SEWARD, Neb. – After a dominant performance in round one, No. 13 Concordia University, Nebraska will look to dethrone No. 1 Dordt in a ranked GPAC semifinals clash on Saturday (Feb. 28) in Sioux Center. The fourth-seeded Bulldogs shot the house down against fifth-seeded Briar Cliff, 111-70, to advance. CUNE Women’s Basketball is 23-6 thus far in the 2025-26 campaign.
This Week
GPAC Semifinals – Saturday, Feb. 28 at No. 1 Dordt (28-1, 21-1 GPAC), 3 p.m.
--Live Webcast | Live Stats | Location: De Witt Gymnasium (Sioux Center, Iowa)
GPAC Final – Saturday, March 3 vs. No. 9 Dakota Wesleyan/Hastings, time TBA
--Admission: $10 for adults; $3 for students (K-College); GPAC students with ID are admitted free; season passed are not allowed (NAIA issued passes are allowed).
By the numbers
· Raelyn Kelty would not be denied with an almost flawless 23-point showing as she shot 7-for-9 from beyond the arc. With the seven made baskets, Kelty made the most threes by a Concordia player since Taysha Rushton went 7-for-7 on Feb. 1, 2023. Since January, Kelty has been lethal from long range shooting 48.1 percent, tied for the team lead with JJ Jones. The junior, out of Kiowa, Colo., has made 26 treys, being second behind Ayla Roth’s 30. For the full season, Kelty has shot 41.7 percent from three and 48.0 from the floor.
· The start against the Chargers in the quarterfinals couldn’t have gone more right with the Bulldogs firing a white-hot 72.2 shooting clip in the opening quarter. With a 34-17 sizeable advantage after one, Concordia poured on buckets making 11 of its 19 treys in the first half to bury all hopes of BCU making a comeback. CUNE would finish with a 59.1 percent shooting clip and 59.4 percent from deep. The Bulldogs kept the lookout for teammates dishing out 26 assists, the fourth most this season. Scoring leaders were Kelty (23), Roth (16), Sammy Leu (12), Kristin Vieselmeyer (11) and Jones (10).
· The Vieselmeyer watch for a 1,000 career points has begun with the senior having 960 in her career. With her highest total in a season (325) already, the Holyoke, Colo., native has averaged a team-high 11.2 points per game. A forward who has played in 122 games, Vieselmeyer is shooting her best percentage, 51.0, in her time as a Bulldog. The veteran leader prepares for her final games trying to affect every level posting 5.2 rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.1 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game this season.
· In the two meetings with the Defenders, Concordia lost both contests on Dec. 13 (79-57) and Jan. 24 (72-56). Dordt relied on Gracie Schoonhoven as the primary scorer in the outings, producing 26 and 29 points. Macy Sievers has virtually produced a double-double in both performances as the Defenders put most of the scoring needs on five to six players. Roth and Vieselmeyer led the Bulldogs with 15 points each in the bout inside Friedrich Arena. Dordt has a 12-game winning streak on Concordia that started on Nov. 20, 2021.
· Concordia is rated 28th in the newest release from Monday (Feb. 23). The RPI has the Bulldog’s strength of schedule slotted at No. 74. Other GPAC teams in the top-25 are Dordt (6th) and Dakota Wesleyan (21st). Hastings (37), Briar Cliff (50) and Northwestern (66) are in the first 75 squads. The Red Raiders (27) and the Defenders (43) have the hardest slate of top GPAC schools. The newest ARC rating (released Feb. 17) has the GPAC with three of the top-5 in the Midwest including Dordt (1), Dakota Wesleyan (3) and Concordia (5). The Bulldogs have three quad one wins (3-5 record) and are 7-0 in quad two in the top of the NAIA as released on Feb. 16.
· The Bulldogs have shot from a 44.0 clip (82.4 points) on the floor while only allowing a 37.4 percentage. Putting up 10.6 treys per game, the beyond-the-arc offense makes 34.0 percent. Dishing out 18.7 assists, Concordia makes 71.1 percent from the charity stripe. The most efficient shooters have been Vieselmeyer, Wagner (49.5), JJ Jones (49.4), Kelty (48.0), Abbie Kromarek (47.1), Makynna Robbins (45.7), Bunting (45.5) and Leu (41.4).
· Once Concordia gets to the GPAC tournament stage, the small town college seems to find glory under the lights as the conference watches for one to become victorious. With seven tournament titles since the GPAC began in the 2000-01 season, the Bulldogs have flourished in post-season play under Coach Drew Olson, who has six titles under his belt (one under Todd Voss). From the 2016-17 campaign to 2019-20, Concordia won four straight and followed with a runner up finish the following year. What might be considered most impressive is they have qualified every year since the conference began.
· Top swipers in the conference, the Bulldogs have forced their opponents to relinquish 783 turnovers, while seizing 88 steals in their 29 games played. A pack of ball hawks, Concordia’s defense makes its opponents submit 27.0 turnovers (4th in NAIA) and pressures its opposition with relentless traps to collect 16.8 steals (3rd in NAIA) every 40 minutes. Stone-faced Sammy Leu only cracks smiles when she gives her opponents the business, taking the rock 82 times (second in GPAC) this season (2.8 spg). She leads the deviant thieves with Bunting (1.9), Roth (1.7), Wagner (1.6) and Kelty (1.4).
· Dordt has claimed a berth in the national tournament after winning the GPAC in the regular season. The Defenders defeated No. 8 seed Mount Marty, 91-63, in the quarterfinals of the GPAC tournament. On the other side of the bracket, third-seeded Hastings collapsed on No. 6 seed Northwestern, 116-88, in Hastings. Second-seeded Dakota Wesleyan bested the other No. 7 seed Tigers, 74-45, in the Corn Palace on Wednesday. It was all chalk as the top four squads who are projected for the national tournament but seized wins toward the last dance.
Probable Lineup
G – Bree Bunting, 5-9 (9.4)
G – Ayla Roth, 5-9 (10.9)
G – Sammy Leu, 5-10 (8.8)
F – Raelyn Kelty, 5-11 (8.5)
F – Kristin Vieselmeyer, 6-2 (11.2)
The Opponents
The Defenders only have one blemish on their 28-1 record having only fell to Doane, 73-68 (OT), in Crete. Dordt hasn’t relinquished a contest inside De Witt Gymnasium since the loss to No. 18 Briar Cliff, 86-69, in the GPAC tournament final on Feb. 28, 2023. The two-time defending national champs have had much success from two elite players in Seivers and Schoonhoven. The forward paces the conference in scoring (21.9 ppg) from a 63.6 percent shooting clip. Seivers can do it all averaging 15.9 points, 9.1 assists, 7.7 rebounds and 3.1 steals. Aubrey Burkhart (42.3) and Willow Bleeker (41.7) are the Defenders’ sharpshooters. Dordt limits second chances mounting a +12.3 rebounding margin.
Dordt Probable Lineup
G – Gracie Schoonhoven, 5-11 (21.9)
G – Macy Sievers, 5-8 (15.9)
G – Willow Bleeker, 5-9 (8.4)
G – Olivia Harazin, 5-7 (7,7)
F – Desta Hoogendoorn, 6-0 (7.5)
2026 GPAC Tournament
Quarterfinals – Wednesday, Feb. 25
(8) Mount Marty at (1) Dordt, 7 p.m.
(5) Briar Cliff at (4) Concordia, 6 p.m.
(6) Northwestern at (3) Hastings, 7 p.m.
(7) Doane at (2) Dakota Wesleyan, 7 p.m.
Semifinals – Saturday, Feb. 28
(4) Concordia at (1) Dordt, 3 p.m.
(3) Hastings at (2) Dakota Wesleyan, 3 p.m.
Championship – Tuesday, March 3
Semifinal winners, time TBA