YANKTON, S.D. – For a second year in a row, Concordia University, Nebraska Women’s Golf has set new standards while opening a new season at the Mount Marty Invite. In Tuesday (Aug. 25)’s round at Fox Run Golf Course in Yankton, S.D., the Bulldogs went lower than any past Concordia team ever has before, shooting a 318. Graduate student Maddie Lewis and company finished at 335-318–653 (+77) for the tournament, breaking a program 36-hole standard.
Head Coach Brett Muller’s squad wound up in second place at the Mount Marty Invite, which featured teams from nine institutions, including eight GPAC members. The Bulldogs finished 26 strokes behind tournament champion Morningside.
“This was a great starting tournament last year for us as well,” Muller said. “With us losing our No. 1 player from last year, our returners did a great job improving and came in ready to go today. Hillcrest (Country Club) on day one is one of the toughest courses we play on the women’s side. We battled and hung in there and got a good score yesterday. Then we played very well today. Maddie shooting her collegiate best was huge.”
Indeed, Lewis (Treynor, Iowa) shattered her previous personal best collegiate round of 79 achieved at the Frommelt Fall Classic last September. Everything else fell into place on Tuesday as sophomores Amelia Ptacnik (80) and Olivia James (81) and junior Savannah McFalls (83) each shot 83 or lower at Fox Run. Lewis and James came away with individual awards thanks to respective place finishes of fourth and eighth. Ptacnik (12th) just missed out on her first career top 10 tournament placement.
Lewis fired 82-74–156 (+12) for the tournament and finished nine strokes behind Mount Marty Invite champion Allison Meyerink of Dakota Wesleyan. Lewis was followed in the Bulldog lineup by James (82-81–163), Ptacnik (86-80–166), McFalls (85-83–168; 18th) and junior Makenzie Hughes (90-91–181; 42nd). Ptacnik equaled her career low 18-hole score in round two.
The former school program records were 320 for a single round (at the 2025 Mount Marty Invite) and 654 for a 36-hole tournament (at the 2026 Wayne State Wildcat Classic).
The team’s top four shined with every individual score coming in at 86 or lower throughout the event. Said Muller, “That’s huge. That’s what we’re going to have to do if we’re going to be a good team. We need to have a lot of scores in the lower 80s and 70s. It was great for the freshmen to get a tournament under their belts as well. Most of the conference was here, so it should be a good year for the Dawgs.”
Muller also traveled a ‘B’ team to Yankton. It was led at the top by two freshman: Mia Ochsner (94-92–186) and Lucy Nothwehr (96-91–187). The remainder of the lineup included sophomore Brielle Cook (92-96–188), freshman Emma Anderson (100-93–193) and senior Emma McCoy (132-98–230).
In the team standings, the Bulldog ‘A’ group defeated conference rivals in Doane (668), Hastings (677), Briar Cliff (683), Dordt (686), Mount Marty (709) and College of Saint Mary (729). Dakota Wesleyan and Iowa Central Community College did not compete enough golfers to qualify for the team leaderboard.
Up next on the schedule is the Siouxland Invite on Sept. 8-9. The event is co-hosted by Northwestern and Dordt in Orange City, Iowa, and Sioux Center, Iowa.
Bulldogs at the Mount Marty Invite
A Team: 335-318–653 (+77) | 2nd place
4. Maddie Lewis: 82-74–156
8. Olivia James: 82-81–163
12. Amelia Ptacnik: 86-80–166
18. Savannah McFalls: 85-83–168
42. Makenzie Hughes: 90-91–181
B Team: 382-372 (+178) | 10th place
46. Mia Ochsner: 94-92–186
49. Lucy Nothwehr: 96-91–187
51. Brielle Cook: 92-96–188
58. Emma Anderson: 100-93–193
71. Emma McCoy: 132-98–230