SEWARD, Neb. – It’s a pivotal week for Concordia University, Nebraska Cross Country. While having last week off from competition, the Bulldogs began gearing up for the Blazing Tiger Classic set for Saturday in Ashland, Neb. The meet will be co-hosted by Doane and College of Saint Mary and will feature a large number of highly regarded squads within the NAIA. The women’s 6k race will get underway at 10 a.m. CT with the men’s 8k race to follow at 10:45 a.m.
Blazing Tiger Classic – Saturday, Oct. 26
Mahoney State Park | Ashland, Neb.
-10 a.m. – women’s 6k
-10:45 a.m. – men’s 8k
-Live Results
Head Coach Matt Beisel’s squads are currently receiving votes in the NAIA coaches’ poll. Based on where it is situated in the receiving votes category, Concordia ranks No. 28 on the men’s side and No. 33 on the women’s side. In their most recent outing, the Bulldogs recorded top four team placements (men-third; women-fourth) at the Holiday Inn Express Classic hosted by Dordt on Oct. 12. Concordia’s top individual finishers were Vaughn Hendrickson (third place) for the men and Keegan Beisel (18th place) for the women. Hendrickson has been blazing as a freshman and has twice been named the GPAC Runner of the Week. He is the second competitor during Beisel’s tenure to run a sub-25-minute 8k race.
The 2023 Blazing Tiger Classic concluded with the Bulldogs placing fourth out of 23 on the women’s side and 10th out of 23 on the men’s side. The top three placing women’s teams were College of Idaho, University of Saint Mary (Kan.) and Taylor University (Ind.). The top three men’s squads were College of Idaho, Saint Mary and Dordt. The leading Concordia competitors, among returners, were Beisel (23:06.9 in the 6k) and Trey Robertson (25:46.3 in the 8k).
Following the Blazing Tiger, just two weeks of preparation will separate the Bulldogs from the 2024 GPAC Championships, which will take place on Saturday, Nov. 9. Concordia will be right back at Mahoney State Park on that date to meet up with its conference rivals. At the 2023 conference meet held in North Sioux City, S.D., the Bulldogs turned in place finishes of second on the women’s side and third on the men’s side.