The Concordia University, Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2026 was officially inducted on Friday, Sept. 18 in a ceremony held in conjunction with homecoming weekend on campus. Complete bios for each of the inductees are included below.
Rev. Dr. R. John Buuck ’58 | Men’s Basketball, Football, Track & Field, Baseball & Tennis
A well-rounded student-athlete, Rev. Dr. R. John Buuck competed in all five sports offered to male student-athletes at Concordia Teachers College in the 1950s. Buuck starred predominantly on the basketball court. As a senior, Buuck ranked second among all players in the Nebraska College Conference with an average of 16.4 points per game (295 total points). Originally from Woodburn, Indiana, Buuck was named to the five-player 1957-58 all-conference team alongside the legendary Tom Osborne and was tabbed a Converse Basketball All-Star in 1958. A highlight performance his senior year came against Kearney State when Buuck piled up 34 points. Buuck lettered four times in basketball and once apiece in baseball, tennis and track & field. In 1957, Buuck recorded a hit off future National Baseball Hall of Famer Bob Gibson. He was a teammate of Concordia Athletic Hall of Famers such as Gene Faszholz, Vic Peter and Gary Seevers. Throughout his collegiate career, Buuck cycled through spring sports, competing in track as a freshman and sophomore, baseball as a junior and tennis as a senior. Buuck was coached by Luther Schwich in basketball and baseball, Herb Meyer in football and track and Charlie Kurtz in tennis.
While at CTC, Buuck studied biological science as part of his educational track. Buuck went on to spend his career in education, which included 21 years (1958-79) at Concordia University, Portland as a faculty member and then academic dean. From 1979 to 1996, Buuck served as President of Concordia University Wisconsin and grew the institution’s enrollment from 300 to 4,400 students while relocating the campus from inner city Milwaukee to Mequon, along Lake Michigan. For his impact on the school, CUW named its gymnasium the R. John Buuck Field House in 1999. Among his accomplishments, Buuck also founded Lutheran universities in Tallin, Estonia, Kiev, Ukraine, and Ghana, West Africa. While at CTC, Buuck met his future wife, Lyla Krumm Buuck. John and Lyla had four children: David, Steven, Thomas and Cheryl.
Kristen (Conahan) Vogt ’14 | Women’s Basketball
The most prolific sharpshooter in Concordia Women’s Basketball history, Kristen (Conahan) Vogt played for the 2010-11 through 2013-14 squads coached by Drew Olson. The Omaha native was named an NAIA Division II All-American in 2011-12 (second team) and 2012-13 (first team). Vogt also earned four career GPAC All-Conference awards with first team mentions in 2011-12 and 2012-13. At the time of induction, Vogt owns program all-time rankings of first in 3-point field goals (323), seventh in steals (291), 10th in scoring (1,656) and 20th in assists (285). She sank 104 treys in 2011-12 for a school single season standard. She also shares a school record for triples in a single game (eight). The Omaha World-Herald tabbed Vogt an All-Nebraska selection all four years while tagging her as the All-Nebraska Team Honorary Captain for the 2012-13 season. Vogt led three Bulldog teams to national tournament appearances, including the ’11-12 squad that swept GPAC regular season and tournament titles and advanced to the national semifinals. Vogt averaged 13.7 points over 121 career games. Following graduation, Vogt assisted Olson during the 2014-15 campaign, which resulted in a national runner-up finish.
A Millard North High School alum, Vogt earned degrees from Concordia in Accounting and Business Administration. She went on to receive her MBA from Bellevue University. Vogt has worked at both Kiewit and Koch Inc. during her professional career. While at Concordia, Kristen met her future husband, Adam. They have three children: Levi, Joey and Ava. The family resides in Yutan, Nebraska. A men’s basketball alum, Adam works as a teacher (mathematics and physical education) and coach with Yutan Public Schools. Wrote Kristen of how Concordia influenced her life, “Concordia holds a special place in my heart. I made lifelong friends that I’ll cherish forever. I met my husband. My faith grew and strengthened. I was blessed to play four years of basketball and coach the year after I graduated. I couldn’t have asked for a better experience.”
Bret Walter ’96 | Men’s Basketball
Known for his perimeter shooting, Bret Walter helped lead Concordia Men’s Basketball program to great heights in the mid-1990s. Originally from Jerome, Idaho, Walter claimed First Team All-NIAC awards in 1994-95 and 1995-96 and was chosen as an NAIA Honorable Mention All-American as a senior. At the time of his Hall of Fame selection, Walter owns program all-time rankings of third in 3-point field goals (284), 22nd in scoring (1,248) and 22nd in assists (206). Walter drained eight treys in three separate games and accumulated a career-high 36 points versus Nebraska Wesleyan in January 1995. As a senior, Walter averaged 16.0 points per game and was selected as a team captain and the team’s Co-MVP. Walter helped spur the Concordia Athletics Hall of Fame 1994-95 team to a 30-4 overall record, a national ranking as high as No. 2 and a trip to the national quarterfinals. Coached by Grant Schmidt, the ’94-95 and ’95-96 teams both won NIAC regular season titles and were CIT champions. Academically, Walter garnered two NAIA Scholar-Athlete awards.
Walter graduated from Concordia with a bachelor’s degree in Education before then receiving his Master of Education from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Professionally, Walter served Faith Lutheran School in Las Vegas from 1997 to 2023, spending 23 years as boy’s basketball coach, 20 years as Athletics Director and six years as a teacher. He led Faith Lutheran to five state championships. Currently, Walter is the Chief Advancement Officer for the Lutheran Education Association of Houston. Bret and his wife Stacey live in the Katy, Texas, area. Bret and Stacey have two children: Brevin and Rylan. Wrote Bret of how Concordia influenced his life, “Being at Concordia and around high character Christians influenced my desire to work in Lutheran schools and share that with students I taught and players I coached. Meeting Stacey at Concordia has been by far the most positive impact on my life.”
Nolan Zikas ’19 | Golf
An inspirational person, Nolan Zikas battled cancer during his career as a student-athlete and stands 10 years cancer free, as of the summer of 2026. As a child, Zikas was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a form of cancer that resulted in the removal of his right femur bone, the insertion of a titanium rod and knee replacement. He’s undergone 13 surgeries since his initial diagnosis at the age of 15. The La Vista, Nebraska, native persevered and broke program records for scoring average for a season (74.06) and career (75.60). Zikas also set school standards for 36-hole score tournament score (-4, 138), tournament wins in a season (two) and tournament wins in a career (three). Zikas placed eighth in the GPAC as a freshman and earned GPAC All-Conference honors all four years. He produced 17 career top 10 tournament placements. In 2018, Zikas was named the David Toms Overcoming Adversity Award Winner and was interviewed on the Golf Channel. He also achieved distinction as an All-America Scholar from the coaches’ association. Zikas was coached by Brett Muller.
Zikas graduated from Concordia with a bachelor's degree in Recreational Sports Studies (emphasis in Sports Management). In his professional career, Zikas has worked at Access Bank, Scheels and Taylor Made Home Solutions. He currently serves as Lead Estimator at Taylor Made Home Solutions. Nolan resides in Papillion, Nebraska, with his wife Ali. Wrote Nolan, “Concordia brought me friendships and relationships that will last a lifetime. I met some of my best friends at Concordia and I learned valuable lessons on the golf course and in the classroom throughout my four years at Concordia that shaped me in who I am today.”
2015-16 Women’s Track & Field
In May of 2016, the Concordia Women’s Track & Field team became the first women’s team in school history to win a national championship. The Bulldogs compiled 71 team points at the 2016 NAIA Outdoor Championships in Gulf Shores, Alabama, holding off runner up Indiana Tech (66 points). The All-Americans for Concordia included Kattie Cleveland, Stephanie Coley, McKenzie Gravo, Liz King (hammer national champion), Samantha Liermann, Sydney Meyer, Nicole Perry, Kali Robb, Jan Steinbrueck, Tricia Svoboda and Kim Wood. The ’15-16 Bulldogs also placed fifth at the NAIA Indoor Championships and were the runners up at the conference indoor and outdoor meets. Head Coach Kregg Einspahr was honored as the NAIA National Coach of the Year while assistant Ed McLaughlin earned men’s and women’s NAIA National Assistant Coach of the Year awards from the USTFCCCA. Other assistant coaches were Mark Samuels, Jason Berry and Craig Saalfeld.
Said Einspahr following the outdoor national meet of 2016, “We have a lot of juniors and seniors that have been here before and with that we thought we had a chance. This is just a dream come true to be able to win another national championship. You always hope to be in that position someday. What a wonderful feeling for the whole coaching staff and athletes who work so hard. They’re so representative of what Concordia is about.”
Added Kali Robb, “I would say that you really can't put into words how it feels to be on a collegiate national championship team. It just feels unreal. The one memory I will take away from this year is the team support and family, especially from the seniors. Without them, none of this would have been possible.”