2005 - Cross Country schedule
SEPTEMBER | ||
| Sept. 10 | Blue-White Alumni Intrasquad | Seward, Neb |
| Sept. 17 | Woody Greeno Invitational | Lincoln, Neb. |
| Sept. 24 | Griak Invitational | St. Paul, Minn. |
OCTOBER | ||
| Oct. 1 | Hastings Short Course | Hastings, Neb. |
| Oct. 8 | Concordia Invitational | Seward, Neb |
| Oct. 15 | Mount Marty Invitational | Yankton, S.D. |
| Oct. 29 | GPAC Championships | Mitchell, S.D. |
NOVEMBER | ||
| Nov. 5 | NAIA Region III Championship | Sioux Falls, S.D. |
| Nov. 19 | NAIA National Championship | Louisville, Ky. |
2005 - Cross Country roster
Men:
| Name | Year | Hometown | High School |
| Matt Brandt | Fr. | David City, Neb. | Aquinas |
| Ryan Carlson | Sr. | Minden, Neb. | |
| Jon Crowl | Fr. | Omaha, Neb. | Millard West |
| Craig Dannehl | Fr. | Bertrand, Neb. | Bertrand |
| Chris Dehning | Fr. | McAllen, Texas | Memorial |
| Nathan Dreher | Fr. | Brighton, Colo. | Fort Lupton |
| Bryan Felker | Fr. | O'Neill, Neb. | O'Neill |
| Ben Harms | So. | Sioux Falls, S.D. | Washington |
| Kyle Johnson | Jr. | O'Neill, Neb. | O'Neill |
| Brett Kapels | Sr. | Creston, Neb. | Lakeview |
| Matt Luevano | Sr. | Alamogordo, N.M. | |
| Chris Mizel | Jr. | Rock Springs, Wyo. | Rock Springs |
| Jordan Powell | Fr. | Seward, Neb. | Seward |
| Jon Ripke | Jr. | Aurora, Colo. | Denver Lutheran |
| Jake Schmidt | Fr. | Hickman, Neb. | Norris |
| Ryne Sherman | Fr. | Greeley, Colo. | Greeley Central |
| Lucas Tanney | So. | Davenport, Iowa | Christ Lutheran |
| Luka Thor | Fr. | Lincoln, Neb. | Lincoln Northeast |
| Tim Thurber | Sr. | Seward, Neb. | Lincoln Lutheran |
| Jordan Tucker | Fr. | Omaha, Neb. | Millard West |
| Scott Walhaug | So. | Fargo, N.D. | |
| Andrew Walquist | Sr. | Albuquerque, N.M. | |
| Jeff Westover | So. | Wahoo, Neb. | Wahoo |
| Andrew Yeager | Jr. | McCook, Neb. | McCook |
Women:
| Name | Year | Hometown | High School |
| Jamie Burmeister | Sr. | St. Francis, Minn. | |
| Mattie Clark | So. | Ord, Neb. | Ord |
| Jacquelyn Dibbern | So. | York, Neb. | |
| Micah Dubbs | Sr. | Wood River, Neb. | |
| Kayla Engel | Fr. | Columbus, Neb. | Scotus |
| Alicia Foley | Fr. | San Antonio, Texas | Lutheran |
| Renae Fowler | Fr. | Ainsworth, Neb. | Ainsworth |
| Michelle Greidl | Fr. | Tomball, Texas | Concordia Lutheran |
| Jennifer Greidl | Fr. | Tomball, Texas | Concordia Lutheran |
| Jamie Hansen | So. | Norfolk, Neb. | Norfolk |
| Emly Hartman | Fr. | Seward, Neb. | Seward |
| Jennifer Henderson | Sr. | Anaheim, Calif. | Orange Lutheran |
| Angela Matthews | Jr. | Westland, Mich. | Westland Lutheran |
| Hilary Powell | Jr. | Columbus, Neb. | Columbus |
| Samantha Raffety | Fr. | Minden, Neb. | Minden |
| Melissa Ruegg | Jr. | St. Peters, Mo. | Lutheran High |
| Laci St. John | Fr. | Big Horn, Wyo. | |
| Katie Swanson | Fr. | Columbus, Neb. | Scotus |
| Kayla Thole | Jr. | Perryville, Mo. | Perryville |
| Jacque Wiseman | Fr. | LaGrande, Ore. | LaGrande |
2005 - Cross Country coaching staff
Head coach: Kregg Einspahr
Assistant coach: Suzanne Weeder-Einspahr
Cross country teams start season ranked
Both Bulldog cross country teams were ranked in the NAIA preseason ratings released last Thursday.The women, runner-up at the 2004 NAIA Championships, were ranked No. 5 in the preseason ratings. Simon Fraser, last year's champion, holds down the No. 1 spot. No other GPAC schools were listed in the top 25.
In the men's ratings the Bulldogs came in tied for No. 11 with Mid-America Nazarane. Concordia placed ninth at the NAIA Championships and were ranked fifth in the final 2004 rating. Doane is the only other GPAC school in the ratings at No. 19. Complete polls can be found at NAIA.org.
The Bulldog cross country teams get their season underway on Sept. 10 with the annual Blue-White Intrasquad meet in Seward. The race is scheduled to start at 10:30 a.m.
Blue-White meet helps Bulldogs judge talent
10 SEP 2005
The Concordia cross country runners ran in the annual Blue-White Intrasquad meet Sept. 10. Held on the Bulldog's home course, this year it could have actually been renamed the Blue-White-Gray Intrasquad meet.
With good numbers of both men and women running cross country, Head Coach Dr. Kregg Einspahr was able to divide the runners into three teams rather than the normal two.
"We saw some good things today," said Einspahr. "Some of our freshmen were a nice surprise and did very well."
On the women's side it was the Gray team that came away victorious with a total of 31. Blue was second with 38 and White finished with 52. Overall medalist honors went to Micah Dubbs who competed on the Blue team. She finished the 5k course in 20:03.
On the men's side there was a tie for the team title, as Gray and White each finished with 38, while Blue had 48. Blue team member Andrew Walquist took the title, edging freshman Luka Thor of the Gray team by a nose as they both finished with 26:42.
The Bulldogs officially start things off on Sept. 17 at the Woody Greeno Invite at Pioneer Park in Lincoln. The meet is hosted by Nebraska Wesleyan and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and is scheduled to start at 10:00 a.m.
Runners compete at Greeno Invitational
17 SEP 2005
The Woody Greeno Invitational cross country meet annually draws some of the best competition from throughout the Midwest, including many NCAA Division I and II schools. The Concordia men picked up a seventh place overall finish, bettering the scores of the likes of Nebraska, Wyoming and Kansas State.
Freshman Luka Thor (right), a Lincoln Northeast product, took 11th-place overall in his first collegiate meet. He covered the course at Lincoln's Pioneers Park 25:43. The 2004 GPAC Runner of the Year, Concordia's Andrew Walquist, wasn't far behind. He finished in 25:54 for 14th place. Matt Luevano finished in 48th, Brett Kapels 74th, Jake Schmidt 109th, Kyle Johnson 113th and Jordan Tucker was 137th.
The Concordia women finished eighth overall, competing against NCAA Division I and II teams. Micah Dubbs had the best showing for the Bulldogs taking 31st-place overall with a time of 23:25. Renae Fowler was right on her heels finishing 32nd. Jacquelyn Dibbern 39th, Mattie Clark 72nd, Michelle Griedl 96th, Kayla Engel 103rd, Hilary Powell 117th rounded out the scoring for the Bulldogs.
Bulldogs compete at Griak Invite
24 SEP 2005
The Concordia cross country teams traveled to St. Paul, Minn., to compete in the 20th Annual Roy Griak Invitational. The Griak Invite is considered by many to be the largest meeting in the United States.
The men's team placed 12th as a team in the "Maroon Division" which featured NCAA Division II, III and NAIA schools. In the division total there were 43 complete teams and over 411 individual runners.
Andrew Walquist paced the Bulldogs, taking 13th place overall with a time of 26 minutes flat. Luka Thor finished in the 45th spot, 46 seconds behind Walquist at 26:46.
"The fields were very big and many of our runners had not run in this race before," said Head Coach Dr. Kregg Einspahr. "Experience with these kinds of races is very important. Typically teams with many juniors and seniors do better than younger teams. Andrew Walquist and Jacquelyn Dibbern (both upperclassmen) had good races."
On the women's side Jacquelyn Dibbern led the way with a eight place individual finish (23:09). There were 279 runners in the race. As a team, Concordia finished in seventh place out of 24 teams. Renae Fowler had another solid performance finishing 20th overall, only 23 seconds behind Dibbern. Micah Dubbs was right on the heels of Fowler, finsihing with a time of 23:49.
"Our freshman, particularly Renae Fowler, continue to compete very well," added Einspahr. "We can run better than we did today. There is much improvement that we make before the end of the season."
Bulldogs sweep Concordia Invite team titles
8 OCT 2005
The Bulldogs swept the top four spots in both the men's and women's races on their way to team titles at the Concordia Invitational.
The Defending GPAC Runner of the Year, Senior Andrew Walquist, led the charge for the men, taking the individual title with a time of 25:36. Freshman Luka Thor, who battled with Walquist for the majority of the race, finished second in 26:02. Another senior, Matt Luevano, took third place for the Bulldogs finishing the 8 kilometer course in 26:28. Completing the top four sweep for Concordia was senior Brett Kapels, who ran a personal best time of 26:36 in his final race on his home course. Kapels held off a Doane runner in a sprint to the finish line.
“I was very pleased with our performances this past weekend. Our teams are starting to run well,” said Head Coach Dr. Kregg Einspahr. “In particular, Brett Kapels and Jake Schmidt made some big improvements at our home race.”
In the women’s race Jacquelyn Dibbern led the Concordia pack of runners, crossing the tape in 19:01. Micah Dubbs and Renae Fowler were right on the heels of Dibbern finishing second and third respectively with times of 19:04 and 19:07. Angela Matthews took the fourth spot with a time of 19:21.
“On the womens side of things, we are packing together well at the front with Dibbern, Dubbs, and Fowler running and working together,” added Einspahr. “Angela Matthews is running better and better each week now, after being injured just before our intrasquad meet about four weeks ago.”
Engel, a familiar name to Bulldog cross country fans was also in the top ten. Kayla Engel, sister of former Concordia standout Molly, placed eight covering the course in 19:48. Other finishers for the Bulldogs included Michelle Griedl and Mattie Clark at 11th and 12th, Michelle’s sister, Jennifer wasn’t far behind at 15.
“Mattie Clark has made huge improvements since last year, running almost a minute and a half faster than last year,” Einspahr said. “I also think we will see Michelle and Jennifer Griedl continue to improve as the season progresses.”
Next up for the Bulldogs is the Mount Marty Invite on Saturday Oct. 15. The meet itself will be held in Crofton, Neb., at the golf course the women’s race is slated begin at 10:30 a.m.
“The Mount Marty meet will be a big challenge to see if we can run as well on the road as we did on our home course,” said Einspahr.
Sweep continues. Walquist, Dibbern earn honors
Concordia’s Jacquelyn Dibbern and Andrew Walquist were both named this week’s GPAC/Hauff Mid-America Sports Women’s and Men's Cross Country Runners-of-the-Week.
Dibbern, a sophomore from York, Neb., placed first at the Concordia Invite with a time of 19:01 on the 5K course. She led the Bulldogs to a team title, as they swept the top four spots.
Walquist, a senior from Albuquerque, New Mexico, placed first in the Concordia Invite with a time of 25:36. His performance helped lead the Concordia men to a first place finish at their home meet. He also led a 1-4 sweep for the Bulldogs, running for the final time on his home course. Walquist is the two-time defending GPAC Runner-of-the-Year.
Men take team title at Mount Marty
15 OCT 2005
The men and women of the Concordia cross country team competed at the Mount Marty Invitational on Saturday, their final meet before the GPAC Championships. Both teams fared well, as the men took the team title with 44 points, six better than second place Black Hills State, while the women, who are ranked eight in the NAIA, took third.
Individually, Andrew Walquist led the Bulldogs, seventh ranked in the NAIA ratings, with a second place finish, crossing the tape in 26:49.16. Not far behind was Luka Thor whose time of 27:37.80 was good enough for fifth place. Matt Luevano just missed placing in the top ten, finishing in 11th place with a time of 27:59.13. Head Coach Dr. Kregg Einspahr was pleased with the way the men ran, especially on a difficult course. The meet was ran on the golf course in Crofton, Neb.
“This is the most challenging course I have seen while coaching at Concordia,” Einspahr said. “It was a lot of up and down running on the bluffs of the Missouri River. I don’t think there was one place where the runners were running on the flat.”
Brett Kaples and Jake Schmidt rounded out the team scoring for the Bulldogs placing 16th (28:20.42) and 19th (28:27.67) respectively.
“I thought our men handled the course very well,” added Einspahr. “Luevano, Kapels and Jake Schmidt had very good meets and I was very pleased with the way that our freshman Bryan Felker and Craig Dannehls ran.”
On the women’s side Ainsworth, Neb., freshman Renae Fowler led the Bulldog pack that finished 11-12-13-15, crossing the finishing line in 20:09.18. Micah Dubbs was right on her heels with a time of 20:11.52. Returning NAIA All-American Jacquelyn Dibbern came in with a time of 20:30.13. Mattie Clark was only five seconds back of Dibbern at 20:35.58 for 15th place.
“On the womens side of things I think some of our younger runners like Mattie Clark, Kayla Engel, and Michelle Griedl ran well,” Einspahr stated. “Mattie had the best race of her career. She keeps getting better and better and has seen huge improvements since last year.”
Engel and Greidel both finished in the top 25 at the meet with Engel taking 19th (20:54.26) and Greidel 21st (20:56.06).
The Bulldogs will have a weekend off before traveling to Mitchell, S.D. for the GPAC Championships on Saturday, Oct. 29. Both the men and women won team titles at last year’s GPAC meet which was hosted by Concordia. The women’s race is scheduled for a 10:30 a.m. start with the men’s to follow.
Women earn share of GPAC title, men take second
29 OCT 2005
Concordia and Nebraska Wesleyan, tied at 31 team points each, shared the women's team title at the 2005 GPAC Cross Country Championships in Mitchell, S.D. The men ran second overall, finishing behind the men's team from Nebraska Wesleyan.
“We ran well and are pleased with a shared conference championship finish for the women and a runner-up finish for the men,” said Head Coach Dr. Kregg Einspahr. “The GPAC is a tough conference and the cross country championship is usually a battle - which it clearly was on Saturday.”
Nine of the top ten runners were from either Concordia or Nebraska Wesleyan. Senior Micah Dubbs led the Bulldog pack that finished 2-3-4 with a time of 18:37.91. Sophomore Jacquelyn Dibbern was next in 18:43.43 followed by Renae Fowler at 18:48.85.
“Micah Dubbs had an outstanding day,” Einspahr said. “as did Jacquelyn Dibbern and Renae Fowler.”
Angela Matthews (19:24.39) and Kayla Engel (19:34.63) rounded out the team scoring for Concordia placing 10th and12th respectively. Also finishing in the top 25 individually for the Bulldogs were Mattie Clark (15th-19:42.58), Michelle Griedl (17th-19:47.50) and Katie Swanson (21st-20:00.71).
On the men's side the Bulldogs finished in second place as a team with 55 points. Senior Andrew Walquist, defending GPAC Runner of the Year, fell 21 seconds short in his bid for another title finishing as the individual runner-up with a time of 25:20.20. Walquist was not at 100 percent for the race, as he was battling a flu bug that has been going around. The next runner to finish for Concordia was freshman Luka Thor, who crossed the tape in 25:48.05, good enough for sixth place.
“Andrew Walquist led nearly the whole race, but just ran out of gas the last 200 meters of the race,” said Einspahr. “Brett Kapels had his best conference cross country race of his career.”
Senior Brett Kapels filled the number three spot of the Bulldogs finishing the race in 12th place at 26:47.20. Matt Luevano was right on his heels finishing in 27:03.94, 14th place individually but 13th in the team point race. Jake Schmidt was Concordia's number five runner finishing in 22nd place overall (27:38.56).
The top-15 runners in each race are considered GPAC All-Conference in Cross Country for 2005. The Hauff Mid-America Sports/GPAC Coaches-of-the-Year will be named next week.
Next up for the Bulldog runners is the NAIA Region III meet in Sioux Falls, S.D., next Saturday. The women’s race is scheduled for a 11:00 a.m. start with the men to follow at 11:45 a.m The regional meet will be a new experience this year, as different teams will be involved since the realignment of the NAIA regions this past summer.
“We are looking forward to the Region III championship race which will feature the GPAC teams and a number of additional teams from the Dakotas,” added Einspahr.“ This will be a real challenge since there are a number of teams that have shown much improvement over the last few weeks including Black Hills State, Dickinson State, Doane, Jamestown and Sioux Falls.”
Runners, coach recognized by GPAC
Ten Bulldog runners were named as GPAC Cross Country All-Conference selections. In addition Head Coach Dr. Kregg Einspahr was named the Hauff Mid-America Sports/GPAC Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year for the second year in a row. He led the Bulldogs to a tie (with Nebraska Wesleyan) for the conference title. It was the second consecutive conference championship for the Bulldogs. Einspahr was also the men’s cross country coach of the year in 2004.
Individually for the women’s team six runners earned all-conference honors including Micah Dubbs who finished runner-up at the GPAC meet. Jacquelyn Dibbern and Renae Fowler also garnered accolades for their third and fourth place finishes respectively. Angela Matthews, Kayla Engel and Mattie Clark all placed in the top 15 on their way to GPAC honors.
On the men’s side four members of the Bulldog’s runner-up team earned honors for their performances. Battling the flu, senior Andrew Walquist fell short of defending his GPAC title, finishing second. Fellow seniors Brett Kapels and Matt Luevano had solid races finishing in 12th and 14th. Freshman Luka Thor finished in sixth place in his first GPAC meet.
Both squads take second at Region III meet, qualify for nationals
5 NOV 2005
Concordia's cross country teams each took second place at the NAIA Region III meet held Saturday at Prairie Green Golf Course in Sioux Falls, S.D. Black Hills State, members of the Dakota Athletic Conference (DAC) took the titles in both races. Concordia Head Coach Dr. Kregg Einspahr was also honored as the NAIA Region III Men's Cross Country Coach of the Year on Saturday.
In the men's race Luka Thor crossed the tape first for the individual title. Thor led a 1-2 finish for Concordia as Andrew Walquist took second place. On a very fast course Walquist was leading Thor with 500 yards to go. Thor was able to sprint past his teammate in the final moments of the race. Brett Kapels had the next best finish for the Bulldogs in 16th place.
"We had a tremendous weekend," said Einspahr. "Luka Thor and Andrew Walquist had two of the best cross country races in Concordia history. I have coached only one other runner in the last 14 years that would have had a comparable performance and that was Brandon Seifert, a three-time All-American in cross country."
On the women's side Micah Dubbs finished fifth, Renae Fowler seventh and Jacquelyn Dibbern 13th.
The top team at each NAIA Regional Meet automatically qualifies for the National Championships. In addition to the regional winner, 14 at-large teams earned bids based on ratings and various other factors. Both the men's and women's team earned bids to the national meet.
This marks the 12th consecutive year that the women's team has earned a berth to the NAIA Cross Country Championships. During that span they have finished no lower than 18th as a team and in the last five years the Bulldogs have had four national runner-up finishes.
For the men this is the sixth year in row, and eight out of the last ten, that they have qualified for the NAIA Championships.
The NAIA Cross Country Championship Meet is Nov. 19.
Teams finish in top 12, Thor and Walquist named All-Americans
19 NOV 2005
Both the men's and women's cross country squads raced well at the NAIA Cross Country National Championships held Nov. 19 in Louisville, Ky. The women finished in sixth place overall and the men were 11th. Two Concordia runners, Luka Thor and Andrew Walquist, also earned All-America honors.
"The performances this past weekend were great," said Dr. Kregg Einspahr, head coach. "Overall I thought the men and women had wonderful seasons."
Running in his first NAIA National Championship meet, Thor crossed the finish line in sixth place overall, with a time of 24:49.05. Thor's finish tied the best by a Bulldog runner at the NAIA Championship meet in school history. In addition, he is the first male freshman to earn cross country All-America honors for Concordia.
"Luka ran a tremendous race," Einspahr said. "He and Andrew have typically run together throughout races, even talking to each other, and they did the same this weekend. Andrew is a leader and he really helped Luka throughout the year. They are two amazing competitors and just all around good guys."
Walquist placed 12th overall crossing tape in 24:49.05. This marks the third time that Walquist has been an NAIA All-American. He is only the second male Concordia runner to earn the honor three times.
For the women, who were one point shy of taking fifth place, Jacquelyn Dibbern led the way finishing in 41st place overall. Freshman Renae Fowler finished in 44th and Micah Dubbs 52nd.
"To lose the runners that we did last year and turn around and place sixth at nationals is great," Einspahr added. "The women did a good job of getting out early and that is a key at this meet, not to get trapped near the back."
Saturday's races marked the 12th consecutive year that the women's team has competed at the NAIA Cross Country Championships. During that span they have finished no lower than 18th as a team and in the six previous years the Bulldogs have had four national runner-up finishes.
For the men it was the sixth year in row, and eight out of the last ten, that they participated at the NAIA Championships.