The continued success of Concordia Athletics again provided thrills during the heart of the cold and blustery winter months in Nebraska. On the hardwood, the men’s basketball program made a habit of winning close games on its way to sharing the GPAC regular season title. Meanwhile, the women’s squad advanced to the NAIA National Round of 16. Elsewhere, a pair of event national titles in track & field helped lead to top 10 NAIA team placements while progress was made by all Bulldog winter sport programs. As for women’s track & field, the GPAC championship streak lives on.
With the spring seasons in full swing, Concordia Athletics looks to be a contender once again for the GPAC All-Sports Championship Trophy. So far in 2023-24, the Bulldogs have earned GPAC championships in volleyball (regular season), men’s basketball (regular season) and women’s indoor track & field. In addition, the following teams each placed second in the GPAC: women’s cross country, women’s soccer and women’s basketball. In the updated Learfield Director’s Cup Standings released on April 4, Concordia Athletics ranked No. 1 among GPAC schools and No. 16 in all of the NAIA. Those standings can be found HERE.
Below is a summary of the past winter sports season, including top team and individual moments. Lifting sports and shooting sports will be included with the 2024 spring wrap up article.
TOP MOMENT
Women’s 4x800 meter relay, Zach Zohner win NAIA national titles
On back-to-back days in early March, five Bulldog athletes experienced something they never had before: winning an NAIA national championship. The first one occurred on March 1 when Concordia’s NAIA top-ranked women’s 4x800 meter relay took to the track in Brookings, S.D., as part of the 2024 NAIA Indoor National Championships. The legs of Concordia’s 4x8 included Jenna Esch, Rylee Haecker, Julie McIntyre and Kylahn Freiberg. Collectively, they ran a school record time of 9:06.48 in the finals and celebrated the second relay national championship in the history of Bulldog Track & Field. As Haecker said immediately following the race, “Praise God. All year we’ve been dreaming about this. It’s a gift from Him that we were able to put it together. There are not enough words for it honestly. I’m just overcome with emotion. Senior year – that’s the way to go out for all of us as a relay.” The historic relay guided by Head Coach Matt Beisel included three athletes who also earned All-America medals in individual events.
The next day (March 2), Zach Zohner attempted to back up his No. 1 seed in the men’s pole vault. After two misses, Zohner came through and cleared 16’ 6 ¾” for a vault that made him an NAIA national champion for the first time. The Battle Creek, Neb., native then took it a step farther by clearing a personal best of 17’ 2 ¾” in a moment that brought loud cheers from the assembled crowd and a hug from vault coach Jason Berry. Said Zohner a couple of weeks later, “It was stressful. I think I did a pretty good job the weeks before not thinking about it too much. When I did, I just let it pass. It almost didn’t work out because I cleared 16’ 6” on my third attempt. If I would have missed that, I would have gotten second or third. There were a lot of prayers. It hasn’t (sunk in) as much as you’d think. It’s still really special.”
------------------
Men’s basketball completes harrowing final week of regular season by hoisting GPAC championship trophy
Sitting at 6-4 in league play on Jan. 17, the Bulldogs appeared to be a longshot when it came to the race for the GPAC regular season title. From that point on, Concordia clicked and went on a wild nine-game winning streak that included a CIT championship and signature wins over No. 19 Morningside (away) and No. 12 Northwestern (home). Then in the final week of the regular season, Head Coach Ben Limback’s squad took its fans on a harrowing journey that ended with home overtime wins over both Hastings, 69-67, and Midland, 90-84. The victory over Hastings will be long remembered for the frenzied atmosphere and for the way the Bulldogs pulled one out of the fire that had seemingly gotten away from them. Star Noah Schutte posted 19 points and 18 rebounds versus Hastings and 34 points and 10 rebounds versus Midland. His big-time week helped Concordia finish the regular season in a tie for first place along with Hastings and Northwestern. Limback has led the program to GPAC regular season titles in two of the past three seasons.
Said Limback after the regular season finale, “We didn’t play our best but to still have that trophy at the end, it’s surreal. You gotta enjoy these. The whole season built up to this where you have one game and you have to take care of business. I think there was some anxiety and pressure on all of us. Sometimes it’s ugly and we win them. That’s been this season – we just find ways to get it done.”
Olson surpasses Schmidt
Drew Olson has enjoyed more victories than any head coach in the history of Concordia Athletics. That fact became true on Nov. 15 when his Bulldog Women’s Basketball team routed Morningside, 86-62, inside Friedrich Arena. The occasion marked career win No. 446 for Olson, who surpassed his former college coach, Grant Schmidt (445-276 as men’s basketball coach), for the new standard. With the 2023-24 season in the books, Olson now owns a career record of 470-140 in 18 seasons at his alma mater. Olson led the program to a national championship in 2019 as one of his many accomplishments. Meanwhile, Schmidt coached the men’s program from 1989 through 2012 and was instrumental in enhancing the profile of the entire athletic department.
Women’s Track & Field pushes GPAC title streak to 10, earns NAIA team trophy
The streak lives on for Concordia Women’s Track & Field, which has won every GPAC championship meet dating back to the 2019 conference indoor championships. At the 2024 GPAC Indoor Championships hosted by Mount Marty, the Bulldogs racked up 206 points (compared to 136.25 for second place Doane) in running away with another title. The GPAC event champions on the women’s side included the 4x400 meter relay, Jenna Esch (600 and 800 meters), Rylee Haecker (1,000 meters), Jordan Koepke (400 meters) and Zoey Walker (high jump). The 4x4 was made up of Esch, Kayla Kirchner, Trinity Tuls and Koepke. Head Coach Matt Beisel’s women’s team went on to place third at the NAIA indoor national meet on the strength of the national title from the 4x8. Esch completed her incredible indoor season with All-America awards as part of the 4x4 and 4x8 relays and in the 800 meters.
Women’s Basketball returns to elite status behind senior class
For the seniors who concluded their collegiate careers this winter (some are still deciding on a potential ‘COVID year’ in 2024-25), this was a pretty nice way to go out. The Bulldogs toppled No. 5 Marian (Ind.) in the second game of the season and spent nearly all winter ranked inside the top 10 of the NAIA coaches’ poll. Head Coach Drew Olson’s squad wound up at 27-7 overall while advancing to the NAIA National Championship Round of 16. Olson leaned upon a special senior class led by the likes of Kendal Brigham, Sadie Powell, Taysha Rushton and Mackenzie Toomey. Rushton earned her fourth career First Team All-GPAC award in leading the charge. All seven of the team’s losses came at the hands of opponents that reached the NAIA final site. The 27 wins were the most for the program since it went 32-2 in 2019-20.
Baughman leads group of three wrestling national qualifiers
A trio of Bulldogs treated the home crowd at the 2024 GPAC Wrestling Championships to top-three placements that resulted in automatic qualification into the NAIA national tournament. Both Creighton Baughman (141) and Tommy Wentz (165) placed second in the GPAC while Mason Garcia (197) took third. Both Wentz and Garcia upset nationally ranked foes on their way to lofty conference place finishes. A senior from Papillion, Neb., Baughman put together a 33-8 overall record in his final collegiate season. Baughman qualified for NAIA nationals for the second-straight year while Wentz and Garcia made their first career appearances on the national stage. Head Coach Chase Clasen’s squad placed 35th in the NAIA when the dust settled in Park City, Kan.
Freshman Brandt breaks program pins record
Head Coach Chase Clasen had high hopes for Barret Brandt in his freshman wrestling season, but he would not have prognosticated exactly what occurred. Brandt proved to be a pinning machine as he racked up 24 falls. The Syracuse, Neb., native became the program’s single season record holder on Feb. 2 when he pinned Kyan Ensign (Colby CC) for his 22nd fall. The previous school record was 21 by Alex Stepanek in 2011-12. Brandt came up just short of qualifying for the national tournament in one of the best seasons ever for a Concordia freshman.
Four Bulldogs earn all-conference awards at GPAC Dance & Cheer Championships
As a cap to the 2024 competitive cheer and dance seasons, four Bulldogs earned all-conference awards at the GPAC Dance & Cheer Championships. The awards were earned by Bri Hoyle and Shelby Timmerman in cheer and Ryleigh Flesner and Hanna Bitner (honorable mention) in dance. Those standout athletes helped Concordia make progress under the leadership of head coaches Mandi Maser and Emilie Ashenbach. Hoyle and Timmerman were key figures for a cheer team that broke the school record for a single competition with an 84.13 score at the Concordia Day of Duals.
SEASON SUMMARIES
Men’s Basketball
2023-24 record: 24-8 overall; 15-5 GPAC (T-1st); NAIA National Qualifier (round of 32).
Top performer: Noah Schutte earned his second First Team All-GPAC award while averaging better than 20.0 points per game for the second-straight season. He also averaged 8.4 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.1 steals per game and shot 55.2 percent (229-for-415) from the floor, 35.9 percent (37-for-103) from 3-point range and 83.3 percent (175-for-210) from the foul line. Over four seasons as a Bulldog, Schutte has accumulated 1,827 points (fifth most in program history), 727 rebounds, 195 assists and 78 steals in 115 games.
Season highlights: There were many memorable moments as Head Coach Ben Limback’s squad earned a share of the GPAC regular season title, piled up 24 wins, advanced to the round of 32 at the national tournament, won the CIT championship in Mequon, Wis., and rose as high as No. 20 in the NAIA coaches’ poll. The final week of the regular season was a wild one as the Bulldogs defeated Hastings and Midland in overtime to secure a tie for first place in the league’s final standings. The star Schutte posted a season high of 34 points in two separate overtime wins and Tristan Smith took a large step forward as a First Team All-GPAC honoree. Smith ‘wowed’ the crowd at Doane with a particularly impressive right-hand throwdown and averaged 18.0 points and 9.3 rebounds. Throughout the winter, Limback affectively melded together veterans like Brad Bennett, Schutte and Smith and a host of youthful players. A deep and talented freshman class made an immediate impact while helping the program extend its streak of consecutive national tournaments to three. Early in the season, Limback notched the 300th win of his coaching career. The foundation is there for Concordia to enjoy another fine season in 2024-25.
GPAC All-Conference: Noah Schutte (First Team); Tristan Smith (Second Team); Brad Bennett (Second Team).
NAIA All-American: Noah Schutte (Third Team).
Women’s Basketball
2023-24 record: 27-7 overall; 17-5 GPAC (2nd); NAIA National Qualifier (round of 16).
Top performer: All-American guard Taysha Rushton earned her fourth career First Team All-GPAC award while leading the team in scoring with an average of 15.2 points per game. The Midland, Texas, native leapt to No. 3 on the program’s all-time scoring list with 1,924 career points. In 126 games as a Bulldog, Rushton has also totaled 407 rebounds, 348 assists, 290 3-point field goals and 213 steals.
Season highlights: Head Coach Drew Olson’s veteran squad vaulted as high as No. 6 in the NAIA coaches’ poll while establishing itself as an elite squad once again. The achievements included 27 overall wins, GPAC runner-up claims in the regular season and postseason, a CIT championship and an advanced to the NAIA National Championship final site in Sioux City, Iowa. For the first time in school history, Concordia hosted national tournament games and defeated Benedictine College (Kan.) and Wayland Baptist University (Texas). In game No. 2 of the season, the Bulldogs upset fifth-ranked Marian University (Ind.) and engaged in three down-to-the-wire battles with GPAC champion Dordt (including one in the GPAC tournament title game). All seven of Concordia’s losses came to teams that reached the NAIA final site. The Bulldogs also defeated four teams that made it to Sioux City while navigating one of the nation’s most challenging schedules. In addition to Rushton, fellow seniors Kendal Brigham, Sadie Powell and Mackenzie Toomey also enjoyed all-conference seasons and junior Abby Krieser continued to evolve her game. The bar has been set high heading into 2024-25.
GPAC All-Conference: Taysha Rushton (First Team); Sadie Powell (Second Team); Abby Krieser (Second Team); Kendal Brigham (Honorable Mention); Mackenzie Toomey (Honorable Mention).
NAIA All-American: Taysha Rushton (Second Team).
Men’s and Women’s Indoor Track and Field
2024 women’s GPAC finish: 1st
2024 women’s NAIA national finish: T-3rd
2024 men’s GPAC finish: 3rd
2024 men’s NAIA national finish: 8th
Top performers: There were many big-time performers as 15 Bulldogs earned All-America awards and 46 Concordia athletes garnered All-GPAC honors in one or more events. Zach Zohner rose to the top of the NAIA pole vault world when he won a national title thanks to his personal best of 17’ 2 ¾.” Zohner was also the GPAC’s pole vault champion. Another national title came via the women’s 4x800 meter relay as Jenna Esch, Rylee Haecker, Julie McIntyre and Kylahn Freiberg finished the finals race in a school record time of 9:06.48.
Season highlights: The 2024 indoor season went about as well as Head Coach Matt Beisel and company could have hoped. From a team perspective, the Concordia women dominated the GPAC again and extended their conference meet win streak to 10 and then took home an NAIA national championships third-place trophy. On the men’s side, the Bulldogs placed third in the GPAC and eighth at the NAIA national meet. As described above, Zach Zohner (pole vault) and the women’s 4x800 meter relay celebrated national championship winning performances. During the indoor season, new school records came via the women’s 4x8, Freiberg in the 3,000 meters (10:05.72), Haecker in the 1,000 meters (2:52.88) and Adrianna Rodencal in the 60-meter hurdles (8.55). The list of All-Americans from this past indoor season can be found below. The program’s 2024 GPAC indoor champions were the women’s 4x400 meter relay, Esch (600 and 800 meters), Haecker (1,000 meters), Jordan Koepke (400 meters), Calvin Rohde (1,000 meters), Zoey Walker (high jump), Chris Wren (weight throw) and Zohner (pole vault). As a result of the success on the women’s side, Beisel was named the GPAC Women’s Coach of the Year and the USTFCCCA NAIA Midwest Region Women’s Coach of the Year.
GPAC All-Conference: See the full list HERE.
NAIA All-Americans: Jenna Esch (4x800m Relay-1st; 800m; 4x400m Relay); Kylahn Freiberg (4x800m Relay-1st; Mile); Abby Gerber (shot put); Rylee Haecker (4x800m Relay-1st; 1,000m); Kayla Kirchner (4x400m Relay); Jordan Koepke (4x400m Relay); Julie McIntyre (4x800m Relay-1st); Mayson Ostermeyer (Pole Vault); Josie Puelz (Pole Vault); Calvin Rohde (Mile); Trinity Tuls (4x400m Relay); Zoey Walker (High Jump); Abi Wohlgemuth (Weight Throw); Chris Wren (Weight Throw); Zach Zohner (Pole Vault-1st).
Wrestling
2023-24 record: 8-7 overall; 3-5 GPAC
GPAC finishes: 6th regular season; 5th postseason
NAIA national finish: T-35th
Top performer: Senior Creighton Baughman went 33-8 overall (15-0 in duals) while completing a terrific two-year run as a Bulldog. Baughman placed as the GPAC’s 141-pound runner up and qualified for the NAIA national tournament for the second year in a row. Baughman won two matches on the national stage before ending his collegiate career. He spent most of the 2023-24 season ranked inside the top 10 of the NAIA at 141.
Season highlights: The program hosted the GPAC Championships for the first time since 2016 and put on a good show. Individually, four Bulldogs placed within the top four of their respective weight classes: Creighton Baughman (second at 141), Tommy Wentz (second at 165), Mason Garcia (third at 197) and Barret Brandt (fourth at 165). Baughman, Wentz and Garcia each earned automatic bids to the national tournament thanks to those efforts. Both Wentz and Garcia upset nationally ranked opponents as part of the conference tournament. Though he came up just shy of a national tournament bid, Brandt made major waves as a freshman and set a new program standard for pins in a season with 24. Head Coach Chase Clasen’s squad wound up with conference place finishes of sixth in the regular season and fifth in the postseason. Baughman’s two wins at the NAIA National Championships put the Bulldogs in a tie for 35th place. From a dual perspective, Concordia’s most significant win was the 28-23 triumph over then 18th-ranked Baker University (Kan.) at the Avila Duals. The program will need to replace Baughman and the senior class, but the Bulldogs will bring back a talented group including junior-to-be Grant Wells.
GPAC All-Conference: Creighton Baughman (Second Team); Tommy Wentz (Second Team); Mason Garcia (Honorable Mention).
Cheer/Dance
2024 Cheer GPAC finish: 5th of 8
2024 Dance GPAC finish: 5th of 8
2024 Dance regional finish: 6th of 9
Summary: It was another season of progress in the eyes of head coaches Mandi Maser (dance) and Emilie Ashenbach (cheer). In terms of sheer scoring average, Concordia finished with NAIA national rankings of 10th in dance (80.57) and 21st in cheer (80.72). At the GPAC Championships held at Doane, the Bulldogs placed fifth in the conference in both dance and cheer. The highest single scores produced during the 2024 competition season were 82.07 for dance and 84.13 for cheer (program record). At CIT held in Mequon, Wis., CUNE placed second in cheer and third in dance. Once again, the Bulldogs hosted their own largescale duals event and both teams earned victories. As a cap to the 2024 campaign, four Concordia athletes picked up All-GPAC accolades (see below). Senior Shelby Timmerman was named an All-GPAC award winner for the third time in her career. Meanwhile, dance put three individuals on the All-America list.
GPAC All-Conference: Ryleigh Flesner (Dance); Bri Hoyle (Cheer); Shelby Timmerman (Cheer); Hannah Bitner (Dance – Honorable Mention).
NAIA All-Americans: Hanna Bitner (Second Team); Ryleigh Flesner (Second Team); Taylor Larsen (Third Team).