Bulldog Weekly Report (Oct. 22)

By Concordia University, Nebraska on Oct. 22, 2019 in Athletic Announcements

Bulldog Athletic Association Athlete of the Week

Camryn Opfer, Volleyball

A freshman from Seward, Opfer starred in last week’s four-set win over No. 22 Dordt. The former Seward Bluejay notched 14 kills (no errors), 14 digs and two blocks while hitting .467. Opfer and the Bulldogs are now 19-3 overall and reside in third place in the GPAC standings with an 8-3 conference mark.

2019-20 BAAM Athletes of the Week
Oct. 15 – Lane Napier (football) / Marissa Hoerman (volleyball)
Oct. 8 – Caleb Goldsmith (soccer) / Tara Callahan (volleyball)
Oct. 1 – AJ Jenkins (football) / Rebekah Hinrichs (cross country)
Sept. 24 – Derek Tachovsky (football) / Kendra Placke (golf)
Sept. 17 – Moises Jacobo (soccer) / Kara Stark (volleyball)
Sept. 10 – Carlos Orquiz (soccer) / Amie Martin (cross country)
Sept. 3 – Eduardo Alba (soccer) / Emmie Noyd (volleyball)

2019-20 BAAM Athletes of the Month
September – Derek Tachovsky (football) / Emmie Noyd (volleyball)

News and notes:

Women’s basketball set to play Creighton tonight (Oct. 22): It’s that time of year again. The defending national champion Concordia women’s basketball program is getting set to take on NCAA Division I Creighton University in an exhibition contest tonight (Oct. 22) at Sokol Arena in Omaha. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. CT. Head coach Drew Olson’s squad will officially open the 2019-20 season this Friday and Saturday at the College of the Ozarks Classic in Point Lookout, Mo. On the first day of the event, the Bulldogs will play Sterling College at 5:30 p.m. In a true tournament style format, Concordia will play either host College of the Ozarks or Southeastern University (Fla.) on Saturday. Pending Friday’s result, the Bulldogs will play at either 1 or 3 p.m. on Saturday. The Bulldogs will open up the campaign as the preseason No. 1 team in the GPAC. For more details on Concordia women’s basketball, click HERE.

Men’s basketball ushers in new season at Hastings College Classic: The 2019-20 Concordia men’s basketball season will tip off this weekend at the Hastings College Classic inside Lynn Farrell Arena. In action on Friday at the event, the Bulldogs will take on Dakota State University (S.D.) at 5 p.m. CT. Concordia will then play Friends University (Kan.) at 2 p.m. on Saturday. Head coach Ben Limback’s squad checked in at No. 8 in the GPAC preseason coaches’ poll released last week. The Bulldogs return all five starters, including perimeter scoring threats in Carter Kent, Tanner Shuck and Brevin Sloup. For more information on Bulldog men’s basketball, click HERE.

Previewing the 2019-20 wrestling campaign: Head coach Levi Calhoun’s wrestling program will wait a bit longer than the basketball teams to get the 2019-20 season underway. The campaign is slated to begin on Saturday, Nov. 9 at the Dakota Wesleyan Open in Mitchell, S.D. Calhoun’s program is coming off a co-GPAC dual championship season and returns four national qualifiers to the mat. Senior 174-pounder Deandre Chery is a two-time GPAC champion with hopes of making his way onto the podium at the national championships. Calhoun’s squad again has GPAC title aspirations and is aiming to move up from last year’s 26th-place finish at the NAIA national championships. For a detailed season preview, click HERE.

Shooting sports program lends hand to charity event: Head coach Scott Moniot’s shooting sports program did not compete this past week, but members of the team were at their home course, Oak Creek Sporting Club in Brainard, Neb., Oct. 18-20 for the Kids & Clays Sporting Clays Tournament that benefited Ronald McDonald House Charities. The Bulldogs have taken part in five events this fall, including their own Bulldog Sporting Classic held Oct. 5-6. For more on Concordia shooting sports, click HERE.

Bulldog Coaches Show airs every Thursday at 5:30 p.m. CT: The Bulldog Coaches Show is underway in its fourth 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 2018-19 season, Bulldog football, men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball contests will be aired live on Max Country. Tyler Cavalli 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 fourth 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 in 2019-20, Concordia Athletics is partnering with PrestoSports for live video and statistical streaming. For more details on this change, click HERE. Check team schedules/results pages for webcast dates. Scrimmages, exhibitions and junior varsity events are not broadcasted.

Volleyball

  • The Bulldogs took a moment for some well-deserved recovery time while recently going seven days without a match. The idle stretch ended on Oct. 19 when No. 22 Dordt visited Walz Arena. Concordia continued its winning ways at home by taking care of the Defenders in four sets, 25-23, 20-25, 25-20, 25-16. The Bulldogs have improved to 9-1 at home and are hitting their stride at the right time. Head coach Ben Boldt’s squad has won four in a row (and seven of its last eight) while moving to 19-3 overall and to 8-3 in the GPAC (third place). For more on Concordia volleyball, click HERE.
  • The 2019 Bulldogs are achieving many notable attainments that haven’t been done in several years. Concordia has gotten some monkeys off its back by beating both Hastings and Midland for the first time since 2015 and by knocking off Dordt for the first time since 2014. In addition, the 19-3 overall mark is the best 22-match record for the program since the 2005 squad coached by Rachel Miller had the exact same mark. Finally, when the new NAIA top 25 poll is released on Wednesday, the Bulldogs should have their first national ranking since the 2016 preseason.
  • It may be asking a lot for Concordia to go from “others receiving votes” into the NAIA top 10, but a case can certainly be made for it to happen. Massey Ratings currently has the Bulldogs as the No. 6 team in the NAIA having played the nation’s 21st most challenging schedule. The way Concordia has handled that schedule has been impressive. Among all NAIA teams, it ranks 10th in kills per set (13.75), 12th in hitting percentage (.240) and 31st in blocks per set (2.16). Inside the GPAC, only Northwestern (10-0 GPAC) and Jamestown (8-1 GPAC) have played at as consistently high of a level as the Bulldogs.
  • Back in May of 2018, then Seward High School star Camryn Opfer announced a commitment to play volleyball at NCAA Division II Washburn University. Concordia is glad she reconsidered and made the decision to stay home. Opfer enjoyed one of the best matches of her young career in last week’s win over Dordt. Her stat line included 14 kills (no errors), 14 digs, two blocks and a .467 hitting percentage. On the season, Opfer is hitting .223 with 200 kills (2.63/set). She’s had 10 or more kills nine times this season, including three matches in a row.
  • The 15 blocks recorded by the Bulldogs last week equaled a team season high. They also denied 15 attacks in the four-set victory at No. 9 Midland on Oct. 5. While Emmie Noyd ranks fourth among GPAC players in blocks per set (1.2), the blocking effort has mostly been a team effort this season. No other Bulldog ranks in the top 20 on the conference blocks list. In the victory over Dordt, six Concordia players were in on multiple blocks, including Arleigh Costello, who blocked a Defender attack for match point.
  • Junior Tara Callahan has picked up three GPAC Setter of the Week awards and an NAIA National Setter of the Week honor this season. The Brady, Neb., native has been a rock for one of the nation’s most efficient attacking teams. Last week versus Dordt, Callahan added 45 assists, eight digs, two blocks and two kills while directing an offense that outhit the Defenders, .270 to .160. Callahan ranks 12th nationally (third in the GPAC) with an average of 10.58 assists per set.
  • While the Concordia block has been strong, the play of junior Marissa Hoerman in the back row has been another reason why opponents are hitting only .134 and averaging just 10.3 kills per set this season. The native of Evergreen, Colo., posted 19 digs versus Dordt to run her season total to 288 (3.74/set). Routinely up against some of the most challenging services in the NAIA, Hoerman has passed serve receive at a 95.3 percent rate this season. She has also significantly increased her service ace total from 14 last season to 26 so far in 2019.
  • With five matches left in the regular season, the Bulldogs have put themselves in position to earn a top four placement in the conference, which allows for the privilege of hosting in the quarterfinals of the GPAC tournament. In a conference like this, it would probably also give Concordia a great shot at its first national tournament berth since 2015. That also happened to be the last year in which the program hosted a GPAC postseason match. The Bulldogs tied for fourth in the GPAC regular-season standings in both 2014 and 2015.
  • Concordia has some more down time this week with its next matches scheduled for the weekend. The Bulldogs will be at Briar Cliff (13-13, 3-9 GPAC) for a 7:30 p.m. CT match on Friday before heading to Yankton, S.D., for a tussle with Mount Marty (7-19, 0-10 GPAC) at 4 p.m. on Saturday. Concordia will be meeting both teams for the first time this season. It got a good look at the Chargers when they were in Seward for the Bulldog Bash earlier this fall.

Women’s Soccer

  • The Bulldogs have lived life on the edge in recent action with three-straight games having been decided in double overtime. After watching Morningside celebrate a golden goal in the 107th minute of a 1-0 contest on Oct. 16, Concordia experienced the other, more joyous side of a similar game. The Bulldogs knocked off Briar Cliff, 2-1, in double overtime on Oct. 19. Head coach Chris Luther’s squad is now 4-9-1 overall and 4-3-1 in conference play (seventh place). For more information on Concordia women’s soccer, click HERE.
  • Overtimes are becoming the norm for the Bulldogs, who also fell by a 1-0 score in double overtime at No. 14 Hastings on Oct. 12. Concordia has now played in nine overtime periods this season (five overtime games). In those instances, the Bulldogs have a record of 1-3-1. In other words, it was time they won one of them. Finally, in the 109th minute at Briar Cliff, Brynn Suddeth ended it with a header that she tucked inside the right post. Suddeth is the first Bulldog to notch a golden goal since Maria Deeter did so in last year’s 3-2 double overtime victory at Morningside.
  • Concordia is finding out that it is fully capable of competing with the top teams in the league despite enduring an 0-6 start to this season. The 2-0 loss the Bulldogs suffered at the hands of then 25th-ranked Midland on Oct. 9 actually represents their largest margin of defeat within conference play. The road win over Briar Cliff is one this team can build upon. The Chargers own victories over both Hastings and Midland. Earlier this season, Concordia also tied a Dordt team that is currently 7-1-1 in conference play.
  • In terms of goal scoring, it’s been a strange season for the Bulldogs. Concordia had gone roughly 400 minutes of game time since its last goal before Tori Cera came to the rescue with a goal in the 83rd minute at Briar Cliff. The Bulldogs have managed only 12 goals this season – and no one player has more than two. Four Concordia individuals have exactly two goals: Jaiden Beecher, Cera, Katie Miles and Suddeth. Four others have found the back of the net once: Allee Downing, Madeline Haugen, Kaley Heinz and Grace Soenksen.
  • Luther has been singing the praises of Soenksen, who did not claim a role in the starting lineup until after the season had already started. Grace is the younger sister of former starter and steady performer Esther Soenksen (played in the 2014 through 2017 seasons). Esther played more of an attacking role while Grace has helped strengthen the current back line. Grace moved from an outside back to a center back last week at Briar Cliff. She has started 11 of the first 14 games.
  • At times, injuries and inconsistent results have forced Luther to shuffle the deck. Only three players have started each of the first 14 games: Haugen, Mikeila Martinez and Morgan Raska. When Concordia is getting positive results, the midfield, including Haugen and Martinez, has played a central role. Junior Michaela Twito (13 starts) has also been a stalwart in the middle of the field for a squad that has allowed its opponents an average of just over 10 shots per game.
  • After surrendering 13 goals in six nonconference games, the Bulldogs have tightened things up by conceding only seven goals in the first eight GPAC contests. Taking into account GPAC games only, Concordia ranks in a tie for third in the conference in terms of fewest goals allowed per game (0.88). It’s a credit to a solid overall team defensive effort as well as goalkeeper Lindsey Carley, who made 13 saves last week.
  • The Bulldogs have just two weeks left in the regular season as they hope to lock themselves into the conference tournament (top eight teams qualify). Up next is a trip to College of Saint Mary (5-6-2, 2-4-1 GPAC) for a 3 p.m. CT matchup on Wednesday. It will be senior day on Saturday when the Bulldogs welcome Jamestown (8-6, 6-2 GPAC) to Bulldog Stadium for a 1 p.m. kickoff.

Football

  • The margin between winning and losing continues to be razor thin for a squad that has gotten used to playing wire-to-wire contests no matter the opponent. Concordia’s physical defense kept a powerful Northwestern team out of the end zone the entire second half, but the sixth-ranked Red Raiders did just enough to pull out a 20-14 win inside Bulldog Stadium on Oct. 19. Northwestern outgained the Bulldogs, 412-357, while both teams committed three turnovers. Head coach Patrick Daberkow’s squad has slipped to 3-4 overall and to 3-3 in conference play. For more on Concordia football, click HERE.
  • The Bulldogs will know they have taken a big step forward as a program when they can get over the hump in games like the one that took place last week. Concordia has fallen now in four-straight games against top 25 foes. The program’s most recent win over a ranked team came on Sept. 23, 2017, when the Bulldogs toppled then seventh-ranked Doane, 29-18. Concordia will play only one more ranked foe this season – Nov. 9 when they will be at No. 1 Morningside.
  • Once again, the Bulldog defense proved to be legit while up against an elite opponent. Not many teams are going to complete shut down star Northwestern quarterback Tyson Kooima, but Concordia at least contained him to 281 total yards (passing/rushing) and one touchdown pass. Safety Peyton Mitchell came down with two interceptions, including one that thwarted a Red Raider red zone drive. Northwestern got only two touchdowns on five trips inside the red zone. It was forced to kick field goals from distances of 26 and 27 yards in the second half.
  • Concordia went into the game believing its best chance to attack the Red Raider defense was through the air. Other than his second quarter interception, quarterback Jake Kemp did a solid job of moving the chains and making use of a skilled receiver group. Kemp finished 29-for-41 for 316 yards and a touchdown. Five Bulldog receivers caught four or more passes: Lane Castaneda (six for 89, touchdown), Art Anderson (six for 58), Korrell Koehlmoos (six for 81), Ryan Durdon (five for 35) and Garrett Schardt (four for 28). Castaneda’s 28-yard touchdown grab cut the deficit to six with just under two minutes left in the game.
  • With three games to go, Kemp is on pace to become only the second quarterback in program history. He has piled up 1,498 passing yards thus far. The native of Decatur, Texas, has surpassed 250 passing yards in a game five times this season: 316 versus Northwestern, 309 at Hastings, 296 versus Dakota Wesleyan, 265 versus Briar Cliff and 262 versus Doane. Kemp needs exactly 653 more passing yards to break the school single-season record of 2,150 by Jarrod Pimentel in 2001.
  • Senior running back Ryan Durdon struck for the 20th rushing touchdown of his career on a 14-yard scamper in the first quarter last week. Durdon now has 22 total touchdowns in his collegiate career, putting in eighth place on the program’s all-time list for career touchdowns scored. No. 1 on that list is Cleve Wester, who found the end zone 45 times during the 1982 through 1985 seasons. Within Durdon’s reach are JaMaine Lewis (25) and Ross Wurdeman (24) on the program list.
  • Northwestern actually enjoyed more success rushing the football (125 yards and 3.6 yards/carry) than most Concordia opponents have this season. Despite those numbers, the Bulldogs rank fourth nationally in rush defense (77.9). Also among all NAIA squads, Concordia ranks third in third down defense (22.4 percent conversion rate), 10th in sacks (23), 15th in scoring defense (15.4), 16th in total defense (293.9) and 19th in fewest first downs allowed (108). No Bulldog foe has scored more than 27 points this season.
  • The production of the linebacker crew continues to be a theme. In last week’s game, senior Derek Tachovsky led the team with 11 tackles while junior Lane Napier added nine tackles (two for loss), a forced fumble and a quarterback hurry and senior Riley Bilstein recorded seven tackles, a fumble recovery and two quarterback hurries. Napier now has 81 tackles on the season and ranks fifth nationally with an average of 11.6 tackles per game. The Bulldogs’ top four leading tacklers are their starting linebackers.
  • Concordia will attempt to get back into the win column on Saturday when it plays at Dordt (4-3, 3-2 GPAC) for a 1 p.m. CT kickoff in Sioux Center, Iowa. It will mark the fifth year in a row that the Bulldogs have played the Defenders on the road. Dordt is coming off a 61-0 dismantling of Doane last week. The Defenders defeated Concordia last season, 38-19.

Men’s Soccer

  • A rash of injuries hit the Bulldogs at an inopportune time as they have run through the GPAC gauntlet over the past two weeks. In last week’s action, short-handed Concordia was shutout twice in losses by scores of 3-0 to Morningside on Oct. 16 and 2-0 at Briar Cliff on Oct. 19. The Bulldogs had been ranked in the top three of the official GPAC poll all season, but have slid back due to recent results. Twelfth-year head coach Jason Weides’ squad is now 9-4-1 overall and 4-3-1 in conference play (fifth place). For more information on Concordia men’s soccer, click HERE.
  • The Bulldogs are not quite the same team right now as the one that began the year at 9-1 overall and 4-0 in the GPAC. In many of the most successful seasons under Weides, Concordia has had much better fortune with injuries. Goalkeeper Eduardo Alba was the latest to be sidelined (missed the game at Briar Cliff). Other key players who have battled injuries or still are include Roger de la Villa, Carlos Ferrer, Caleb Goldsmith, Evan Hayden and Joao Pedro Verissimo. Renzo Bozzo is the only player on the roster to start all 14 games.
  • There have been times when Concordia has struggled to create offensive chances, but it had not been shut out all season until its current three-game skid. It’s been roughly 306 minutes of game time since the Bulldogs last found the back of the net. That particular goal was scored by Garrett Perry in what will likely end up being the highlight reel goal of the year for Concordia. The drought has slumped the Bulldogs’ goal scoring average to 2.43 per game (fifth in the GPAC).
  • Concordia knew the games over the past two weeks would go a long way towards deciding where it shakes out in the conference race. As discussed, the Bulldogs have not exactly been at full strength for the critical part of the slate that featured games against Midland, No. 5 Hastings, Morningside and Briar Cliff. Those four teams are the current top four place holders in the GPAC standings and are a combined 25-3-1 in conference play. At 7-0 in the league, Hastings is in the cat bird’s seat as it hunts for yet another GPAC regular-season crown.
  • The good news is that the Bulldogs had some experience behind Alba at the keeper position. Sophomore Callum Goldsmith stepped into the lineup at Briar Cliff in what was the ninth start of his career. Goldmsith also ably filled in last season when then senior Jack Bennett dealt with injury. Goldsmith was credited with eight saves while helping Concordia hang in the game with the Chargers last week. Goldsmith put up a 6-1-2 goalkeeper record in 2018.
  • At one point this season, the Bulldogs had cracked the top 25 of the Massey Ratings (computer formula). Concordia had also received votes in the official NAIA coaches’ poll the previous two weeks. However, the Bulldogs have dropped down to No. 59 in the Massey Ratings, which rates Concordia’s schedule as the 80th strongest in the NAIA. Due to the current skid, the Bulldogs will likely have to wait until at least next season to earn a national ranking for the first time in program history. Even the 2017 Concordia squad that won a school record 16 games was unable to get enough votes to leap into the top 25.
  • While there have been some frustrations lately, the Bulldogs remain one of the GPAC’s most consistently solid programs. With one more victory, Concordia would reach the 10-win mark for the ninth season in a row. Since the start of the 2011 season, the Bulldogs have a combined overall record of 99-54-18. Weides is the program’s all-time winningest coach with 116 career victories during a tenure that began with the 2008 season.
  • Considering the wealth of injuries, Concordia feels fortunate to have a mid-week bye. The Bulldogs will return to action on Saturday when they will host Jamestown (6-7, 3-4 GPAC) at 3:30 p.m. CT. Only three games remain on the GPAC regular-season slate. Last week’s pair of defeats may have taken Concordia out of the running for a home game in the GPAC tournament quarterfinals (top four seeds host). The Bulldogs are five points behind fourth-place Morningside.

Cross Country

  • Meet No. 4 of the 2019 season occurred on Oct. 5 with the Concordia men’s and women’s teams pacing the trail at Adams Nature Preserve in North Sioux City, S.D., for the Briar Cliff Invite. The women’s 5k race was marred a bit by a mishap that saw a large group of runners take a wrong turn. As a result, team results were not official. On the men’s side, the Bulldogs placed sixth out of 14 teams in the 8k run. Head coach Matt Beisel’s squads have been idle from competition since then. For more on Concordia cross country, click HERE.
  • At least on the women’s side, the Bulldogs are back in territory the program got used to being in for the bulk of previous head coach Kregg Einspahr’s 22-year tenure. In other words, Concordia has returned to the NAIA top 25. The Bulldog women checked in at No. 17 in the rating released on Oct. 3 (dropped two spots to No. 19 on Oct. 17). The ranking marked the first for the program since 2015 and its highest since September of 2012. Concordia has also continued to be rated first in the official GPAC poll. Meanwhile, the men are ranked fifth in the conference.
  • Sticking with the theme of rankings, the Bulldog women finished in the top 20 nationally each year from the 1994 through 2009 seasons. Concordia has never won a national title in cross country, but it has come close with four runner-up claims on the women’s side and one on the men’s side. The Bulldog women have appeared at No. 1 in the NAIA national poll once – in November 2004. That impressive team was one of the national runner-up squads.
  • The women’s team has had three GPAC Runners of the Week this season – freshman Amie Martin (Sept. 11), senior Rebekah Hinrichs (Oct. 2) and freshman Bailie Vanarsdall (Oct. 9). Prior to this season, the women’s program had not had a GPAC Runner of the Week since former GPAC Runner of the Year Sarah Kortze claimed the honor three times during the 2012 season. More recently, the men’s program earned a GPAC Runner of the Week award (Ben Sievert) in 2014.
  • Somewhere around two miles into the women’s race, some confusion took place that led to a pack of runners veering off the course at the Briar Cliff Invite. Eventually the mistake was learned by the group of runners, some of whom ran a considerably greater distance than the normal 5k. Officially, Vanarsdall turned in the top time among Bulldogs by clocking a personal best of 19:52.13 (ninth overall out of 130 runners). Erin Lindeman put together a strong race and finished in 20:13.06 (29th).
  • According to Beisel’s calculations, freshman Kylahn Heritage would have been the team’s top finisher at the Briar Cliff Invite if not for the mishap. Heritage wound up finishing in 20:16.40 (34th). She was just behind Sydney Clark (20:13.47; 31st) and Lydia Cook (20:14.10; 32nd). Eight additional Bulldogs completed the 5k in under 21 minutes. Reigning GPAC Runner of the Week Rebekah Hinrichs crossed the finish line in 20:22.36 (40th). Officially, the women’s team has had a different No. 1 runner in each of the four meets.
  • Fortunately, there were no snafus in the men’s race. By placing sixth, the Bulldogs beat out conference rivals in Hastings (ninth), Mount Marty (12th), Dakota Wesleyan (13th) and Briar Cliff (14th). Once again, junior Jordan Lorenz led the way. He placed 23rd (out of 140 runners) while clocking in at 26:44.80. The rest of the top five included Wyatt Lehr (26:47.91; 26th), Camden Sesna (27:25.67; 46th), Antonio Blaine (28:01.50; 61st) and Ethan Pankow (28:30.45; 74th). Lorenz has been the team’s top runner at each of the past three meets.
  • Beisel has been pushing his team hard over the past few weeks while it has gone without an official competition. Next up on the schedule is the Mount Marty Invite on Saturday. The location of the meet will be Fox Run Golf Course in Yankton, S.D. It will serve as the final race prior to the GPAC Championships on Saturday, Nov. 9.