2016 Bulldog Weekly Report (Feb. 16)

By Jacob Knabel on Feb. 16, 2016 in Baseball

Bulldog Booster Club Athletes of the Week

 Female: Kim Wood, Track & Field

Wood, a native of Greeley, Neb., toppled another school record last week by winning the 600 meter run at the Concordia Invite in a time of 1:33.15. She also ran a leg for the 4x400 meter relay that turned in automatic national qualifying time. Wood currently owns the NAIA’s top mile time and three additional top-10 national marks.

Male: Jr Lule, Wrestling

Lule, who hails from Blythe, Calif., completed a dominant run through GPAC duals with last week’s victory by technical fall in a 32-7 team win over Morningside. Lule (30-7) has been a major part of two-straight GPAC dual tiles for the seventh-ranked Bulldogs. He outscored conference opponents by a combined total of 112-10 during dual action.

News and notes:

Top Dawgs: Four different Bulldog track and field athletes continue to top the NAIA leaderboard for 24th-year head coach Kregg Einspahr’s program. So unprecedented is the collection of talent that it has Einspahr jogging his memory bank. For more on the accomplished group of star athletes, click HERE.

The process of making of a GPAC power: How has head coach Dana Vote built Bulldog wrestling into a GPAC powerhouse? According to star 141-pounder Andrew Schulte, “It’s all about the process.” For more insight into the program’s recent success, click HERE.

Dance and cheer ends competition season at GPAC Invite: First-year head coach Heather Duff’s dance and cheer squads completed competition for 2015-16 at last week’s GPAC Invite hosted by Morningside. The Concordia cheer team placed third and dance sixth. For more details on cheer, click HERE. For more on dance, click HERE.

Folkerts and Mueller named to academic all-district teams: Last week the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) chose Bulldog basketball players Chandler Folkerts and Becky Mueller as members of its 2015-16 academic all-district teams. The award recognizes student-athletes for their combined performances athletically and in the classroom. Since the beginning of the 2014-15 athletic year, Bulldogs have collected 15 academic all-district honors.

Winter recruiting Q&A: Concordia head football coach Vance Winter appeared on last week’s Bulldog Coaches show and discussed recruiting with voice of the Bulldogs Jayson Jorgensen. To read a transcript of that interview, click HERE.

Bulldog Coaches Show airs every Thursday at 4 p.m. CT: New this year is the Bulldog Coaches Show, which runs for a half hour every Thursday beginning at 4 p.m. CT on KAWL 1370-AM. The show can also be heard live via 104.9 Max Country’s website or by downloading the TuneIn Radio app and then searching “KAWL.” This week’s broadcast schedule for live radio coverage on Max Country will include women’s basketball versus College of Saint Mary on Wednesday (7 p.m.) and women’s and men’s basketball at Briar Cliff on Saturday (2/4 p.m.).

Concordia Sports Network: Live webcasts for most home varsity contests can be accessed by visiting http://www.cune.edu/csn at game time. Check team schedules/results pages for webcast dates. Scrimmages, exhibitions and junior varsity events are not broadcasted.

Wrestling

  • Seventh-ranked Concordia capped off the 2015-16 dual schedule by completing a second-straight undefeated run through the GPAC. The Bulldogs celebrated its second-consecutive GPAC dual title on Feb. 11 by thumping Morningside, 32-7, inside Walz Arena. With the win, fourth-year head coach Dana Vote’s squad finished with records of 13-4 overall and 7-0 in conference action. The 13 wins are a program single-season record. For more information on Concordia wrestling, click HERE.
  • It’s been 733 days since the Bulldogs last dropped a conference dual. During its active 14-match GPAC win streak, Concordia has outscored opponents by a combined 482-123 while triumphing in 107 of 140 individual bouts. This season the Bulldogs won each of their GPAC duals by a margin of at least nine points while outnumbering conference foes by a collective 240-64. Morningside and Northwestern tied for second with 5-2 league marks.
  • Three Bulldogs finished off perfect 7-0 GPAC dual records last week: Andrew Schulte (141), Jr Lule (157) and Ceron Francisco (285). Lule and Schulte both recorded wins by technical fall while Francisco racked up another major. Concordia took care of the Mustangs at every weight except for 125 and 149.
  • Schulte, ranked No. 1 in the NAIA at 141 pounds, ran his overall record to 32-6 by collecting his 18th-straight win in last week’s dual. During the streak, the native of Corona, Calif., has won six times by technical fall and three times by major decision. Schulte needs just one more victory to tie Ken Burkhardt Jr.’s program record of 33 wins in a single season. Schulte is now 52-10 in his two seasons as a Bulldog.
  • Lule became the fourth different wrestler under Vote to reach 30 wins in a season when he registered yet another victory by technical fall last week. Other 30-win seasons were produced last year by Burkhardt Jr. (33-18) and Francisco (31-17) and this season by Schulte. Lule now has 11 wins by technical fall on the year. His career record at Concordia is 45-15.
  • In last week’s national coaches’ poll the Bulldogs nudged up one spot to No. 7, putting them one position off the school’s highest-ever ranking achieved last season. The Bulldogs have become a fixture among the NAIA’s top-10 wrestling programs. Concordia has been ranked in the top 10 of all six polls this season and has not fallen any lower than ninth. Over the last two seasons, the Bulldogs have found themselves in the top 10 in 10 of 13 polls. Currently, nine individual Bulldogs have national rankings next to their names.
  • Vote’s roster sports 12 individuals with 10 or more wins on the season. Five Bulldogs have eclipsed the 20-win mark. The latest to do so was Matt Atwood, who joins Francisco, Schulte, Lule, Tommy Bailey and Burkhardt Jr. on the list. Travian Cooke is next closest with 18 victories.
    • Andrew Schulte (141/149) – 32-6
    • Jr Lule (157) – 30-7
    • Tommy Bailey (165) – 26-18
    • Ken Burkhardt Jr. (197) – 25-11
    • Ceron Francisco (285) – 25-13
    • Matt Atwood (184) – 20-5
    • Travian Cooke (174) – 18-12
    • Dmitri Smith (125) – 17-16
    • Daniel Melcher (149) – 13-8
    • Kodie Cole (133) – 11-9
    • Alexander Reimers (197) – 11-9
    • Foster Bunce (141/149) – 10-8
  • The most significant portion of the season lies ahead. The Bulldogs are getting set to host the NAIA North Qualifying Group Tournament on Saturday. National tournament berths will be on the line when all eight GPAC wrestling institutions converge inside Walz Arena. The event will begin at 9 a.m. with a three-mat layout. The arena will then be restructured with just a single mat for the championship matches at all 10 weights. The Concordia Sports Network will carry a live webcast of the entire event. (Please note that CSN will not have the ability to stream three matches at one time).

Men’s Basketball

  • Concordia averaged more than 100 points per game last week while winning home games over Midland, 91-85, on Feb. 10 and over Northwestern, 110-89, on Feb. 13. In the process, the Bulldogs completed their regular-season home schedule with a record of 10-4 on the Walz hardwood. Third-year head coach Ben Limback’s red-hot Bulldogs have won seven of their last eight games and have creeped up to fifth in the GPAC standings. They now sit at 18-10 overall and 10-9 in conference play. To read recaps of recent action, click HERE.
  • Few teams in the nation are clicking as well offensively as Limback’s bunch. Over the past eight games Concordia has failed to shoot better than 50 percent from the field only once. During that stretch the Bulldogs have shot a sizzling 55.7 percent. They reached impressive new levels in the victory over Northwestern by draining 17-of-29 (.586) attempts from beyond the arc while shooting 61.2 percent overall. Concordia now ranks fifth among all NAIA Division II teams in field goal percentage (.507).
  • Robby Thomas and three other seniors made their final regular-season appearances at Walz last week and enjoyed a proper sendoff. Thomas put up a combined 29 points and seven blocks last week while continuing to rise on several of the program’s all-time lists. Among all players in program history, Thomas ranks first in blocked shots (202), eighth in rebounding (634), 13th in assists (221) and 20th in scoring (1,151).
  • Junior Chandler Folkerts, named an academic all-district honoree on Feb. 11, pushed his season scoring average above 20 points per game with another monster week. He amassed 32 points on 15-for-18 shooting from the field in the win over Midland. Three days later he extended his GPAC-leading double-double count to 12 by going for 21 points and 11 rebounds. Folkerts is vying to become the first Bulldog to average more than 20 points in a season since Jon Ziegler (21.3) in 2006-07.
  • Concordia’s 18 wins are the most for the program since the 2009-10 squad finished 18-12 overall. The Bulldogs still have a shot at their first 20-win season since the 2008-09 campaign. The 18 wins tie a high-water mark in a single season for Limback, now in his 12th year as a head coach. He previously spent nine seasons at Concordia University Ann Arbor before returning to his alma mater.
  • Senior point guard Jamie Pearson has found his groove back, recording three-straight games of more than 20 points. Over that stretch, the native of Ypsilanti, Mich., is 23-for-39 (.590) from the field. He has now reached the 20-point mark 11 times this season and currently ranks seventh in the GPAC in scoring (18.5 ppg). He sports impressive season shooting percentages of 50.0 from the field, 37.6 from the 3-point line and 83.5 from the free throw line.
  • Concordia’s three-headed monster of Folkerts, Pearson and Thomas was particularly potent last week. The trio combined for 128 of last week’s 201 points while going a collective 50-for-74 (.676) from the field. Folkerts has been nearly unstoppable in the paint and ranks second among all NAIA Division II players in field goal percentage (.673). As a team, Concordia ranks 18th nationally in points per game (86.0).
  • Guard Micah Kohlwey is one of three seniors that have been a regular part of Limback’s lineup. The Bulldogs have used just two different starting lineups all season. Folkerts, Kohlwey, Thomas and Ziegler have each started all 28 games. All five starters average at least 27 minutes per game with three playing more than 30 minutes per contest.
  • Concordia has a mid-week bye before finishing the regular season at No. 6 Briar Cliff (25-3, 16-2 GPAC) on Saturday. The Chargers have already clinched the conference regular season title. The Bulldogs will be tasked with defeating a team that has lost only once this season on its home court. Concordia has not beaten Briar Cliff since Jan. 23, 2010.

Women’s Basketball

  • Fourteenth-ranked Concordia has now won six of its last seven games following a pair of GPAC home victories in last week’s action. The Bulldogs used a 24-6 opening spurt to blow away Midland, 81-59, on Feb. 10. Three days later they held off a late charge from Northwestern for a 71-70 triumph. In the process, tenth-year head coach Drew Olson’s program improved to 69-9 in home games since the start of the 2011-12 campaign. On the season, Concordia is now 21-7 overall and 13-7 in GPAC play (tied for second). To read recaps of recent action, click HERE.
  • Senior Becky Mueller wasted little time eclipsing 1,000 career points in the win over Northwestern. She reached four digits at the 8:31 mark of the first quarter by sinking a pair of free throws, making her the 24th member of the program’s 1,000-point club. Mueller finished with 17 points (1,014 career), moving her past former assistant coach Amy Harms on the school’s scoring list. Olson has now coached seven 1,000-point scorers at Concordia: Bailey Morris (2,054), Whitney Stichka (1,765), Kristen Conahan (1,656), Melissa Tinkham (1,452), Katie Rich (1,293), Tracy Peitz (1,293) and Mueller.
  • Freshman Quinn Wragge appears well on her way to joining Mueller in the 1,000-point club down the road. The native of Crofton, Neb., put up a team high 23 points versus Northwestern, marking her fifth 20-plus point game of the season. Four of those 20-point outings have come since Jan. 20 as she continues to hike up her scoring average. A leading candidate for GPAC freshman of the year honors, Wragge tops the Bulldogs in scoring (13.8), rebounding (5.9), field goal percentage (.572) and minutes per game (26.3).
  • Tenacious defense paved the way for last week’s success. The Bulldogs held Midland and Northwestern to a combined shooting percentage of 34.2 (40-for-117). Concordia did a number on the Warriors’ marquee players, Megan Kucks (2-for-11) and Joelle Overkamp (3-for-14). While Red Raider freshman Kassidy De Jong piled up 32 points versus Concordia, her teammates were a collective 13-for-48 (.271) from the floor. The Bulldogs have moved up to No. 3 in the GPAC in terms of field goal percentage defense (.396).
  • Junior Aubri Bro got white hot in the win over Midland. She made all five of her attempts from 3-point range and led Concordia with 15 points on Feb. 10. Based on percentage, Bro has been the team’s most effective outside shooter this season. She’s nailed 22-of-45 (.489) shots from beyond the arc. As a team, the Bulldogs rank 24th among all NAIA Division II teams in 3-point field goal percentage (.343).
  • Olson has now guided Concordia to at least 13 conference wins in seven of his 10 seasons as head coach. The former Bulldog men’s basketball standout owns a career GPAC mark of 135-56 (.707) in a league widely-recognized as the best in NAIA Division II women’s basketball. Already the winningest coach in program history, Olson (247-85) needs three more victories for 250.
  • Concordia’s reserves actually outscored the starting five (42-39) in the win over Midland. Bro and junior Erin Vieselmeyer combined for 28 points. Vieselmeyer enjoyed one of her better statistical games, posting 13 points and six rebounds. All 11 Bulldogs who played in the game recorded at least one made field goal. The starters then shouldered most of the load versus Northwestern, tallying all but 11 of the team’s 71 points.
  • Since the home loss to Doane, Olson has used the same starting lineup of Brenleigh Daum, Devin Edwards, Mueller, Shelby Quinn and Wragge for each of the past seven games. Daum and Wragge are the only players who have started all 28 games. Mueller has started 23 times and Quinn 21 times. Sophomore Mary Janovich had started each of the first 18 contests before suffering a season-ending injury.
  • The final week of the regular season has arrived. Concordia will honor its two seniors (Mueller and Jenna Lehmann) on Wednesday when it hosts College of Saint Mary (15-12, 9-11 GPAC) at 7 p.m. The Bulldogs will finish the regular season on Saturday (2 p.m. tipoff) with a trip to No. 10 Briar Cliff (20-7, 13-7 GPAC) for a game with important GPAC tournament seeding implications. The Bulldogs likely need to win both for a shot at the No. 2 seed.

Track and Field

  • The final tune up prior to the GPAC indoor championships saw the fourth (women)/fifth (men) ranked Bulldogs produce a total of eight event titles as they hosted their annual Concordia Indoor Invitational. It marked the second and final home indoor meet of 2016 for 24th-year head coach Kregg Einspahr’s program. Complete results from the meet can be viewed HERE. To read recaps detailing recent action, click HERE.
  • Senior Kim Wood has kept up her relentless attack on the school record book. She rose to the top of the indoor list in the 600 meters with her time of 1:33.15, good for third best in the NAIA this season. Wood also ran the leadoff leg for the 4x400 meter relay that qualified for the national championships with a time of 3:59.99. The native of Greeley, Neb., now owns indoor school records in the 600 meters, 800 meters, 1,000 meters, the one mile and as part of the 4x800 meter relay. She currently owns four times that rank inside the top five on the national list, including her NAIA-leading figure in the mile.
  • Similarly impressive, Cody Boellstorff keeps pushing closer to his goal of 70 feet in the weight throw. He improved by nearly five inches in the event with a NAIA-leading mark of 68’ 9 ¼” that again broke his own school record. He’s won every weight throw competition he’s entered this season. He also broke through with an automatic national qualifying mark in the shot put at the Concordia Invite.
  • Considering his limited prep time, senior Josh Slechta’s automatic national qualifying mark in the weight throw at the Concordia Invite was particularly notable. Slechta missed a good portion of the football season after tearing a pectoral muscle. The injury prevented him from practicing until just days before last week’s meet. Slechta will have the opportunity to defend his 2015 NAIA national title in the weight throw.
  • The weight throw proved fruitful on the women’s side as each of Concordia’s top three throwers turned in personal bests: Kali Robb, Stephanie Coley and Kattie Cleveland. All three rank inside the top seven on the NAIA national list in the event with Robb checking in at No. 4. Coley continues to top the NAIA in the shot put by an eyelash over Robb. Zach Lurz remains the national leader on the men’s side with his school record shot put toss of 59’ 6 ¼.”
  • Event titles at last week’s meet were recorded by the men’s 4x400 meter relay, Boellstorff (weight throw), McKenzie Gravo (pole vault), Lurz (shot put), CJ Muller (200 meter dash), Lucas Wiechman (60 meter hurdles), Wood (600 meter run) and Patrick Wortmann (one mile run).
  • Here’s a look at the 32 automatic national qualifying marks and seven ‘B’ standard marks produced this season by Concordia athletes. Seven Bulldogs own automatic marks in more than one event: Coley, Lurz, Muller, Robb, Rojas, Wiechman and Wood.
    • Men’s 4x400 – A, 3:21.54
    • Women’s 4x400 – A, 3:59.99
    • Women’s 4x800 – B, 9:49.85
    • Trey Barnes – shot put (A, 54’ 3 ¾”)
    • Cody Boellstorff – weight throw (A, 68’ 9 ¼”); shot put (A, 51’ 7”)
    • Kattie Cleveland – weight throw (A, 57’ 6 ½”)
    • Stephanie Coley – shot put (A, 47’ 7 ¾”); weight throw (A, 57’ 11 ¾”)
    • Alayna Daberkow – pentathlon (A, 3,000)
    • McKenzie Gravo – pole vault (A, 11’ 10 ¾”)
    • Liz King – weight throw (A, 53’ 8 ¼”)
    • Philip Kreutzer – weight throw (A, 58’ 3 ¾”); shot put (B, 50’ 1 ¼”)
    • Samantha Liermann – shot put (A, 46’ 10”)
    • Zach Lurz – shot put (A, 60’ 1 ¼”); weight throw (A, 61’ 9”)
    • Sydney Meyer – weight throw (B, 52’ 2”)
    • Cynthia Mick – pole vault (A, 11’ 5”)
    • CJ Muller – 400 meter run (A, 49.04); 600 meter run (A, 1:20.71)
    • Johanna Ragland – shot put (B, 42’ 1 ¼”)
    • Kali Robb – shot put (A, 47’ 7 ¼”); weight throw (A, 60’ 11 ¼”)
    • Jose Rojas – shot put (A, 54’ 3 ¾”); weight throw (A, 56’ 11 ¼”)
    • Austin Schafer – pole vault (A, 15’ 5”)
    • Benjamin Schulteis – weight throw (A, 55’ 7 ¾”)
    • Katelyn Shoup – triple jump (B, 36’ 7”)
    • Emily Sievert – 5,000 meter run (A, 18:07.90); 3,000 meter run (B, 10:30.35)
    • Josh Slechta – weight throw (A, 58’ ¼”)
    • Lucas Wiechman – pole vault (A, 16’ ¾”); heptathlon (A, 4,918); 60 meter hurdles (B, 8.38)
    • Kim Wood – 600 meter run (A, 1:33.15); 800 meter run (A, 2:11.03); 1,000 meter run (A, 2:55.95); one mile run (A, 4:52.21)
  • Next up are the GPAC championships this Friday and Saturday at the both Doane’s Fuhrer Fieldhouse and the Bob Devaney Sports Center in Lincoln, Neb. Concordia is coming off of runner-up finishes at the 2015 indoor conference meet. The Bulldog men have won three of the last four GPAC track and field titles (two outdoor, one indoor). For more information on the 2016 GPAC championship meet, click HERE.

Tennis

  • Both Bulldog teams competed last Friday and Saturday and both went 1-1 in matches played in Nebraska. The men picked up a 7-2 win over Ottawa University (Kan.) on Feb. 12 and then fell, 8-1, at home to No. 13 Bethany College (Kan.) the next day. Meanwhile, the women bounced back from a 9-0 loss to Ottawa with their first win of 2016, an 8-1 decision over Bethany in Seward. Second-year head coach Joel Reckewey’s squads sit at 2-4 overall on the men’s side and 1-5 on the women’s side. For more on Concordia tennis: Men | Women.
  • Freshman Willy Pardos continues to headline the efforts of the Bulldog men. He’s off to a 4-2 start at No. 1 singles in the face of a challenging schedule. On Feb. 6 the native of Pamplona, Spain, toppled NAIA fifth-ranked singles player Spartak Rahachou of Baker University (Kan.). Last week Pardos claimed a 6-1, 6-2 win over Ottawa’s Mekasha Tadious before suffering a 6-4, 6-1 defeat at the hands of Bethany’s Manuel Raga.
  • Pardos and company rolled to victory over Ottawa by winning five of six singles matches and two of three doubles bouts. Another freshman in Thomas Greeff is nipping at Pardos’ heels for the team singles wins lead. Greeff is 3-3 overall after splitting his matches at No. 2 last week. Gabe Poling is also 3-3 at the No. 5 position. Overall, Concordia is 14-22 in singles play and 5-13 in doubles matches.
  • Reckewey has used the same doubles lineup in each of the first six matches of this season. The combos of Pardos and Javier Moreno at No. 1 and Greeff and Poling at No. 2 are both 2-4. The No. 3 duo of Patricio Esquivel and Philip Yox is 1-5. Esquivel and Yox teamed up on Concordia’s lone triumph in the 8-1 loss to nationally-ranked Bethany.
  • The young women’s team tasted success last week against a short-handed Swede squad that was forced to forfeit three singles matches and two doubles matches. In contested bouts, Alison Ebel (No. 1) and Kayla Smock (No. 3) recorded singles victories. The doubles pair of Annie Horn and Katelinn Wurm collaborated on an 8-6 win over Bethany’s Amelia Fabrzius and Kittey Edwards.
  • While tinkering to find the right formula, Reckewey has used nine different players to make up his women’s singles lineups. He’s also tried nine different doubles combinations through six matches. The Concordia women sport records of 10-26 in singles play and 4-14 in doubles action. Ebel and Smock are the team leaders with two singles wins apiece.
  • Both teams will be in action once this week with a neutral match in Lincoln on Friday. Southwestern College (Kan.) (0-0 men | 0-1 women) will serve as the opponent for contests set to begin at 2 p.m. on Friday. The Bulldogs will return home on March 4 when they host Bethel College (2 p.m.).

Baseball

  • Year two under head coach Ryan Dupic got going last weekend with a four-game series at Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kan. After dropping two on opening day on Feb. 13, Concordia rebounded with a doubleheader sweep of the Swedes on Feb. 14, winning by scores of 13-2 and 6-3. It marked the fifth-straight season that the Bulldogs have kicked off the season at Bethany. This is also the third-consecutive campaign that Concordia has sported a 2-2 record after four games. To read recaps of recent action, click HERE.
  • Fourteen different players made their Bulldog debuts over the weekend for a new-look roster that includes a wealth of junior college transfers. Dupic immediately inserted former Iowa Central Community College all-region performer Christian Montero into the No. 3 spot in the lineup. Opening day also saw starting pitchers Cole Jackson and Casey Hall wear Concordia blue for the first time. Montero was one of three new position players to start each of the first four games, joining outfielder Jacob Adams and shortstop Logan Ryan.
  • Bulldog hitters left the state of Kansas with a .422 on-base percentage after drawing a total of 29 walks in the four-game set. Twenty-one of those free passes came on Sunday when Concordia combined for 19 runs against wild Bethany pitchers. After being shut down by Eduardo Jiminez (six shutout innings, 13 strikeouts) in the season opener, Concordia used a patient approach in putting two wins on the board the following day. Cleanup hitter Tyler Nelson drew five walks on the season’s second day.
  • Right-handed hurler Neil Ryan had a no-hitter working into the fifth inning until a two-out single by Weston Jacobs plated an unearned run. Ryan ended up working 4.2 innings, allowing four walks, one hit and two unearned runs while picking up his first win of 2016. As a freshman the native of Grand Junction, Colo., led Concordia with a 2.76 ERA in 45.2 innings. He’s allowed only 14 earned runs in more than 50 career innings at the college level.
  • Dupic got major contributions from the bullpen, which actually worked more innings than the starters (16.1 to 15) over the weekend. While the Bulldogs’ four starters surrendered a combined nine earned runs in 15 innings, the bullpen gave up just three earned runs over 16.1 innings of work. Freshman Jared Schipper stretched himself out over 5.2 innings and did not allow a single run in relief of Hall in the 10-inning loss on Feb. 13. The ‘pen then played a key role in preserving a 6-3 win on Feb. 14, covering the final four innings in relief of starter Taylor Bickel.
  • At the plate, outfielder Taylor Bigandt collected the most hits over the weekend, going 6-for-10 (six singles) with a trio of walks. Junior catcher Ryan Fesmire went 4-for-8 and Ryan went 3-for-9 (four walks) in his first collegiate action. The Bulldogs pounded out a total of 30 hits in the four-game series for a .252 batting average.
  • First team all-conference center fielder Alex Alstott played in all four games but was limited to pinch running duties on Sunday after getting hit on the hand by a pitch in the season-opening doubleheader. Alstott was actually hit twice in that doubleheader. Last season the native of Fort Dodge, Iowa, led the GPAC in both on-base percentage (.488) and slugging percentage (.712) while breaking the school record for triples in a season (13).
  • Seven of Concordia’s primary position-player starters are returnees, including Casey Berg who led off all four games at Bethany. Berg has moved from shortstop to his more natural spot at third base with Ryan coming in to take over the shortstop role. The right side of the infield was held down primarily by Alex Cargin (second) and Nelson (first). Taylor Dudley is back in left field, Alstott is the center fielder and Adams played both right and center. With Alstott out of the lineup on Sunday, Adams shifted to center.
  • Concordia will face a big early-season test Friday (12 p.m.) and Saturday (12 p.m.) with doubleheaders both days at No. 20 Sterling College (Kan.) (6-0). The Warriors are coming off a 45-17 campaign in which they qualified for the national tournament. The Bulldogs are scheduled to play their first 23 games away from home before they welcome Grace University to Plum Creek Park on March 19.

Softball

  • The 2016 Bulldogs opened their season earlier than any team in program history, kicking off this season at last week’s Cowtown Classic (Feb. 12-13) in Fort Worth, Texas. Third-year head coach Todd LaVelle’s squad went 3-2 during its two-day stay, recording wins over Bethel College (Kan.), 8-1, Baker University (Kan.), 14-3, and William Penn University (Iowa), 4-3. Both losses came by just two runs, including a 4-2 defeat to No. 6 Oklahoma City University in the season’s opening game. For more on third-year head coach Todd LaVelle’s program, click HERE.
  • Eight different players made their Bulldog debuts in The Lone Star State. Of them, five started every game in Texas: Kylie Harpst, Taylor Huff, Leah Kalkwarf, Jamie Lefebure and Megan Ruppert. Harpst enjoyed a solid weekend both with the bat and her pitching arm. She went 6-for-14 (.429) with four RBIs at the plate. In the circle, she went 1-1 with a 2.55 ERA in 11 innings. Harpst and Huff played for LaVelle at Lincoln North Star High School.
  • Harpst will take some of the pitching load off of sophomore Michaela Woodward this season. A righty from Cortland, Neb., Woodward earned second team all-conference recognition as a freshman in 2015 and threw every inning during Concordia’s GPAC tournament title run. In Texas, Woodward covered 19 of 32 innings, allowing 21 hits, five walks and seven earned runs. Harpst and Woodward pitched all but the two innings covered by transfer AJ Wygant.
  • LaVelle settled in on a lineup that included freshman second baseman Leah Kalkwarf at the top, left fielder Diana Mendoza No. 2 and first baseman Julia Tyree and catcher Taylor Huff in the Nos. 3 and 4 slots. Woodward batted fifth and Harpst sixth by the end of the trip. Tyree served as the team’s most potent bat in 2015 while earning first team all-conference accolades. Tyree was one of nine players to start all five games last week.
  • As a team, Concordia batted .288 to go with a .354 on-base percentage and .381 slugging percentage at the Cowtown Classic. The Bulldogs outscored their opponents by a combined total of 32-17. They also committed eight fewer errors (15-7) than did their first five foes. Concordia also had advantages in ERA (2.41 – 3.21) and in stolen bases (7-2).
  • The Bulldogs had to come from behind in the final inning to defeat William Penn in their final game of the Cowtown Classic. Concordia scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh to walk off a winner. Freshman Maddie Fousek scored the final tally on a wild pitch. Third baseman Autumn Owens and Lefebure both doubled to begin the rally from two runs down.
  • Owens piled up the most total bases of any Bulldog over the five-game Texas swing. She had a pair of doubles and homered in the 6-4 loss to Tabor College (Kan.). On the weekend, that native of Henderson, Nev., went 5-for-12 (.417) with five RBIs. Last season she finished second on the team with four home runs.
  • Mendoza (.368) and Tyree (.333) joined Harpst and Owens as Bulldogs to hit better than .300 in Texas. Woodward and Lefebure both batted .267. In 2015 Tyree topped the team with a .397 batting average. Woodward hit .392 for a team that batted .307 overall.
  • Concordia will be off until March 6 when they take the diamond in Tucson, Ariz. The Bulldogs will play 10 times in Arizona between March 6 and 11. They are scheduled to play at home for the first time when Briar Cliff comes to town on April 2 for a GPAC doubleheader.