Bulldog Athletic Association Member (BAAM) Athletes of the Week
Female: Kristin Vieselmeyer, Basketball
A junior from Holyoke, Colo., Kristin Vieselmeyer earns distinction based on her performances going back to the week prior to Thanksgiving. Vieselmeyer totaled a career-high 27 points at No. 1 Dordt on Nov. 23 and added eight points and four assists in last week’s home win over Midland. She’s averaging 8.9 points on the season.
Male: Vaughn Hendrickson, Cross Country
A freshman from Fort Wayne, Ind., Vaughn Hendrickson closed his first collegiate cross country season with an All-America medal at the national meet. As part of the competition in Columbia, Mo., on Nov. 22, Hendrickson clocked an 8k personal best of 24:37.2 and placed 36th. Hendrickson was also the GPAC champion in 2024.
2024-25 BAAM Athletes of the Month
October – Carson Fehlhafer (football) / Kierstynn Garner (soccer)
September – Mark Arp (football) / Gabi Nordaker (volleyball)
2024-25 BAAM Athletes of the Week
Nov. 19 – Daylon Henson (football) / Addie Kirkegaard (volleyball)
Nov. 12 – Keegan Beisel (cross country) / Vaughn Hendrickson (cross country)
Nov. 5 – Angela Banks (soccer) / Austin Jablonski (football)
Oct. 29 – Kierstynn Garner (soccer) / Devin Harris (shooting sports)
Oct. 22 – Taylor Hedke (weightlifting) / Austin Jablonski (football)
Oct. 15 – Kierstynn Garner (soccer) / Hugo Garrote (soccer)
Oct. 8 – Carson Fehlhafer (football) / Kaylee Hinton (shooting sports)
Oct. 1 – Carter McKenna (shooting sports) / Kya Scott (volleyball)
Sept. 24 – Ishane Derman (tennis) / Daylon Henson (football)
Sept. 17 – Mark Arp (football) / Ella Waters (volleyball)
Sept. 10 – Hannah Beintema (cross country); Trey Robertson (cross country)
Sept. 3 – Nolan Fuelberth (soccer); Gabi Nordaker (volleyball)
Aug. 27 – Martin Herrera (soccer); Ashley Keck (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.
Fall All-GPAC and NAIA Scholar-Athlete award winners announced: Postseason awards for fall sports have begun streaming in. In recent weeks, 84 Bulldogs were honored as 2024 NAIA Scholar-Athletes and 36 Concordia student-athletes were recognized as 2024 GPAC All-Conference award winners. The specific honorees can be found by navigating to each fall sport home page on the Concordia Athletics website. Concordia University, Nebraska ranks as the NAIA’s all-time leader in number of Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes with 2,526 entering the 2024-25 academic year.
From 0-3 to the NAIA national tournament: From out of the abyss of an 0-3 start to conference play, the Concordia University, Nebraska Women’s Soccer team emerged as a 2024 NAIA national qualifier. A 1-0 home win over Briar Cliff achieved on Sept. 28 without the services of standouts Kierstynn Garner and Savannah Andrews proved to be a turning point. The Bulldogs simply needed that first domino to fall. Check out our feature piece for insight from Head Coach Nick Smith and three Bulldogs on how the team turned its season around and eventually earned the program’s first ever national tournament win. That feature is linked HERE.
GPAC network: Back in July, the Great Plains Athletic Conference announced a streaming network designed to bring webcasts from all league members together in one place. The GPAC Network can be accessed online via: https://www.gpacnetwork.com/. The network is also available via a mobile app and smart TVs. The GPAC partnered with Hudl for the creation of the network. In addition to the events that stream on the Concordia Sports Network, 104.9 Max Country will broadcast football and volleyball varsity games this fall. The broadcast schedule can be found HERE.
Bulldog Coaches Show airs every Thursday at 5:30 p.m. CT: The Bulldog Coaches Show is underway in its 10th 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 2024-25 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 10th season calling Concordia volleyball.
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 began a partnership with Hudl 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.
Women’s Soccer
· Final 2024 record: 14-7-1, 8-3 GPAC.
· NAIA National Tournament:
o First Round – Won vs. Benedictine (Kan.), 2-0, on Nov. 21.
o Second Round – Lost at No. 5 Aquinas (Mich.), 4-0, on Nov. 23.
· Links: 2024 Schedule | Roster | Statistics
· Notable: History was made on Nov. 21 when the Bulldogs secured the first national tournament victory in program history. On that date, Head Coach Nick Smith’s squad celebrated a 2-0 win over familiar nonconference foe Benedictine College (Kan.). The first two national tournament goals in program history were produced by Rosie Gyllenswan and Kierstynn Garner. Two days later, Concordia saw its 2024 season end with a 4-0 loss to host and fifth-ranked Aquinas College (Mich.) in round two of the national tournament. The occasion marked the fourth all-time national tournament appearance for the program. The goal by Garner versus Benedictine was her 22nd of the year (49th career) and allowed her to break a school record with 57 points (13 assists) for a single season. Garner was one of three Bulldogs named First Team All-GPAC along with Niah Kirchner and Taylor Slaymaker. Concordia concluded the ’24 campaign at 14-7-1 overall while outscoring its opponents by a combined total of 52-30. The Bulldogs were return the bulk of their roster as they look ahead to a promising 2025 season.
· To keep up with Concordia Women’s Soccer throughout the offseason, check out the program’s homepage HERE.
Cross Country
· NAIA National Championships:
o Three individuals represented the program at the 2024 NAIA National Championships on Nov. 22.
· Links: 2024 Schedule | Roster
· Notable: The 2024 season culminated with the 2024 NAIA Cross Country National Championships in Columbia, Mo., on Nov. 22 when three Bulldogs competed on the national stage. Most notably, freshman Vaughn Hendrickson topped off his rookie season by placing 36th and earning NAIA All-America accolades. The Fort Wayne, Ind., native completed the race in an 8k personal best time of 24:37.2. Hendrickson’s impressive freshman year also included a GPAC individual championship. In the same 8k nationals race, sophomore Trey Robertson ran 25:09.5 and placed 99th. On the women’s side, junior Keegan Beisel made her third career appearance at the national championships and clocked a 6k time of 24:11.9 (248th place). As part of the 2024 season, Head Coach Matt Beisel’s squads recorded GPAC placements of third on the men’s side and fourth on the women’s side. The men’s team narrowly missed out on qualifying for nationals. Each of the three individual qualifiers will return in 2025.
· For additional news and notes on the Concordia Cross Country teams, click HERE.
Volleyball
· Current record: 25-3, 15-1 GPAC; ranked No. 2 in the NAIA coaches’ poll.
· NAIA National Tournament:
o Opening Round – Won vs. Our Lady of the Lake (Texas), 25-22, 25-19, 25-22, on Nov. 23.
· Links: 2024 Schedule | Roster | Statistics | NAIA Coaches’ Poll
· Notable: The Bulldogs have advanced to the final site of the NAIA National Championship tournament for the sixth-straight year. Back on Nov. 23, second-ranked Concordia held off a hard-charging Our Lady of the Lake University (Texas) opponent, 25-22, 25-19, 25-22, in the opening round. In the win, three Bulldogs reached double figures in kills: Ashley Keck (15), Kya Scott (10) and Ella Waters (10). Concordia hit .351 compared to .212 hitting by the Saints (coached by former Bulldog head coach Scott Mattera). The day following the opening round match, the Bulldogs were placed in Pool D for action at the NAIA final site. The pool play opponents in Sioux City, Iowa, will be No. 21 The Master’s University (Calif.) and No. 13 Mount Vernon Nazarene University (Ohio). The winner of the pool will advance to play in the national quarterfinals on Saturday. The semifinals will take place on Monday with the championship to follow on Tuesday night. Under the Boldts, Concordia has advanced as far as the quarterfinals (on two separate occasions). The program has won 13 times at the national tournament.
· For additional news and notes on Concordia Volleyball, check out the team’s homepage HERE.
· 2024 NAIA National Championships (all matches played at the Tyson Events Center in Sioux City, Iowa):
o Pool Play – Wednesday, Dec. 4 vs. No. 21 The Master’s University (Calif.), 1 p.m.
o Pool Play – Friday, Dec. 6 vs. No. 13 Mount Vernon Nazarene University (Ohio), 1 p.m.
o Quarterfinals – Saturday, Dec. 7 vs. TBA, 2 p.m.
o Semifinals – Monday, Dec. 9 vs. TBA, 5 p.m.
o Championship – Tuesday, Dec. 10 vs. TBA, 7 p.m.
Women’s Basketball
· Current record: 5-2, 3-1 GPAC; ranked 5th in NAIA coaches’ poll.
· Last week:
o Won vs. Midland, 92-41, on Nov. 26.
· Links: 2024-25 Schedule | Roster | Statistics | NAIA Coaches’ Poll
· Notable: Since the last report, the Bulldogs have gone 2-1 with blowout home wins over College of Saint Mary, 87-53, and Midland, 92-41. Sandwiched in between those outings was a 94-84 overtime loss at No. 1 Dordt. In that contest, Kristin Vieselmeyer tallied a career-high 27 points and Concordia turned a 12-point fourth quarter deficit into a three-point lead. The Defenders ended the game on a 10-0 run while surviving at home. In last week’s win over Midland, Kendal Brigham reached the 1,000-point mark in highlighting a dominant performance. The Bulldogs remain at No. 5 in the NAIA coaches’ poll with both losses coming at the hands of current top-four ranked teams. Through seven games, Brigham leads the team in scoring at 12.3 points per game, followed by Raelyn Kelty (9.4) and Vieselmeyer (8.9). Abby Krieser was named the GPAC Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 27. As GPAC action resumes this week, Head Coach Drew Olson’s squad will play at Morningside on Wednesday before hosting No. 12 Briar Cliff on Saturday.
· For additional news and notes on the women’s basketball program, click HERE.
· This week:
o Wednesday, Dec. 4 at Morningside (4-3, 2-2 GPAC), 6 p.m.
o Saturday, Dec. 7 vs. No. 12 Briar Cliff (6-1, 3-1 GPAC), 2 p.m.
Men’s Basketball
· Current record: 4-2, 1-2 GPAC; receiving votes in NAIA coaches’ poll.
· Last week:
o Won vs. Midland, 89-78, on Nov. 26.
· Links: 2024-25 Schedule | Roster | Statistics | NAIA Coaches’ Poll
· Notable: The Bulldogs are now three games deep into league play following last week’s 89-78 home win over Midland. The victory was much needed after Concordia opened league play with losses at the hands of Morningside, 95-88 (home), and Dordt, 102-87 (away). Both of those opponents are now ranked in the NAIA top 25. In the victory over Midland, the Bulldogs erased a 20-4 deficit to begin the game. Noah Schutte came to the rescue and finished with 27 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and two steals. Five of his teammates also reached double figures and Concordia tightened up defensively in the second half while overcoming 33 points from Jake Orr. The result pushed the Bulldogs’ series win streak against the Warriors to 12. A few days earlier, Tristan Smith became the 36th player in program history to eclipse 1,000 career points, joining brother Gage Smith in the club. On the season, Smith is averaging team highs of 19.2 points and 8.2 rebounds per game. Schutte has boosted his average to 17.5 points per outing and has totaled 1,932 points in his career. On the docket this week, Concordia will play at No. 23 Morningside on Wednesday before hosting Briar Cliff on Saturday.
· For additional news and notes on the men’s basketball program, click HERE.
· This week:
o Wednesday, Dec. 4 at No. 23 Morningside (7-1, 3-1 GPAC), 7:45 p.m.
o Saturday, Dec. 7 vs. Briar Cliff (4-5, 2-2 GPAC), 3:45 p.m.
Wrestling
· Current dual record: 3-1, 3-1 GPAC.
· GPAC Duals No. 1:
o Won vs. Dakota Wesleyan, 32-10, on Nov. 26.
o Lost vs. Morningside, 32-10, on Nov. 26.
· Links: 2024-25 Schedule | Roster | Statistics | NAIA National Rankings
· Notable: Head Coach Josh Watts’ squad is halfway through the GPAC dual schedule after Concordia hosted GPAC Day of Duals No. 1 on Nov. 26. In that event (which included eight conference duals) held inside Friedrich Arena, the Bulldogs earned a 32-10 win over Dakota Wesleyan and then fell by that same score while up against a perennially strong Morningside program. Steven Barnes, Creighton Baughman and Barret Brandt each went 2-0 on the day to pace Concordia. Brandt was especially impressive in recording a pin versus DWU and then a major decision over Morningside’s Alex Vandyke, the NAIA’s 18th-ranked wrestler at 174 pounds. Baughman was named the GPAC Wrestler of the Week on Nov. 27 and is now 3-0 this season in GPAC duals. He owns 61 career wins. Following a break in the action, the Bulldogs will compete in this Saturday’s Doane University Open in Crete, Neb.
· For additional news and notes on the wrestling program, click HERE.
· This week:
o Saturday, Dec. 7 at Doane University Open, 9 a.m.