She brought a pedigree as someone who played for Nebraska Class C state championship teams in 2020 and 2021. Now on year four of her college career with Concordia University, Nebraska Women’s Golf, Emery Custer continues to reach for skyscraper heights while chasing down some of the best competitors to ever tee it up for the Bulldogs. From Broken Bow to Seward, Custer has thrived amidst the backdrop of smalltown Nebraska, where the people are her type of people.
Custer smiles while articulating her affection for her hometown and for Concordia and the surrounding community. That comfort has translated into success athletically, academically and personally. As life as a student-athlete continues to fly by, Custer knows she is where she was meant to be.
“I think the people make it,” says Custer of her Concordia experience. “It’s a great college, but I think the people are what make it special. I’ve had the privilege of having amazing teams all three years, and I don’t think this year’s going to be any different. I love my professors, I’ve just made great friends, and I think I’ll keep them for a lifetime. I’ve loved playing under Coach (Brett Muller) too.”
Two tournaments into her senior season, Custer is crushing it on the course. In back-to-back outings to open the fall semester, Custer has led Concordia to new school record standards for lowest team total for a two-round tournament. After placing fifth at the 2025 GPAC Championships in the spring, Custer has carried over that success by claiming third at the Mount Marty Invite and second at the Lila Frommelt Fall Classic. She’s shot separate rounds of 72 and 73, far exceeding her previous career low of 76.
This is Amy Ahlers and Kendra Placke territory, and that’s saying a lot when it comes to the history of Concordia Women’s Golf. Custer came up short of cracking into the 70s in either her freshman or sophomore seasons, but the floodgates opened when she carded a 76 over spring break as a junior. So what gives?
“Finally, my mindset and my play clicked together at the same time, which is huge for golf,” said Custer in looking back at the 2025 GPAC Championships, which saw her make a serious run at a title. “It’s given me a lot of confidence because I know that I can shoot low, and I can do it in a big setting when all the pressure is on me. It makes me feel like I belong at the top. My coaches have been saying that, but I didn’t really believe it until I saw myself at the top.”
The pressure doesn’t seem to show in the demeanor of Custer, who is positive and upbeat. She has the right attitude that has the effect of lifting up her teammates. Of course, she’s competitive and driven to be the best in the GPAC. Her growth was evident during last season’s conference championships when she started slower than she expected. The way she fought back caught Coach Brett Muller’s attention, who said afterwards, “I’m very proud of Emery’s growth, especially in the second semester.”
After a tough first six or seven holes, Custer responded and shot a cumulative 80-77-79–236 over three GPAC rounds. It marked a major turning point. Says Muller, “She’s a very competitive person. She came from a very successful high school program where she won multiple state championships as a team. She does a great job of being one of our leaders on the team, both with her performance and her leadership. She’s always pushing the girls to get the most out of their rounds and doing anything she can to help the team.”
What makes this story even more remarkable is the fact that Custer began her Broken Bow High School career playing volleyball, not golf. By her own admission, she didn’t take golf seriously until the summer leading into her sophomore year. That’s not to say she wasn’t familiar with the sport. Her father Brent golfed at the University of Nebraska-Kearney. Thus, the sport was something Emery bonded over with her father and twin sisters Molly and Brynn. They had no idea what would eventually become of a sudden change of course for Emery.
In the middle of July, with the first day of her sophomore year of high school fast approaching, Emery told her dad she wanted to play golf. At that time, there was little expectation for what Emery would actually achieve.
“When I first told my dad I wanted to play, he intentionally told me no,” Emery said. “He said there wasn't enough time to teach me before the season began. My first year was rough, but I had my own personal coach, so it didn't take me long until I got the hang of it. I truly dedicate my success to my dad and the long hours we put in on the course.”
Indeed, the results followed quickly. Emery, Molly and Brynn put in the work under the guidance of their father, strengthening their golf games and relationships in the process. On many days, darkness would settle in as they played on. Eventually, as Emery became a senior at Broken Bow, Molly and Brynn joined the golf team as freshmen. Says Emery, “My sisters and I are extremely close. Nothing can break that twin bond, but they never made me feel like an outsider. We have always just been each other's best friends.”
In the fall of 2020, Emery placed 12th at the Class C state championships and helped the Indians win their first ever state title. It happened again in 2021 (with Emery placing seventh) when all three Custer sisters contributed to another mountaintop moment. Emery considers it to be “one of the best experiences I’ve ever had.” Afterwards, Emery and Molly posed for a photo op as they kissed the state championship trophy.
Now there was little doubt what the next step would be. Emery was going to play at the collegiate level. But where at? Emery had caught the eyes of coaches at many schools within the GPAC footprint.
“I toured several schools in the GPAC, but Concordia just spoke to me right away,” said Custer prior to her junior year as a Bulldog. “The people and the facilities are great, and Coach Muller’s been awesome.”
Once Emery made up her mind to make golf her game, she went all in while pursuing the boundaries of her highest potential. In the fall of 2025, she’s playing the best golf of her life, and there’s no reason why she shouldn’t be thinking big. “Obviously, I want to win the GPAC title,” Emery says.
Years ago, that would have seemed a bit far out there. But not now. As Emery raises her game, the play of the teammates she adores has simultaneously ascended to a new level. Both Maddie Lewis and Savannah McFalls achieved career bests at the Frommelt Classic, where Concordia narrowly missed out on winning a team championship.
All that time with dad (and mother Katie) has paid off. She never minded kicking back and watching some of dad’s favorite flicks either – classics such as Caddyshack and Happy Gilmore. Her Denver Broncos fandom is another result of their relationship. The same may or may not be true of Emery’s affinity for country music artists Morgan Wallen and Bailey Zimmernan.
While Emery looks forward to what’s to come this senior year, she can’t help but take a moment to reflect on a wildly enjoyable journey to this point. “It’s hard to think about. It’s crazy that I’m already here,” says Custer.
‘Here’ is a blessing to Emery, who has relished the opportunity to be a student-athlete at a place that has allowed for growth personally, spiritually, academically and athletically. All the while, she plays the game that reminds her constantly of her family and her roots. And she does it quite well.
As Emery explains, “I grew up around it. I was like, ‘Maybe I should give it a shot?’ I ended up being pretty good at it.”