Concordia Powerlifting
Head Coach: Freddie Myles (3rd season)
2024 National Qualifiers: Teya Badger, Rylee Bentz, Talisa Buhr, Dax Davis, Leo Guiza, Jack Hedke, Taylor Hedke, Kenzie Houser, Nic Kriech, Rylee Ladd, Abby Lockingen, Pryce Ostermeier, Will Peterson, Hunter Powers, Garrett Reimche, Abby Velten, Katie Wilson.
2024 Team National Place Finishes: women – 9th; men – 19th.
2025 National Championships: April 3-6 in Oklahoma City, Okla.
Outlook
Year three for Concordia University, Nebraska Powerlifting arrives with a growing roster to match increasing expectations. Though a young program with a youthful roster in 2023-24, the Bulldogs made a sizable splash while turning in 2024 Collegiate Powerlifting National Championships team placements of ninth on the women’s side and 19th on the men’s side. Head Coach Freddie Myles has begun to see out his vision for a program that he was tasked with building from the ground up.
Sixteen of the team’s 17 national qualifiers from last season have returned to a roster that now stands at 35 in number. If Concordia continues to grow at the same rate that it showed during the 2023-24 academic year, then big things are in store throughout this school year.
“I was very happy with the growth from year one to year two,” Myles said. “We had a lot more athletes qualifying for nationals, we had our first ever national champion (in weightlifting) and our first ever American record holder for the program. We doubled all of our qualifying marks from the first year – we had a four-fold increase for powerlifting. I was really pleased with year one to year two growth.”
Last season’s schedule featured four total powerlifting meets, including the first home meet in the history of the program. The success on the national stage was a product of the weightroom dedication of the likes of junior Rylee Ladd, sophomore Will Peterson and many others. The Chetek, Wis., native Ladd began last season by taking top lifter honors at the Husker Strong Meet before wrapping up by placing second in the nation at 54 kg while breaking the American record (for her weight class) in the bench press (92.5 kg / 204 pounds).
As for Peterson, his expectations are through the roof for 2024-25 after he placed fifth nationally at 140 kg as only a freshman. When the Yutan, Neb., native pledged his commitment to Concordia, it represented a major recruiting win for Myles. On the national stage, Peterson squatted 300 kg, benched 175 kg and deadlifted 292.5 kg for a total of 767.5 kg. He believes he’ll soon break 800 kg.
Explained Peterson, “I went to nationals in high school my junior and senior year. It’s put on by the same federation, so that wasn’t too much different for me. I knew going into it that I had a really good chance of getting top five. I knew there was probably no chance I could get top three. I ended up having a 90-pound PR, which is pretty substantial. I got fifth place, which I was happy with. I know I am capable of more. Going into this year, I fully expect to win.”
Said Myles of Ladd and Peterson, “Both have been training hard and continuously over the summer. They’ve made big improvements from where they were last year. I think they’re coming in much stronger than they were at the start of last season. I expect them to have continued success and to climb the ladder a little bit higher. With Riley being No. 2, there’s only one more rung, but I think it’s possible for her to get to that spot. It’s also possible for her to re-break her American records.”
Ladd is one of three Bulldogs to have competed at the collegiate national championships in back-to-back years. She’s joined with such distinction by senior Dax Davis and junior Kenzie Houser. A native of Riverton, Kan., Houser (56 kg) vaulted from 50th to 14th place from 2023 to 2024 on the national stage. Also noteworthy from the ’24 national championships, Teya Badger took ninth place at 100 kg, Abby Lockingen placed 14th at 100 kg and Jack Hedke earned 17th place at 125 kg. As a unique dynamic, Jack is a teammate with his wife Taylor (maiden name Meyer). Both Jack and Taylor have the potential to accomplish significant achievements this season. Taylor will be competing in both powerlifting and weightlifting.
“I think we have several individuals who can be in scoring positions and hopefully up there on the podium,” Myles said. “The total Jack Hedke had last year would have been a podium finish the previous couple years. It was a really deep year last year, but he’s really improved. His squat has been his best lift by far and his deadlift and bench have really been coming up over the summer and early part of the school year. I think we could see him on the podium this year. With the big chunk of training we still have ahead of us, there are a lot of people who are going to surge and put themselves in that position.”
A sophomore out of Brandon, S.D., Badger has juggled life as a student-athlete for both the Concordia powerlifting and tennis teams. Admittedly nervous for her first experience at the national championships, Badger totaled 402.5 kg on that stage in Atlanta, Ga., while setting a foundation for future success. A South Dakota state record holder in a number of categories, Badger sees the Bulldogs as a team on the rise.
“It hit the ground running,” said Badger of the program’s early success. “Last year was kind of a breakout year after the first year of being a program. Obviously I wasn’t here that first year. If you’re talking about starting points, ninth place at nationals is a pretty good starting point. I think that as we grow and continue to lift, we’re going to improve that ranking. I have confidence in that.”
Added Peterson, “It’s been great to see the overall growth of the program in terms of size. Last year we were able to fit pretty much everyone into one (practice) session. This year we’ve grown to such a size that we needed to split it into two sessions. I think that shows how good of a job Coach Myles has done in recruiting and bringing more people into the program. Seeing everyone grow stronger and stay committed to the program is always great to see.”
Myles and assistant coach Chevy Stout brought a group of 10 freshmen into the powerlifting program. Each year, the Bulldogs expect to take another step forward. Said Myles, “I like the track we’re on. I’d like to continue to have more success and keep growing in numbers. I’d like to have some team success – last year we had some individual success. I’d really like both teams to finish in a podium position. That’s a major goal of mine to get the group to finish high.”
The powerlifting season will get started for select members of the team with the Husker Strong Meet on Oct. 12. Many of the top Bulldog lifters are setting their sights on the Central Collegiate Cup Series on Nov. 23-24. The 2025 Collegiate Powerlifting National Championships will take place in Oklahoma City this coming April. The complete schedule can be found HERE.