The last two postseasons have ended abruptly for Concordia University, Nebraska Softball. Those results were on the minds of the upperclassmen Bulldogs who returned to the practice field this semester for fall ball. Head Coach Brock Culler characterized the energy within the program as a “different feel” throughout a fall season that included scrimmages with four outside opponents along with a series of intra-squads.
As the fall has shown, the 2026 Concordia team will feature a mix of established veterans, new faces and returners looking to break out and come into their own. Culler sees a team hungry to take the step forward that has eluded the program in recent years.
Said Culler, “They’re tired of going 0-for in the GPAC tournament. That’s what keeps coming up all the time. We don’t talk a lot about what we want to win or do, but we want to be a contender and we want to be relevant. The one thing that keeps coming up is we’re not going 0-for in the conference tournament anymore.”
As part of a slightly revised fall format, the Bulldogs regularly engaged in intra-squads on Thursdays. Competition provided by opponents from various levels of collegiate softball tested Concordia while giving it a glimpse of what its strengths and weaknesses may look like come the spring semester. From the fall outings, Culler saw the pitching staff headed by junior Kaylei Denison and a middle infield defense made up of senior shortstop Taryn Ganstrom and junior second baseman Laycee Josoff as major plusses.
This being year four for Culler, his tenure coincides precisely with the group of fourth-year seniors, though many members of that class joined the program later on as transfers. There are a combined 15 juniors and seniors that reported to fall camp ready to take on larger roles. Culler says that the overall competitive edge within the program has increased to its highest level since he arrived.
A Second Team All-GPAC honoree who broke the school single season triples record last season, Ganstrom sets an example for her teammates. Said Culler, “Taryn had a great year last year. I don’t know how you get a lot better, but Taryn’s kind of on a different planet right now. We’re hoping to transition her more out of the pitching role. She’s going to be playing a lot of shortstop for us this year. Her bat’s big and her speed’s big. She’s taken control of this team a little bit. She leads. Taryn is committed and she’s on a mission. I’m glad she’s on our team.”
A developing storyline is the retooling of the outfield, which graduated all three starters from last season, including Second Team All-GPAC center field star Jennifer Katz. The competition began this fall. Transfers Tobi Topp and Aubrey Wright have put themselves in the mix and Lincoln Southwest High School product Mary Beth Hart (daughter of Concordia Head Tennis Coach Lisa Hart) is among the freshmen who made an impression this fall. The outfield was a position group Culler kept a close eye on during fall ball.
In the circle, Denison has prepared herself to grab a larger spotlight with the accomplished Megan Eurich having graduated. (Culler says he also has taken notice of how Denison is swinging the bat). The overall pitching depth has improved to the point that it should allow Ganstrom (who has logged 102.2 innings pitched as a Bulldog) to settle in at shortstop. Ganstrom can pitch when needed (or play just about anywhere on the diamond). Several freshmen pitchers opened the eyes of Culler and assistant Melissa Martinez this fall.
“We have a lot of young talent,” Culler said. “The fall actually exceeded some of my expectations on what I thought we would see. ‘Deni’ has been great. She’s ready to roll. She’s ready to be our No. 1. Her fall was outstanding. She’s leading that group really well. I like how she’s taking control of that group. That’s what we expect from her.”
Though the Bulldogs said goodbye to a large and impactful 2024-25 senior class, the talent level remains high. In addition to Denison and Ganstrom, the group of all-conference returners includes juniors Aubriana Krieser, Laycee Josoff and Grace Maguire and budding sophomore catcher Avery O’Boyle.
Each of those Bulldogs have had their moments as they strive for greater consistency heading into 2026. Collectively, Concordia is looking to build upon the 27 wins it posted last season (most for the program since 2021).
Said Culler in looking forward to the colder months ahead, “One thing I did this fall is I took a lot of notes as we went through our fall workouts and our games. We had a team meeting and talked about our upcoming winter workouts. We’re applying all of those notes. Individuals will have their goals, and we have things as a team we want to get done this winter. We’re going to progress and we’re going to keep getting better. They’re really bought into this, and we’re going to bust our butts to get there. I feel like we have a really good group this year. It’s got a different feel to it. It really does.”
Always energetic and positive in his outlook, Culler added of his ’26 team, “They’re good humans and good students. It’s great. Coaches can coach. Our players are competing in the classroom and on the field. Everyone can show up and just do their jobs. It’s a lot of fun.”
At the time of this publication, the 2026 schedule is still being finalized. Check back on the program’s official schedule page at a later date and keep up with Concordia Softball by following the team’s social media channels (@cunesoftball on X/Twitter and Instagram).