FOREST CITY, Iowa - Concordia University, Nebraska Men’s Soccer has secured a share of the 2026 GPAC regular-season title for the first time in program history. The Bulldogs clinched first place with a 15-0 exclamation point over Waldorf on Saturday (Oct. 17). CUNE tied the single game record for goals scored that was set in 2008 against Grace University.
First-year Head Coach Bernie Ochoa earns a title in his initial season as the front man of the program. The Dawgs remain undefeated (8-0) in conference play with a nine-game win streak.
“First and foremost, it’s a blessing to be a part of Concordia, to be back and to have the opportunity to lead the soccer program,” Coach Ochoa said. “I’m just happy for the program, our university, the boys and the coaching staff. Jason was a big part of building this program and giving me the opportunity to take it over. I don’t take full credit for this accomplishment. I’m just very proud and happy for our university, the boys and what we’ve been able to accomplish this year.”
“Like we talked about from the get-go, we knew it was going to be difficult early on. With me coming in and trying to establish a program, the guys had to get used to me and believe in what I wanted them to do. At the end of the day, it was an easy transition because we have great kids.”
With clear eyes towards the first regular season championship, 11 different Concordia players scored against the Warriors. Complete and utter dominance from start to finish was the Bulldogs as the No. 1 team in the conference relied on Sebastian Montino, Kai Olbrich, Jasper Hofland and Karlo Rodriguez for a brace apiece.
Sebastian and Olbrich marked the first scores of the game, both unassisted, and Niko Nareike made good on a ball from Montino in the early going. After the first couple of goals, Concordia seemed to find a finishing touch every three minutes in the first half mounting an 8-0 halftime lead.
The visitors didn’t let up in the onslaught even with 24 players earned minutes, showing the depth of the side. Others finding the back of the net were Connor Robbins, Hugo Garrote, Joe McCarroll, Kade Olbrich, Kondwani Mtawali and Milo Hegarty. The Bulldogs have scored 45 goals (top-5 program) with 15 different goal scorers.
A 31-2 (25-1 SOG) shot advantage gives even more evidence of the Bulldogs offensive and defensive prowess with or without possession. Goalkeepers Florian Quast, Jason Payne and Carter Wiebusch combined for the fifth season shutout.
Concordia will host Northwestern (8-2-3, 3-2-2 GPAC) inside Bulldog Stadium on Saturday (Oct. 24). The Bulldogs will take the field at 3:30 p.m. CT in Seward.
Ochoa continued, “Like I told the guys, we’ll enjoy this, but when we get back, we still have two more games left in conference, and we’re not done yet. This is obviously a step in the direction we want to go, but we have a lot of work ahead of us. We have to stay focused, stay on track and finish it out.”
Goals Scored List (Assist)
· 8’ – Sebastian Montino (unassisted)
· 18’ – Kai Olbrich (unassisted)
· 20’ - Niko Nareike (Sebastian Montino)
· 21’ - Connor Robbins (Hugo Garrote)
· 22’ - Hugo Garrote (unassisted)
· 29’ - Joe McCarroll (unassisted)
· 32’ - Sebastian Montino (Team & Danilo Nikolic)
· 44’ - Kai Olbrich (Mattis Hollnagel)
· 48’ - Kade Olbrich (Hugo Garrote)
· 64’ - Kondwani Mtawali (Milo Hegarty)
· 64’ - Jasper Hofland (Kade Olbrich)
· 65’ - Karlo Rodriguez (Kondwani Mtawali)
· 66’ - Karlo Rodriguez (Connor Robbins)
· 78’ - Jasper Hofland (unassisted)
· 90’ - Milo Hegarty (Brody Haynie)