SEWARD, Neb. – Athletes from the Concordia University track and field squads will represent the program at three separate meets over the course of this week, which is the final one before the 2019 GPAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships (May 3-4). In other words, this will be the last opportunity to jockey for spots at the conference meet. The Bulldogs will stage their own Concordia Blizzard Buster meet on Saturday.
This Week
Thursday, April 25 – Prairie Wolf Outdoor Invitational (Lincoln, Neb.)
-Event Schedule
Friday, April 26 – Drake Relays (Des Moines, Iowa)
-Event Schedule | Live Results
Saturday, April 27 – Concordia Blizzard Buster (Seward, Neb.)
-Event Schedule | Live Results
Both the Prairie Wolf Invite and the Blizzard Buster are typically smaller in scale meets than the one Concordia hosted April 5-6 when athletes from eight institutions made a visit to Seward. Invitees to this year’s Blizzard Buster include GPAC foes in Dakota Wesleyan, Doane and Hastings and NCAA Division II Wayne State College. At the second home meet of the outdoor season, field events will get started at 12 p.m. with running events to get going at 5 p.m.
Prior to the Blizzard Buster, four Bulldog relays will circle the blue oval at the prestigious Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa, on Friday. Concordia has entered men’s and women’s 4x400 and 4x800 meter relays in hopes of adding some automatic national qualifying times to the board (see relay teams below). As it stands right now, the only Bulldog relay to hit an ‘A’ or ‘B’ national standard is the men’s 4x8, which owns a ‘B’ time (7:45.73). Drake is where things could come together. This will be the first time this outdoor season that Concordia has run its top competitors for a talented women’s 4x4 that broke the indoor school record and claimed All-America honors this past indoor season.
Drake Relays entrants
Women’s 4x800m Relay – Friday, 8:50 a.m.
Miranda Rathjen – Leg 1
Rebekah Hinrichs – Leg 2
Tori Beran – Leg 3
Alyssa Fye – Leg 4
Men’s 4x800m Relay – Friday, 9:04 a.m.
Nathan Matters – Leg 1
Christian Van Cleave – Leg 2
Thomas Taylor – Leg 3
Josiah McAllister – Leg 4
Women’s 4x400m Relay – Friday, 2:59 p.m.
Rachel Battershell – Leg 1
Sarah Lewis – Leg 2
Jamie Nikodym – Leg 3
Jacee Pfeifer – Leg 4
Men’s 4x400m Relay – Friday, 3:22 p.m.
Gavin Davis – Leg 1
Xavier Ross – Leg 2
Josiah McAllister – Leg 3
Nathan Matters – Leg 4
Head coach Matt Beisel would likely be happy with a weekend that resembled the one that just finished. Over separate efforts at the Kansas Relays and Jim Dutcher Memorial Classic, the Bulldogs came away with six new automatic national qualifying marks (now 20 this season to date between men and women combined), 10 event titles and a new school record. The program record was produced by junior Jessica Deterding, who is now the standard bearer in the heptathlon (4,707 points). She eclipsed the former school record owned by Lydia Pomerenke.
Deterding and the women’s team continue to solidify themselves as an elite team nationally. The Bulldogs were ranked No. 2 in the NAIA by the USTFCCCA prior to last week. They did nothing to hurt themselves. In fact, freshman Erin Mapson moved to No. 1 in the pole vault, senior Samantha Liermann jumped up to No. 2 in the shot put and Deterding is now third in the heptathlon on the national lists. In addition, junior Addie Shaw remains atop the NAIA in the hammer throw and is No. 2 in the discus.
On the men’s side, Concordia expects to move up from its ranking of No. 29 that was unveiled on April 17. Sophomore Cody Williams was the headliner last week while achieving a personal best and fresh ‘A’ standard in the high jump (6’ 9 ¾”) and a first-place claim in the pole vault. Liam Hennessy was also a new qualifier in the hammer throw.
The GPAC championships will be hosted by Mount Marty in Yankton, S.D., next week. The Bulldogs placed first on the women’s side and second on the men’s side at the 2019 GPAC indoor championships.