SIOUX CITY, Iowa – There was going to be heartbreak for one side or the other in a five-set nail-biter in the quarterfinals of the NAIA National Championship. The Concordia University Volleyball team wouldn’t have it any other way. It just wasn’t meant to be on Thursday (Dec. 2). The Bulldogs were edged in five by seventh-ranked Marian University (Ind.), 30-28, 21-25, 25-19, 24-26, 15-12, in a rematch from the 2020 national tournament.
During a journey with both peaks and valleys, Head Coach Ben Boldt’s squad shook off a 4-6 start to GPAC play (then ninth place in the conference) and advanced all the way to the national quarterfinals. That showing equaled a program standard for deepest national tournament run.
“As a coach personally, I’ve been very fulfilled in the effort that our team has given us, the buy-in that they’ve had with us,” Boldt said. “When we think about the college experience and what you want a team to be, that’s what this team is. That will be our takeaway. We talk about love, trust, hard work and sacrifice. Those are our core values, and I feel like we’ve lived those out.”
This was the type of match where being slightly out of position on an attack, block or dig can be the difference between winning and losing. The margins were finer than the print on an Aspirin label on Thursday. Both teams produced exactly 68 kills and exactly 105 digs. Down 6-1 in the fifth set, Concordia (19-12) displayed its mettle once again.
The Bulldogs rallied back to take an 11-10 lead on an Arleigh Costello kill. It was then even at 12-12 before the Knights (35-2) rattled off the final three points and celebrated the victory. Match point came via Averi Lanman’s kill from the middle. Marian played just a bit cleaner in the fifth set with three errors to Concordia’s six.
“It was an even match obviously – it went 15-12 in the fifth,” Boldt said. “We were even in kills and we were even in digs. We had a couple more errors than they did. I think that was the difference in the match. They blocked really well too. It kind of took us out of some of the things we wanted to do, but the mentality our team had was great. We were taking swings fearlessly. That’s really what we ask of them in big moments.”
The moment was not too big in the fourth set when the Bulldogs brushed off a 17-15 deficit. After a timeout, Concordia got rolling with five-straight points. The final tally in that sequence came on a combined block from Gabi Nordaker and Carly Rodaway. For set point, Rodaway teamed up with Kalee Wiltfong on a denial that set the stage for the 12th five-set match this season for the Bulldogs.
It was another outstanding national tournament for outside hitter Camryn Opfer, who accumulated 15 kills and 22 digs versus Marian (one day after a 21-kill, 16-dig performance). In the middle, Nordaker (15 kills, seven blocks) dominated in stretches while polishing off a stellar second collegiate season. Also key contributors on the attack, Erica Heinzerling (13) and Rodaway (11) reached double figures in kills. Four Concordia players besides Opfer turned in 10 or more digs: Bree Burtwistle (22), Rebecca Gebhardt (14), Tara Callahan (13) and Lexie Kreizel (10). Callahan added three aces and Cassidy Knust had two.
It will be strange next season without No. 4 at setter. Callahan was a five-time All-GPAC honoree who piled up 4,816 career assists. She served as a constant during what has been the most successful run in program history.
Said Boldt, “It will be different (without Tara). I didn’t know what this team was going to look like this year after having graduated so many seniors from the year before. You get them for four years – sometimes five – and you figure out who’s going to play well together. We thank Tara for everything she’s done. Obviously she’s been a rock.”
The national champion in 2019, Marian moves on to play in the national semifinals on Friday. The Knights got a match high 17 kills from Skyler Van Note on Thursday. Jai-Lyn Norwood led the way with eight blocks and helped Marian to a 16-13 team blocking advantage. The Knights managed to avenge their loss to Concordia from this past spring.
Under the leadership of Ben and Angie Boldt, the Bulldogs have reached at least the national round of 16 in three-straight years. The program owns an overall record of 62-25 during that three-year stretch. Each of Concordia’s eight all-time national tournament wins have come over the past three seasons.