The course was a little wet, but it was in pretty good condition to run on, and we had great competition.”
Men’s Summary
After the three-week hiatus, the Bulldogs were led at the top by the same six runners who paced the team at the season opening Augustana Twilight (although in a different order). In starring for Concordia at the Augustana Invite, Limback aided in his side outkicking eight opposing teams (that qualified for the leaderboard), including GPAC rivals Mount Marty and Dakota Wesleyan. Meanwhile, NAIA 22nd-ranked Dordt placed fifth and Northwestern (receiving votes) placed 10th. The Bulldogs landed in 11th with 315 points – 33 behind the Red Raiders.
A returning GPAC All-Conference honoree, Limback (West Des Moines, Iowa) completed the 8K course in 25:25.9, netting him a 50th place finish. Two fellow upperclassmen all-conference award winners also clocked in under 26 minutes: junior Vaughn Hendrickson (25:48.1) and senior Trey Robertson (25:53.0). They each placed within the top 85 in the field of nearly 300 runners. Concordia’s top five was rounded out by senior Ransom Watts (26:11.4) and sophomore Keith Siek (26:19.7).
Said Beisel, “They have really high expectations for themselves. I talked with Aiden, Vaughn, Trey, Ransom and some of the other guys, and you could tell they were thinking, ‘Okay, that's a start, but I wasn't really satisfied.’ They weren't disappointed. It was more like, ‘Okay, we can do better.’ I think we're going to see that play out coming up.”
Top Dawgs | 8K
50. Aidan Limback: 25:25.9
79. Vaughn Hendrickson: 25:48.1
83. Trey Robertson: 25:53.0
102. Ransom Watts: 26:11.4
112. Keith Siek: 26:19.7
126. Justin Sherman: 26:35.4
128. Abram Chance: 26:37.6
For the second straight meet, senior Justin Sherman crossed the finish line as the team’s No. 6 runner. He ran the 8K in 26:35.4 on Friday. The Bulldogs’ six through 10 runners in Sioux Falls were sophomore Abram Chance (26:37.6), junior Mark Bultemeier (26:41.1), freshman Hector Bonilla (26:54.3), junior Jessup Pederson (27:00.2) and freshman Kael Garrett (27:12.4). Concordia was represented at the meet by 28 athletes on the men’s side.
Women’s Summary
The young Bulldogs continue to power the Bulldogs through the season’s first month. The freshman Beck has been the team’s top competitor at back-to-back meets to continue her career. Her efforts helped pave the way for Concordia to place second among GPAC/NAIA institutions at the Augustana Invite. In Sioux Falls, the Bulldogs totaled 327 points and defeated the likes of NAIA members in Northwestern (11th), Dakota State University (14th) and Dakota Wesleyan (20th).
An Elk River, Minn., native and Spectrum High School product, Beck has transitioned impressively to the collegiate ranks. She clocked in at 22:07.1 in Friday’s 6K race, putting her in front of many NCAA Division I and II competitors. Next in line for the Bulldogs were sophomore Ashley Robertson (22:43.4) and freshmen Rachel Prince (23:06.8), Amanda Smith (23:12.8) and Katie Johnsen (23:28.4). Concordia leaned upon the same top five runners as it did at the Augustana Twilight on Sept. 4.
Said Beisel, “One of the things I thought was pretty cool is that if you look at our top eight or nine, we've got a bunch of freshmen. Hope, Rachel and some others have never run a 6K before, so there will be improvement there. They ran really well, and with that many younger people, I think we're going to see them continue to improve. Some of our older girls have also been really close to their PRs to start the season. I think we're going to see some improvement, and good things are going to happen.” Beisel also noted that additional reinforcements may help the team in meets yet to come.
Top Dawgs | 6K
43. Hope Beck: 22:07.1
77. Ashley Robertson: 22:43.4
92. Rachel Prince: 23:06.8
100. Amanda Smith: 23:12.8
116. Katie Johnsen: 23:28.4
122. Macee Ripke: 23:38.2
125. Annaka Schlachter: 23:42.6
Three other Bulldogs crossed the finish line in Sioux Falls in under 24 minutes: senior Macee Ripke (23:38.2), junior Annaka Schlachter (23:38.2) and sophomore Izzi Brumbaugh (23:59.7). The team’s nine through 11 runners were freshmen: Faith Jipp (24:08.7), Lottie Hamre (24:15.8) and Elle Badstieber (24:19.3). In other words, seven of the top 11 overall were freshmen, backing up Beisel’s lofty expectations for the rookie class. Concordia was represented at Yankton Trail Park by 20 athletes on the women’s side.
Added Beisel in summary, “For a starting point, that's really good. I'm glad we got to go head-to-head against a couple of our conference schools to see how we shape up against them.”
Up Next
The Bulldogs will be back to action next Saturday (Oct. 3) when the Briar Cliff Invite is held. The meet is scheduled to get underway at 8:30 a.m. CT from Freedom Park in South Sioux City, Neb. Please note that the location was changed (after originally being scheduled to take place at Adams Homestead and Nature Preserve).