Another appearance at the final site of the NAIA National Championship tournament led the Concordia University, Nebraska Volleyball program into the 2025 spring semester. The spring storylines include the leadership growth of a large class of seniors-to-be, the replacement of the bulk of the back row and the wealth of dangerous pin hitters within the program. No doubt about it, Head Coach Ben Boldt and company expect to remain a major player on the national scene.
The spring semester sets a foundation for the achievements that come in the fall. The early indicators have been positive from Boldt’s perspective.
“It’s a time to just work on getting better,” said Boldt in summarizing the spring semester. “I think we’ve done a really good job of that. It’s a big period of time to get better physically, and our strength coach does an awesome job of that. Being able to get in the gym and work on your game – and if there’s something you’re not confident in – you can work into that. That’s the big focus we’ve had in the spring. Our players are putting in the work. It’s fun to see that. We’ve played a handful of scrimmages. There was a collegiate tournament in Omaha that we played. It’s always fun to get the alumni back as well.”
A new theme for 2025 came together this spring as the team settled on “Let it Rip.” The way Boldt explains it, the theme is there to remind the Bulldogs to be aggressive in big moments. When the game is on the line, Boldt would much prefer his team take big swings rather than tentative ones. Within this program, the players become accustomed to playing in matches of significance. The ’24 squad extended program streaks for consecutive appearances in the GPAC Championship Match (four) and at the national tournament final site (six).
Boldt would like to believe that those streaks will continue in 2025, but he’s not ready to say exactly what the new season will look like. It’s too soon for anyone to know for sure. However, the spring only helped affirm Concordia as a powerful attacking team. All three returning first/second team all-conference honorees are pin hitters: Ashley Keck, Ella Waters and Addie Kirkegaard. In 2024, Keck reached another level as a junior and was named an NAIA First Team All-American.
As part of a late-April interview with Max Country radio, Boldt gave some insight on each of the positions on the court. Said Boldt, “We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves when we’re talking about what the team is going to look like. We always believe that every single season is a brand new slate. We want to allow opportunity for people to develop. It’s been fun to play around with some things. We have a big pin group that’s going to be seniors next year. We’re going to see how our middles shake out. We have a great middle group. We obviously lose Gabi (Nordaker), so we need to figure out what that looks like. There’s been a lot of really good competition at that spot. Setters, we get those back from last year. I think our setting is continually getting more dialed in and getting our hitters in better spots. The big one is our back row. We graduate pretty much everyone in our back row, so that’s going to look a lot different.”
In addition to replacing the All-American Nordaker (now a graduate assistant with Jamestown), the Bulldogs have begun the process of remaking a back row that was led for four years by libero Becca Gebhardt. Concordia also graduates another key defensive specialist in Cassidy Knust. Such departures open the door for younger players such as Shandy Fa’ali’I, who earned valuable experience as a freshman in 2024.
At setter, the tandem of Lily Psencik and Savannah Shelburne figures to be stronger with a full year of varsity playing time. Both Psencik and Shelburne will be part of the large senior class. Though the three-time All-American Nordaker has moved on, Concordia remains in good shape in the middle thanks to the presence of Ava Greene, Molli Martin and Maddie Paulsen. Another year removed from the injury she endured at the end of her freshman season, Paulsen could also play on the outsides. There will be plenty of attacking options once again for Psencik and Shelburne. Also on the outside, Kya Scott took on a much larger role as a junior in 2024.
As the pieces are put together in August, Boldt will be looking for players with the confidence to let it rip. That word “aggressive” is going to continue to surface.
“Especially late in games, we want to make sure that we’re aggressive,” Boldt said. “Let it rip. When we say that, we want to be aggressive and we want to have purpose in what we’re doing. Whether or not that ball is in or we just miss it, there’s no judgement. We want to give it 100 percent and give it our all and be aggressive, especially in those points after 20. Tough after 20 – that’s something we’re also talking about with this whole ‘let it rip’ thing. No matter what’s out there, we want to be aggressive. So far this spring, we’ve gone through a little bit of an evolution. We started off being aggressive and a little bit wild. We want to continue to work on being aggressive and being smart at the same time.”
Keck and her fellow seniors will set the tone for 2025 – and will have a large say in what heights the team reaches. There are tangible achievements the program continues to seek, like a trip to the national semifinals (or farther). For now, the Bulldogs will remain focused on the process.
Says Boldt, “There are 10 seniors on the roster. We’ve put the work in to get them on the same page. We have meetings weekly and sometimes every other week with our leadership group. All 10 of them are there, staying on the same page with each other. When that happens, I think you get a better sense of what’s going on with the team. Whether they’re on the floor or on the bench, they provide great perspective of what we’re doing. It’s a big group for sure.”
In addition to scrimmage matches, practices and work in the weight room, the team took time to get out in the community this spring. On April 10, the Concordia volleyball and wrestling teams paired together for a community service day that involved visits to Ridgewood, Kinship Pointe, Foster Friends and Blue River Pet Rescue. As Boldt put it, “That community aspect ties right into what our core values are – love, trust, hard work and sacrifice.”
The hard work will continue over the summer months before the team officially reports to campus for preseason training in August. The 2025 schedule is soon to be announced. As part of the nonconference slate, the Bulldogs will be headed to Marion, Ind., for another edition of the ‘Power Quad’ involving Columbia College (Mo.), Indiana Wesleyan University and MidAmerica Nazarene University (Kan.). Concordia will also take part in the Labor Day Classic event hosted by College of Saint Mary. When available, the 2025 schedule will appear HERE.