ASHLAND, Ore. – Two days after first arriving in the Pacific Northwest, the 11th-ranked Concordia University Volleyball team opened its 2022 season by knocking off a pair of Cascade Collegiate Conference opponents. It was far from a cakewalk on Thursday (Aug. 18). The Bulldogs brushed themselves off after dropping the first set and defeated No. 19 Oregon Tech, 29-31, 26-24, 25-19, 25-17. Then in the night cap, the visitors from Nebraska needed five sets to put away host Southern Oregon University, 25-18, 19-25, 25-13, 21-25, 15-12.
Head Coach Ben Boldt’s squad is in the midst of a three-match stay at the Raider Invitational in Ashland, Ore. With just over a week of practice in the books, Concordia got things going prior to the start of the academic year. This gives the Bulldogs something to work off of as nonconference play continues.
“I was really proud of our grit,” Boldt said. “We talk about day-by-day and embracing the moment. I think we did that. We graded ourselves on our core values at the end, and it was high grades. We stuck together and trusted each other.
“I think our mentality over the long haul was good. There were some points in the (second match) where we created some separation and let them come back in it. That’s why we scheduled tough, so we can go through these things. We have to go out there and earn it. We stayed tough.”
The battle with Oregon Tech was a rematch of last year’s pool play at the NAIA national tournament. Concordia got the best of the Owls once again despite narrowly falling in a high-intensity first set. The Bulldogs ramped things up in the third and fourth sets especially, as Oregon Tech hit .152 and .071, respectively, over those sets. Four Concordia attackers produced at least 10 kills: Ashley Keck (12), Gabi Nordaker (12), Carly Rodaway (12) and Camryn Opfer (11). Opfer also added 16 digs.
The training wheels were taken off immediately for the freshman Keck, a Kearney Catholic High School alum. She was set 87 times overall on the day and responded with a team high 31 kills from the outside. Keck put away a match best 19 kills in the five-setter over Southern Oregon. Nordaker (13) and Opfer (11) also tallied double figures in kills in the second victory.
This was Bree Burtwistle’s first chance to take control of the setter position after Tara Callahan held down that spot for five-straight years. Burtwistle posted a combined 87 assists and 28 digs on the day. The Boldts are still toying with both 5-1 and 6-2 systems in the early going. Bree Green is also in the mix at setter.
Said Ben Boldt, “Burtwistle is steady out there and a leader out there. The team trusts her. It was good to see that. We did a couple different lineups today. We had a 6-2 and a 5-1. We’ll see what we do moving forward. Nothing’s completely set.”
Add Boldt in regards to the play of Keck in her collegiate debut, “I was really proud of how she managed the game. We set her a lot. I wish we wouldn’t have to set her so much. We want to get our middles more involved and have more balance, but she managed the game well.”
Kalee Wiltfong was Concordia’s leader in blocks with six. For a more experienced back row, sophomore libero Rebecca Gebhardt notched 33 digs on the day, second on the team to Opfer (35). The Bulldogs totaled 13 aces on Thursday with four coming from sophomore Ashlyn Wischmeier.
This was the earliest in the calendar the Bulldogs have begun a season during the GPAC era (2000-present) and perhaps ever. In 2021, Concordia opened its season with a conference match on Aug. 25 and defeated Mount Marty in straight sets. The Bulldogs are coming off a national quarterfinal appearance from last season.
On day two of the Raider Invitational, the Bulldogs will go up against Park University of Gilbert, Ariz. The Buccaneers reached the 2021 NAIA National Championship Opening Round while finishing with a record of 18-7. In Thursday’s action, Park lost in straight sets to Southern Oregon before toppling Oregon Tech in four sets. Friday’s first serve is set for 10:30 a.m. PT / 12:30 p.m. CT.