SEWARD, Neb. – Courtesy of their performances at the 2021 GPAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships, 54 Bulldogs have garnered all-conference recognition (see full list below). The GPAC awards all-conference honors to athletes who place in the top eight of individual events and to members of relay teams that place in the top three at the conference meet. In addition to the All-GPAC honors, Matt Beisel has been named the 2021 Jim McMahon/Hauff Mid-America Sports GPAC Women’s Outdoor Coach of the Year while GPAC champion Josie Puelz was honored with the GPAC Women’s Field Performance of the Meet (as announced on Friday, May 7).
The 2021 NAIA indoor pole vault national champion, Puelz rose to new heights last week when she cleared a GPAC meet record of 13’ 7 ¼” in the pole vault. That mark put the Lincoln Lutheran High School alum atop the national leaderboard. Puelz is now a two-time GPAC champion in the event. In addition, she earned All-America accolades as a freshman at the 2020 indoor national meet.
Currently in his fifth season leading the cross country and track programs, Beisel has been chosen as a GPAC Coach of the Year six times (once in cross country). In addition to overseeing five-straight GPAC women’s track and field titles, Beisel oversaw the 2019 GPAC women’s cross country conference championship. The Concordia alum is also a four-time NAIA Midwest Region Women’s Track & Field Coach of the Year (as awarded by the USTFCCCA).
The GPAC champion and NAIA No. 1-ranked Concordia women landed 33 athletes on the all-conference list. That number includes conference champions in the women’s 4x400 meter relay, Rachel Battershell (400 meter hurdles), Puelz (pole vault), Addie Shaw (hammer throw and shot put) and Liz Stottlemyre. On the men’s side, the Bulldogs took titles via the efforts of the men’s 4x400 meter relay and Jacob Cornelio. The Concordia men had 21 All-GPAC individuals.
Four Bulldogs placed among the top 10 point scorers in the GPAC for either men or women. Those individuals included Shaw (third with 28 points), Cora Olson (tied for fifth with 22 points) and Battershell (seventh with 20.5 points) on the women’s side and Cornelio (tied for eighth with 18 points) on the men’s side. There were 21 Concordia athletes who earned All-GPAC accolades in multiple events. Olson placed top eight in five different events. Shaw put together a sensational meet that saw her record personal bests in each of her three events.
A number of Bulldog athletes will compete at the Concordia Twilight Meet (May 14) as preparations for nationals continue. The 2021 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships will be held in Gulf Shores, Ala., May 26-28.
2021 GPAC Outdoor All-Conference Performers
MEN
· Andy Amos – shot put (7th); discus (8th)
· Jackson Armitage – javelin (7th)
· Zach Bennetts – pole vault (3rd)
· Antonio Blaine – 3,000 meter steeplechase (7th)
· Dagne’ Buck – hammer throw (6th)
· Jacob Cornelio – hammer throw (1st); discus (2nd)
· Jacob Jennings – 4x100m relay (1st)
· Cade Kleckner – 4x100m relay (1st); 200 meters (4th)
· Wyatt Loga – high jump (8th)
· Rees Lyon – pole vault (7th)
· Colton Meyer – 4x100m relay (1st); 400 meters (4th)
· Ben Moll – hammer throw (7th)
· Jerod Peters – shot put (4th)
· Joel Rathe – 4x100m relay (1st); 100 meters (7th)
· Henry Reimer – 400 hurdles (6th)
· Calvin Rohde – 3,000 meter steeplechase (5th)
· Darien Semedo – shot put (8th); hammer throw (8th)
· Camden Sesna – 3,000 meter steeplechase (2nd)
· Christian Van Cleave – 800 meters (8th)
· Micah Willweber – 1,500 meters (8th)
· Chris Wren – hammer throw (4th); discus (7th)
WOMEN
· Jordyn Anderson – shot put (4th)
· Keri Bauer – 4x400m relay (1st); 4x800m relay (3rd); 400 meters (4th)
· Rachel Battershell – 400 hurdles (1st); 4x400m relay (1st); 100 hurdles (2nd)
· Alyssa Bierwagen – 3,000 meter steeplechase (5th)
· Sydney Clark – 10,000 meters (2nd); 5,000 meters (4th)
· Lydia Cook – 3,000 meter steeplechase (7th)
· Amira Cummings – 4x100m relay (2nd); 100 meters (7th); pole vault (8th)
· Abigail Gerber – shot put (5th)
· Rylee Haecker – 1,500 meters (2nd); 4x800m relay (3rd)
· Sarah Huss – discus (6th)
· Mackenzie Koepke – high jump (3rd)
· Averie Lambrecht – triple jump (7th)
· Sarah Lewis – 4x400m relay (1st); 400 hurdles (2nd); 100 hurdles (3rd)
· Emily Loy – heptathlon (2nd); 4x100m relay (2nd); 100 hurdles (7th)
· Elle Luehr – shot put (6th)
· Erin Mapson – pole vault (4th)
· Amie Martin – 10,000 meters (8th)
· Hannah Mulligan – 4x100m relay (2nd); 100 meters (5th); 200 meters (6th)
· Taylor Moes – triple jump (3rd)
· Kennedy Mogul – heptathlon (6th)
· Cora Olson – 4x100m relay (2nd); 100 meters (3rd); 200 meters (3rd); triple jump (4th); long jump (6th)
· Alli Owings – hammer throw (8th)
· Josie Puelz – pole vault (1st)
· Sarah Ragland – hammer throw (2nd)
· Grace Reiman – 3,000 meter steeplechase (3rd); 4x800m relay (3rd)
· Amy Richert – heptathlon (3rd); high jump (5th); long jump (7th)
· Katie Severt – long jump (3rd)
· Sydni Schernikau – 4x400m relay (1st); 200 meters (8th)
· Addie Shaw – shot put (1st); hammer throw (1st); discus (2nd)
· Bethany Shaw – discus (3rd); hammer throw (4th)
· Elizabeth Stottlemyre – javelin (1st)
· Rebecca Weddell – 400 meters (8th)
· Kailey Weichel – 4x800m relay (3rd)