SEWARD, Neb. - Starting this week at the top of the table, Concordia University, Nebraska Women’s Soccer is set to collide with second place Dordt on Saturday (Oct. 25). With every point needed late in the slate run, the Bulldogs will have the midweek off after winning its fourth-consecutive match with road shutouts of Midland (4-0) and Dakota Wesleyan (1-0). Head Coach Nick Smith and his squad continue to only have surrendered one loss in 16 games with an 11-1-4 full showing.
This Week
Saturday, Oct. 25 vs. Dordt (7-5-2, 6-2-1 GPAC), 3:30 p.m.
Live Webcast | Live Stats | Location: Bulldog Stadium (Seward, Neb.)
Concordia settled in quickly at Heedum Field as Kyana Rios scored the game winner in only the fifth minute of the contest. With the final 60 seconds of the opening half started, Guadalupe Sanchez buried a heartbreaker for the home Warriors to put the Bulldogs up 2-0 before the break. Kierstynn Garner and Taylor Slaymaker added on in the second 45 to route Midland (4-0). The Kearney, Neb., natives would have big scores for different reasons as Slaymaker scored her first goal of the season off a corner kick. Garner, Sierra Springer, Sanchez and Sadie Mares all added a point to their individual totals with assists on the multiple attacks. Concordia outshot the orange and navy foes 28-6 and 7-0 on corners.
Both sides were looking for the first score in the match versus Dakota Wesleyan as each team would have responded different ways with the go-ahead goal. It wasn’t until the 69th minute that midfielder Elena Ruiz blasted the needed tally in the back of the net. In a bit of a scramble off a corner, Slaymaker battled a defender pushing the ball back toward goal to the boots of Ruiz. With an 18-9 shot advantage (7-1 SOG), the Bulldogs seemed to possess the ball for a majority of the 90 minutes. Garner would take a game-high nine shots but was unable to add on.
There is a new No. 2 in the program’s history in goals scored as the forward Garner has mounted 66 in her career. She surpassed Angela Krueger (1997-00) and sits behind No. 1 overall Jennifer Davis (2002-05) with 88 total. Tied for ninth in the NAIA in finishes, KG has 17 total in 2025 and is in fifth place in total points (44). The Kearney High product continues to make her name know nationally being No. 11 in assists (10) and No. 1 in the conference.
With a 17-goal advantage over any team in the GPAC, the offense continues to dominate the attacking third, producing the 22nd-best squad in scoring (50 goals) in the NAIA. The Bulldogs have the 16th-highest assists (40), first in GPAC, and are 22nd in points (140). With 18.3 shots per game, the individual leaders, behind Garner, are Rios (9), tied for third in GPAC, Sanchez (seven), Charli Preister (five) and Savannah Andrews (four). Seven different players have at least three assists on the year.
With a 6-1-1 record in the last eight games, Concordia is playing some of its best soccer to date having only allowed .75 goals per game in that span. With the defense playing stellar, the team has outscored these opponents 25-6. In the eight games, the Dawgs have gotten 22 offside calls to two for their opponents. With five goals allowed in the six games, Aliya Vidro has earned two complete shutouts and 20 saves while having a .91 goals against average. The back line mainstays have been Slaymaker, Triniti Rowe, Hannah Kile, Shelby Rugg and Sadie Mares.
Midfield dominance is hard to put into numbers but the closest could be in shots taken. The Bulldogs have a 159-57 shot advantage in the past eight games which averages out 7.1 per outing for opponents. With the other teams averaging .544 in shots on goal, that’s about four potential chances in every 90 minutes to go in. With the stretch averaging a .105 shot percentage, the minimal numbers leave the teams against the Dawgs with very few quality shots to score. With names like Niah Kichner, Kyana Rios, Elena Ruiz, Charli Preister, Evie Keller, Savannah Andrews Selah Draper and McKennah West, the middle third has bottle-necked opponents towards their attack.
As Concordia one game ahead in contests played, it has a team lead of 20 points with a 6-1-2 record. Two teams sit at 19 points, including Morningside (6-1-1) and Dordt (6-2-1). Doane (5-2-1) and Hastings (5-2-1) have 16 to stay in the top of the GPAC. With 12 points are College of Saint Mary (4-4) and Dakota Wesleyan (3-2-3) and Mount Marty (3-3-2) rounds out the top eight with 11 points. Northwestern (2-5-2) and Briar Cliff (2-5-1) are vying to move up in the final spot of the GPAC tournament with the Red Raiders.
After a new RPI rating coming out today (Oct. 20), the Bulldogs sit in 43rd with a 3-0-2 against teams above them in the NAIA ratings system. CUNE has defeated Hastings (31), Columbia College (Mo.), 32, and Kansas Wesleyan University (41) plus tied USAO (Okla.), 10, and Bellevue University (38). Concordia has a 108 strength of schedule ranking with three GPAC squads inside the top 50 (in RPI). Hastings and Morningside (50th) complete the top conference teams with the Broncos having a high 40 SOS rank. The upcoming opponent Dordt is slotted 79th and Doane is just outside the top- 100 at 102. The second ARC rankings are set to release tomorrow.
Dordt
The Defenders come into the stretch with a 7-5-2 overall record and a 6-2-1 conference tally. On a two game win streak having bested Briar Cliff (3-0) and Doane (2-0), Dordt will face non-conference foe Dakota State University (S.D.) on Wednesday. In second (GPAC) in goals scored (33), the Defenders have assisted on a majority of the marks with 31 assists. Two-time GPAC Player of the Year and NAIA All-American Karina Tel leads the conference by one score (18) and five assists totaling 41 points in 2025. The senior out of Puyallup, Wash., has taken 85 of the Defenders’ 231 shots this season with a .212 shot percentage. As a team, Dordt averages 2.31 goals per game (allowing 1.43) and has a .143 shot percentage (.602 SOG). The Defender dishes have mainly came from Maria Zylstra (six), Tel, Jenna Roberts (five) and Joclyn Terpstra (five). Lydia Zylstra has earned 1,240 minutes in the net allowing 19 goals with a 1.43 goals-against average. Zylstra has 79 saves on a .806 save percentage and five shutouts.
Next Week
Concordia will host its last regular season contest versus Doane on Wednesday. The in-state conference rivals will take on the Bulldogs in Seward to settle the GPAC table.
Wednesday, Oct. 29
8 p.m. – vs Doane