OMAHA, Neb. – Dreams came true on Thursday (May 20) when the Concordia University Baseball team celebrated an accomplishment that hardly seemed possible throughout much of the program’s history. The 19th-ranked Bulldogs have emerged as the Bellevue Bracket champion of the 2021 NAIA National Championship Opening Round. More fireworks at the plate allowed Concordia to rally for a 7-5 victory over Bellevue in the bracket final.
Head Coach Ryan Dupic’s squad has earned one of 10 spots in the NAIA World Series that will get started on May 28. This is elite territory for the Bulldogs (42-10), who have again broken new ground. No wonder there were so many tears and hugs afterwards. The celebration lingered well after the final pitch at Omaha’s Brown Park.
“It’s neat to see all the people and families here,” Dupic said. “I think that’s really what it’s all about – it’s about people and shared experiences together. Just looking around and seeing how happy everybody is, that opportunity is really special. Similar to what I said a week ago, it really makes me reflect on all the people who have played such an instrumental role within this. There are so many to name. I’m just so grateful for everybody that has supported our program so much. We’re so proud to make this happen for Concordia.”
The Bulldogs faced deficits in three-straight elimination games in the opening round. But there’s a calmness that comes from having the best offensive lineup in the history of the program. It’s not hyperbolic to say it – the two-run blast by Jakob Faulk in the bottom of the eighth on Thursday stands as the most significant hit ever for Concordia baseball. Faulk’s smash over the left field wall turned a 5-4 deficit into a 6-5 lead. Keaton Candor and Teyt Johnson also delivered solo shots in that same frame.
Even with the thrills and the electricity that permeated an intimate ballpark setting, the Bulldogs still had three outs to gather in the ninth. Closer Nathan Buckallew did the job by coaxing a ground out to third, a fly out to left and then another bouncer to third. A second dogpile in a 10-day stretch ensued. Winning the GPAC is one thing, but advancing to the NAIA World Series has put the ’21 team on a whole different level.
“I’ve never made it this far and I’ve been here for four years now,” Candor said. “It’s extra special because you’re doing it for the guy next to you. Doing it on the big stage is where we want to succeed the most … We didn’t take the easy way getting to this point, but it’s definitely been worth it. I think tournament time a different team has come out than what we showed in the conference.”
A day earlier, Concordia had outslugged the Bruins, 13-8, to force Thursday’s winner-take-all matchup of the Bellevue Bracket. In the latest elimination game, the Bulldogs played catchup all day after falling behind 3-0 in the second inning. Bellevue made a Concordia error hurt with a Zach Diehl homer in the second. The Bruins held on to a 4-1 lead until the bottom of the sixth when Faulk muscled his first of two homers on the day.
The tide really turned when Bellevue was forced to go to the bullpen to relieve heavily worked starter Corey Jackson. In the fateful eighth inning, Candor homered to lead it off. Two batters later, Faulk crushed what proved to be the game-winning homer. For good measure, Johnson added a big fly of his own.
Considering the heavy toll of playing five nine-inning games in a four-day stretch, the Bulldog pitching staff did a commendable job. Six pitchers were called upon: Caden Bugarske (3.1 IP), Caden Johnson (1 IP), Jacob Lycan (1.2 IP), Shane Whittaker (1 IP), AJ Cotton (0.2 IP) and Buckallew (1.1 IP). Collectively, they allowed only two earned runs and recorded eight strikeouts.
It just might take a little time before this sinks in. Said Dupic, “This is the first time I’m processing it right now. Maybe when we pull on in there (it will sink in). Hopefully it will set in here in a day or two, but we’re just going to enjoy this so much right now.”
Throughout the opening round, Candor went 8-for-23 (.348) with four doubles, three home runs and eight RBIs. Faulk also homered three times and Jesse Garcia produced two long balls (and seven RBIs) this week. Concordia went 4-1 at the Bellevue Bracket with two wins apiece over Bellevue and MidAmerica Nazarene University (Kan.).
It shouldn’t be understated just how far this program has come in a short time under Dupic. The program ended a drought without a winning season that lasted from 1979 until 2015 and has captured GPAC championships in 2017, 2019 and 2021. The 2017 title run came while Dupic fought off cancer. In each of three appearances in the opening round, the Bulldogs have found themselves in an underdog role.
Concordia will remain an underdog when it makes its way to Lewiston, Idaho, for the 2021 Avista NAIA World Series. The Bracket has already been released and can be found HERE. The Bulldogs have been seeded 10th and will take on seventh-seeded Indiana University Southeast at 3 p.m. PDT (5 p.m. CDT) on Friday, May 28.
Said Candor, “I think it will be a lot of fun. It’s what we’ve been building up for. I don’t want to go one-and-done, so we’re ready for that.”