Bulldog Athletic Association Member (BAAM) Athletes of the Week
Female: Adrianna Rodencal, Track & Field
A sophomore from Lincoln, Neb., Rodencal broke her own school record in the 100-meter hurdles while clocking a finals time of 13.84 at the Concordia Invite. Rodencal also placed second in the 200 meters (25.74) and anchored the 4x100-meter relay to an NAIA ‘B’ standard time of 47.66.
Male: Joey Grabanski, Baseball
A senior outfielder from Grand Forks, N.D., Grabanski batted .421 (8-for-19) with nine runs scored, five home runs, 11 RBIs and five walks last week as the 17th-ranked Bulldogs went 5-1 with two wins over No. 9 Doane. Grabanski moved within on home run of the NAIA all-time record of 77 home runs.
2023-24 BAAM Athletes of the Month
February – Jaidan Quinn (baseball) / Mackenzie Toomey (basketball)
January – Kendal Brigham (basketball) / Noah Schutte (basketball)
December – Evan Fukuhara (weightlifting) / Hayley Miles (track & field)
November – Creighton Baughman (wrestling) / Abby Krieser (basketball)
October – Becca Gebhardt (volleyball) / DJ McGarvie (football)
September – Austin Jablonski (football) / Ashley Keck (volleyball)
Previous BAAM Athletes of the Week
April 2 – Kylahn Freiberg (track & field) / Jaidan Quinn (baseball)
March 26 – Jessie Ciezki (shooting sports) / Carson Fehlhafer (track & field)
March 19 – Megan Eurich (softball) / Noah Schutte (basketball)
March 12 – Megan Eurich (softball) / Zach Zohner (track & field)
Feb. 27 – Jaidan Quinn (baseball) / Mackenzie Toomey (basketball)
Feb. 20 – Jenna Esch (track & field) / Tristan Smith (basketball)
Feb. 13 – Brad Bennett (basketball) / Jenna Esch (track & field)
Feb. 6 – Barret Brandt (wrestling) / Kylahn Freiberg (track & field)
Jan. 30 – Kendal Brigham (basketball) / Tristan Smith (basketball)
Jan. 23 – Kylahn Freiberg (track & field) / Zach Zohner (track & field)
Jan. 16 – Kendal Brigham (basketball) / Noah Schutte (basketball)
Jan. 9 – Abby Heemstra (basketball) / Tristan Smith (basketball)
Dec. 12 – Evan Fukuhara (weightlifting) / Hayley Miles (track & field)
Dec. 5 – Noah Schutte (basketball) / Kristin Vieselmeyer (basketball)
Nov. 28 – Creighton Baughman (wrestling) / Kylahn Freiberg (cross country) / Abby Krieser (basketball)
Nov. 14 – Austin Jablonski (football) / Maddie Paulsen (volleyball)
Nov. 7 – Sara Huss (volleyball) / Kyle Sterup (football)
Oct. 31 – Kierstynn Garner (soccer) / Michael Owens (soccer)
Oct. 24 – Rebecca Gebhardt (volleyball) / Julie McIntyre (cross country) / Michael Owens (soccer)
Oct. 17 – Kierstynn Garner (soccer) / DJ McGarvie (football)
Oct. 10 – Rylee Ladd (powerlifting) / Jack Nelson (shooting sports) / Camryn Opfer (volleyball) / D’Andre Williams (soccer)
Oct. 3 – Austin Jablonski (football) / Grace Soenksen (soccer)
Sept. 26 – Ashley Keck (volleyball) / Mason Ward (shooting sports)
Sept. 19 – Savannah Andrews (soccer) / Carter Hinman (soccer)
Sept. 12 – Katie Welker (shooting sports) / Devin Zeigler (football)
Sept. 5 – Bree Burtwistle (volleyball) / Carter Hinman (soccer)
Aug. 29 – Isaiah Shaddick (soccer) / Gabi Nordaker (volleyball)
News and notes:
BAAM luncheons are held every Tuesday at 12 p.m. CT inside the Dog House Grill, located in the Janzow Campus Center. The luncheons feature reports from head coaches who are in season at the time. For information on how to join BAAM, click HERE. It is not a requirement to be a BAAM member in order to attend the weekly luncheons.
Powerlifting set to take 17 athletes to 2024 Collegiate National Championships: The national qualifying field for Concordia University Powerlifting has increased dramatically from year one to year two of the program’s existence. The Bulldogs will travel 17 athletes to the 2024 USA Powerlifting Collegiate National Championships set for Thursday through Sunday (April 11-14). The national championship event will be held at Georgia International Convention Center in College Park, Ga. A year ago, Concordia sent four athletes to the national championships in Arlington, Texas. Head Coach Freddie Myles’ 2023 nationals roster includes three repeat qualifiers: Dax Davis, Kenzie Houser and Rylee Ladd. The remaining qualifiers will experience the national stage for the first time. For more details on the national championships, click HERE.
Concordia Athletics finishes winter at No. 16 in NAIA Learfield Directors’ Cup Standings: With fall and winter sports in the books for the 2023-24 athletic year, Concordia Athletics landed at No. 16 in the updated NAIA Learfield Directors’ Cup Standings, released on April 4. The Bulldogs also ranked No. 1 among GPAC schools. So far in 2023-24, Concordia has won GPAC championships in the sports of men’s basketball, women’s indoor track & field and volleyball. The athletic department has sent athletes to national championship events in the following sports: men’s basketball, women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, shooting sports, volleyball, weightlifting and wrestling. The 2023-24 NAIA Learfield Directors’ Cup Standings can be viewed HERE.
Bulldogs earn 2023-24 All-America awards: All-America awards for all winter sports have now been announced by the NAIA. Most recently, Taysha Rushton (second team) and Noah Schutte (third team) represented the basketball programs with All-America awards. Then on April 4, three Concordia Competitive Dance student-athletes were named 2024 All-Americans: Hanna Bitner (second team), Ryleigh Flesner (second team) and Taylor Larsen (third team). Back in early March, 15 Bulldog Track & Field athletes earned All-America honors in one or more events.
Wrapping up the 2023-24 winter sports seasons: The winter sports seasons at Concordia are in the books. The winter saw women’s indoor track & field and men’s basketball claim GPAC championships in addition to several other thrilling moments. Check out the links below for sport specific season recaps.
--A recap of the winter sports season as a whole can be found HERE.
--Seasons-in-review: Men’s Basketball | Women’s Basketball | Wrestling.
Shooting Sports caps 2023-24 season with seventh-place ACUI National Championships finish: A pair of Bulldogs won individual national titles and Concordia University Shooting Sports came away with a 2024 ACUI National Championships (March 19-23) place finish of seventh in the Division 2 breakdown. Head Coach Dylan Owens’ squad busted 2,784 targets (out of 3,000) and placed 15th out of all 57 teams at the national championships across the four divisions. Individual honors were captured by senior Jessie Ciezki, the women’s open skeet national champion, and senior Claire Kee, the women’s open super sporting national titlist. From an HOA perspective, the Bulldogs’ top competitor was senior Breyer Meeks, who cracked 551 of 600 targets. For a complete recap of the national championships, click HERE.
Bulldog Coaches Show airs every Thursday at 5:30 p.m. CT: The Bulldog Coaches Show is underway in its ninth year of existence. The show airs live for a half hour every Thursday beginning at 5:30 p.m. CT on KTMX-FM 104.9 Max Country. The weekly feature can also be heard live via 104.9 Max Country’s website or by downloading the Max Country app. Throughout the 2023-24 season, Bulldog football, men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball contests will be aired live on Max Country. Parker Cyza serves as the host of the coaches’ show as well as the play-by-play voice for football and basketball. Frank Greene is in his ninth season calling Concordia volleyball. The Max Country broadcast schedule for the fall semester of 2023 can be found HERE.
Concordia Sports Network: Live webcasts for most home varsity contests can be accessed by visiting https://www.cune.edu/athletics/watch-bulldogs at game time. Beginning this 2023-24 academic year, Concordia Athletics has partnered with Hudl/BlueFrame for live video streaming. Live webcast links for away contests are publicized in sport specific releases that preview action for that particular week. Scrimmages, exhibitions and junior varsity events are not broadcasted.
Men’s and Women’s Tennis
· Current men’s record: 6-10, 1-2 GPAC.
· Current women’s record: 7-6, 2-1 GPAC.
· Recent action – Men:
o Won vs. Northwestern, 4-3, on April 6.
· Recent action – Women:
o Won vs. Northwestern, 5-2, on April 5.
· Links: Men’s 2024 Schedule | Men’s 2024 Roster | Women’s 2024 Schedule | Women’s 2024 Roster.
· Notable: Head Coach Lisa Hart’s squads both claimed home GPAC wins this past week over Northwestern as the women triumphed 5-2 in an outdoor match and the men prevailed 4-3 in an indoor match. On the women’s side, the Bulldogs swept through doubles thanks to the combos of Mariana Molano and Alana Lopez Pagan at No. 1, Tessa Blough and Chakira Derman at No. 2 and Gabrielle Heiser and Alexa Richert at No. 3. In singles, wins came from Molano at No. 1, Derman at No. 2, Blough at No. 4 and Richert at No. 5. On the men’s side, Concordia also swept doubles play with victorious duos of Hugo Fuentes and Manuel Rodriguez at No. 1, Santiago Abadia and Michael Bedrosian at No. 2 and Mitch Krumm and Grady Works at No. 3. The Bulldogs and Red Raiders then split in singles with wins going to Concordia’s Fuentes at No. 1, Rodriguez at No. 2 and Bedrosian at No. 5. On the season, the women’s team owns records of 38-40 in singles and 17-21 in doubles. Molano has gone 8-3 in singles and 5-4 in doubles when paired with Lopez Pagan. Meanwhile, the men’s team sports records of 27-69 in singles and 18-30 in doubles. Bedrosian has claimed seven singles wins. The combo of Abadia and Rodriguez has gone 4-1 at No. 2 doubles. Next up, the women (Tuesday) and the men (Wednesday) will play at Doane. The men will also host NCAA Division III Wartburg College (Iowa) on Saturday.
· For additional statistics and details, check out the Concordia Tennis homepages here: MEN | WOMEN.
· This week – Men:
o Wednesday, April 10 at Doane, 4:30 p.m.
o Saturday, April 13 vs. Wartburg, 9 a.m.
· This week – Women:
o Tuesday, April 9 at Doane, 4:30 p.m.
o Monday, April 15 vs. College of Saint Mary, 5 p.m.
Golf
· Most recent action (men):
o Shot 301-312–613 (11th out of 15) on first day of Midwest Spring National Invite on April 8.
· Most recent action (women):
o Shot 367-362-354–1,083 (placed 7th of 13) at Concordia Spring Invite on April 2-3.
· Men’s Links: 2023-24 Schedule | Roster | Statistics
· Notable: In its first action since the SCC Spring Invite on April 1, Concordia Men’s Golf shot 301-312–613 on the opening day of the Midwest Spring National Invite in Manhattan. Kan. The final round of the event got started at 8 a.m. CT today (April 9). There are five Bulldogs in the field of 76 golfers in Manhattan. Fifth-year collegiate competitor Drew D’Ercole has paced Concordia with a two-round score of 72-74–146 (+2), placing him in a tie for 13th. He’s just two strokes out of the top 10 (the tournament co-leaders sit at 141). D’Ercole is followed in the Bulldog lineup by Justin Webert (73-78–151; T-24th), Jake Hagerbaumer (81-75–156; T-45th), Jacob Dowd (76-85–161; 61st) and Gavin McWhorter (80-85–165; T-66th). D’Ercole and Webert have been a consistent top two in the lineup while the three through five spots have frequently fluctuated. After the Midwest Spring National Invite, Concordia will look forward to the Nebraska Wesleyan Invite this coming Sunday-Monday (April 14-15).
· Women’s Links: 2023-24 Schedule | Roster | Statistics
· Notable: The Concordia women’s program hosted golfers from 13 institutions while putting on the Concordia Spring Invite on April 2-3. The Bulldogs shot 367-362-354–1,083 during the three-day, two-round event and placed seventh out of the 13 teams. Both days at Highlands Golf Course in Lincoln were characterized by chilly and windy conditions. Among the 81 golfers to complete all three rounds, sophomore Emery Custer placed in a tie for 18th with a total of 90-85-90–265. From an overall perspective, the top five performers for Concordia, following Custer, were Nurse (94-88-89–271; T-29th), senior Jennifer Gillotti (90-95-90–275; 40th), Lewis (93-98-86–277; T-41st) and fifth-year Bulldog Logan Eschliman (103-94-95–292; T-66th). The other three Concordia competitors were freshman Emma McCoy (97-112-100–309; 74th), sophomore Ericka Kroeker (105-105-100–310; 75th) and Kollbaum (115-111-99–325; 81st). Only two tournaments remain prior to the GPAC Championships. Concordia will compete at the College of Saint Mary Spring Invite on Thursday and will return to action early next week with the Kaitlyn Erickson Spring Invite hosted by Doane.
· This week:
o Men: Kansas Wesleyan Midwest Spring National Invite on Monday-Tuesday (April 8-9); Nebraska Wesleyan Invite on Sunday-Monday (April 14-15).
o Women: College of Saint Mary Invite on Thursday (April 11); Kaitlyn Erickson Spring Invite on Monday-Tuesday (April 15-16).
Softball
· Current record: 12-20, 2-4 GPAC.
· Last week:
o Won at Hastings, 2-0, on April 3.
o Lost at Hastings, 15-2 (5 inn.), on April 3.
o Lost at No. 11 Northwestern, 2-0, on April 5.
o Lost at No. 11 Northwestern, 4-0, on April 5.
· Links: 2023-24 Schedule | Roster | Statistics
· Notable: The Bulldogs went on the road for two doubleheaders last week as they split at Hastings and then got swept by No. 11 Northwestern. A couple of themes continued as Megan Eurich put together three fine outings in the circle while the Concordia offense struggled. In the one win of the week, Eurich fired a four-hit shutout in the 2-0 Bulldog victory at Hastings. Concordia’s runs came via a Kylie Shottenkirk home run and a Zoie Isom sacrifice fly. For the week, Eurich threw 19 innings and allowed only three earned runs (1.11 ERA) on 15 hits and nine walks to go along with 13 strikeouts. The Gretna, Neb., native moved past 100 strikeouts for the second season in a row. As a team, the Bulldogs hit just .218 (19-for-87) last week while being held to a combined four runs. However, it was a solid week for left fielder Aubrey Bruning, who went 5-for-10 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI. Later this week, Head Coach Brock Culler’s squad will host both Jamestown and Dakota Wesleyan. It will be senior day on Saturday at Plum Creek Park. The senior class includes the likes of Taylor Glause, Julia Van Wey and Creighton Taylor (fifth year). Van Wey played a significant role on the 2021 team that qualified for the national tournament.
· For additional statistics and details, check out the Concordia Softball homepage HERE.
· This week:
o Friday, April 12 vs. Jamestown (20-9, 6-4 GPAC), 5 p.m. DH.
o Saturday, April 13 vs. Dakota Wesleyan (12-19, 1-7 GPAC), 1 p.m. DH – Senior Day.
o Monday, April 15 vs. College of Saint Mary (7-17, 0-4 GPAC), 5 p.m.
Track & Field
· Current NAIA National Rankings (According to USTFCCCA) – Men 15th; Women 12th (April 3).
· Most recent meet:
o Concordia Invite on Friday, April 5.
· Links: 2023-24 Schedule | Roster | TFRRS NAIA outdoor qualifying list
· Notable: Head Coach Matt Beisel and his staff reconfigured last week’s Concordia Invite, which wound up being a one-day competition as opposed to the two-day meet originally scheduled. Bulldog athletes took advantage of sunny and warm weather while combining for 10 performances that met the automatic national qualifying standard, seven ‘B’ marks and 13 event championships. In addition, sophomore Adrianna Rodencal broke her own school record in the 100-meter hurdles with a finals time of 13.84 (No. 2 in the NAIA). Other new ‘A’ standards were delivered by the women’s 4x400-meter relay and Darien Semedo in the hammer throw. Those results bring the program total number of NAIA auto marks to 12 this 2024 outdoor season. While Rodencal won the 100 hurdles, other event champions at the Concordia Invite were the men’s 4x800-meter relay, Jenna Esch (400 meters), Kylahn Freiberg (1,500 meters), Abby Gerber (shot put-unseeded), Jordan Koepke (400 hurdles), Kiki Nyanok (long jump), Nathan Pennekamp (3,000m steeplechase), Joel Rathe (long jump), Calvin Rohde (1,500 meters), Darien Semedo (hammer-unseeded), Chris Wren (hammer) and Zach Zohner (pole vault). Wren threw a hammer PR of 198’ 6,” putting him just shy of becoming the fifth Bulldog to ever reach 200 feet. The outdoor season will continue on Saturday with competition at the South Dakota Track & Field Challenge hosted by NCAA Division I University of South Dakota in Vermillion.
· Keep up with Concordia Track & Field throughout the indoor and outdoor seasons by visiting the team’s homepage HERE.
· Up next:
o South Dakota Track & Field Challenge on Saturday (April 13). View event schedule HERE.
Baseball
· Current record: 28-9, 12-4 GPAC; ranked No. 17 in NAIA coaches’ poll.
· Last week:
o Won vs. No. 9 Doane, 14-13 (8 inn.), on April 2.
o Won vs. No. 9 Doane, 7-6, on April 2.
o Lost at Midland, 8-2, on April 6.
o Won at Midland, 13-3, on April 6.
o Won vs. Midland, 10-2, on April 7.
o Won vs. Midland, 14-4, on April 7.
· Links: 2023-24 Schedule | Roster | Statistics | NAIA Coaches’ Poll
· Notable: It was a six-game week for the Bulldogs who went up against in-state foes in No. 9 Doane and Midland. The week was characterized by extreme windy conditions. In a wild doubleheader with Doane, Concordia rallied from an 11-6 deficit in game one and eventually prevailed, 14-13, after Jay Adams’ walk-off RBI single. The Bulldogs then earned the sweep with the help of a Joey Grabanski two-run homer and clutch pitching in relief from Jacob Lycan. Concordia went on to take three of four games from Midland while winning the final three games of the series in dominant fashion. For the week, Grabanski went 8-for-19 (.462) with five home runs. His 76 career home runs put him one shy of the all-time NAIA record of 77 by Brice Cutspec of Azusa Pacific. It was also a fine week for the likes of Ty Nekoliczak (11-for-22 with five runs, a homer and six RBIs), Alec Blakestad (9-for-23 with three doubles, two home runs and nine RBIs) and Adams (9-for-25 with a home run and eight RBIs). The Bulldog offense has produced 76 home runs through the season’s first 37 games and continues to pace the GPAC in virtually all major statistical offensive categories. On the mound, both Christian Gutierrez and Braxton Greenburg fired complete games during the Midland series. Caden Johnson also earned the 22nd win of his career (third most in program history). Concordia enters this week tied for first place in the GPAC with Doane (both 12-4). A pivotal four-game road series is up next as the Bulldogs will take on fellow 2023 national qualifier Morningside in Sioux City.
· For additional statistics and details, check out the Concordia Baseball homepage HERE.
· This week:
o Saturday, April 13 at Morningside (22-12, 9-5 GPAC), 1 p.m. DH.
o Sunday, April 14 at Morningside (22-12, 9-5 GPAC), 1 p.m. DH.