2007 - Volleyball schedule/results

21-14 Overall, 8-8 GPAC - Season statistics

AUGUST
Aug. 29	Hastings College*	Seward, Neb.	W 3-1
Cavalier Invitational Tournament
Aug. 31	vs. Southern Oregon Univ.	Portland, Ore.	W 3-2
Aug. 31	vs. Concordia-Portland	Portland, Ore.	W 3-2
SEPTEMBER
Sept. 1	vs. Lewis-Clark State College	Portland, Ore.	L 3-0
Sept. 1	vs. Montana State Univ. - Northern	Portland, Ore.	W 3-1
Sept. 5	College of St. Mary	Seward, Neb.	W 3-2
Graceland Invite
Sept. 7	vs. Indiana Wesleyan	Lamoni, Iowa	L 3-2
Sept. 7	vs. Culver-Stockton	Lamoni, Iowa	W 3-0
Sept. 8	vs. Graceland	Lamoni, Iowa	W 3-0
Sept. 8	vs. Olivet Nazarene	Lamoni, Iowa	L 3-0
Sept. 11	Doane College*	Crete, Neb.	L 3-0
Holiday Inn Classic
Sept. 14	vs. Saint Xavier	Hastings, Neb.	W 3-0
Sept. 14	vs. Central Methodist University	Hastings, Neb.	W 3-0
Sept. 15	vs.  Texas-Brownville	Hastings, Neb.	L 3-0
Sept. 15	vs. Park University	Hastings, Neb.	W 3-0
Sept. 19	Nebraska Wesleyan University*	Lincoln, Neb.	L 3-2
Sept. 21	Bellevue University	Bellevue, Neb.	L 3-2
Sept. 25	Midland Lutheran College*	Seward, Neb.	W 3-0
Sept. 28	Northwestern College*	Seward, Neb.	L 3-1
Sept. 29	Mount Marty College*	Seward, Neb.	W 3-0
OCTOBER
Oct. 3	Dana College*	Blair, Neb.	W 3-1
Oct. 6	Dordt College*	Sioux Center, Iowa	L 3-0
Oct. 10	Doane College*	Seward, Neb.	W 3-2
St Ambrose Tournament
Oct. 12	vs. Cardinal Stritch (Wis.)	Davenport, Iowa	W 3-1
Oct. 12	vs. St. Ambrose (Iowa)	Davenport, Iowa	W 3-0
Oct. 13	vs. Calumet College of St. Joseph	Davenport, Iowa	W 3-0
Oct. 13	vs. Univ. of Dubuque	Davenport, Iowa	W 3-0
Oct. 16	Nebraska Wesleyan University.*	Seward, Neb.	W 3-2
Oct. 19	Dakota Wesleyan Univ.*	Seward, Neb.	W 3-0
Oct. 20	Univ. of Sioux Falls*	Seward, Neb.	W 3-1
Oct. 23	Hastings College*	Hastings, Neb.	L 3-0
Oct. 26	Briar Cliff University*	Sioux City, Iowa	L 3-0
Oct. 27	Morningside College*	Sioux City, Iowa	L 3-0
Oct. 31	Midland Lutheran College*	Fremont, Neb.	L 3-1
NOVEMBER
GPAC Tournament
	vs. Northwestern	Orange City, Iowa	L 3-0

*Denotes GPAC games
Home Contests In Bold

2007 - Volleyball roster

No.	Name	Pos.	Ht.	Yr.	Hometown	Previous School
1	Kelli Ziegler	S/RS	5-11	So.	Lincoln, Neb.	Lincoln Lutheran
2	Sam Sandiland	S	5-7	Fr.	LaVista, Neb.	Ralston
3	Katie Werner	MB	6-2	Sr.	Syracuse, Neb.	Syracuse
4	Abby Schuldheisz	DS	5-7	Jr.	Portland, Ore.	Portland Lutheran
5	Esther Mehl	OH	5-5	Fr.	Concordia, Mo.	St. Paul Lutheran
6	Kelsie Scholting	DS	5-6	Fr.	Louisville, Neb.	Elmwood-Murdock
7	Jacki Chandler	DS	5-5	So.	Bellevue, Neb.	Bellevue East
8	Kate Phillips	OH	5-8	So.	Woodward, Iowa	Woodward-Granger
9	Heidi Zoucha	RS	5-10	Jr.	Columbus, Neb.	Central CC
10	Beth Sutton	OH	5-9	Fr.	Lincoln, Neb.	Lincoln Christian
11	Dani Hoagland	MB	6-0	So.	Rushville, Neb.	Gordon-Rushville
12	Kelsey Affolter	MB	5-11	So.	Dickinson, Texas	Santa Fe
13	Alexa Oelke	MB	5-11	Fr.	Dalhart, Texas	Dalhart
14	Valerie Schick	MB	5-11	Fr.	Meadow Grove, Neb.	Lutheran High NE
15	Chelsea Vaudt	MB	6-0	Fr.	Kalispell, Mont.	Flathead
16	Abby Klein	MB	5-6	Fr.	Dallas, Texas	Dallas Lutheran
17	Nicki Axelson	DS	5-6	Fr.	Thornton, Colo.	Denver Lutheran
18	Amy Williams	OH	5-10	Fr.	Superior, Neb.	Superior
19	Sally Schwarz	DS	5-4	Fr.	Ballwin, Mo.	Parkway West
20	Katie Douglas	RS	5-9	So.	Gwinner, N.D.	North Sargent
21	Lauryn Nyhoff	RS	5-10	Fr.	Lincoln, Neb.	Lincoln Lutheran
22	Jene' Bertels	MB	5-11	Jr.	Glen Carbon, Ill.	Metro East Lutheran
23	Kristen Czapla	MB	5-9	So.	Genoa, Neb.	Twin River
24	Debbie Kirchner	S/RS	5-9	Fr.	Clarinda, Iowa	Clarinda
25	Kate Brown	S	5-6	Sr.	Rochester, Minn.	Century

2007 - Coaching staff

Head coach: Rachel Miller

Concordia upsets No. 9 Hastings, ends Broncos' streak

29 AUG 2007

The Concordia University, Nebraska volleyball team started the season with a bang, upsetting the ninth-ranked Hastings College Broncos, 3-1, on Wednesday night in Seward.

With the win the Bulldogs (1-0, 1-0 GPAC) put an end to the Broncos 24 match Great Plains Athletics Conference (GPAC) regular season win streak. It was nearly two years since the last time Hastings dropped a regular season conference match. Their previous defeat came on Oct. 7 2005 when Dordt got the better of the Broncos, 3-2.

The Bulldogs, playing in their season opener, jumped out to a two game lead (30-22, 30-22) in front of an electric crowd at the "Dog House" before dropping a tough game four 30-27. Concordia bounced back to take a close fourth game, 34-32.

Hastings entered the match a perfect 4-0 on the season with victories over a pair of ranked opponents, No. 10 Savannah College of Art & Design and No. 17 Bellevue University.

In the first set, Concordia hit a healthy .250 (11-3-32) en route to the eight point victory. In the third set the Bulldogs seemed to have taken a 28-26 lead, but after discussion among the officials and a delay of almost five minutes Concordia was called for being out of rotation. Hastings rallied, scoring the next three points to take the game.

For the match Concordia hit .178 while limiting Hastings to an attacking percentage of .108. Werner led the way for the Bulldogs hitting a red hot .433 with 16 kills and just three errors on 30 attempts. Junior Abby Schuldheisz (Portland, Ore.) added a game high five service aces in 22 attempts.

Sophomore Kelsey Affolter (Dickinson, Texas) was also in double figures in kills with 11. The Lincoln Lutheran duo of sophomore Kelli Ziegler and Lauryn Nyhoff had nine kills each while Ziegler added 25 assists and four blocks.

Finally, sophomore libero Jacki Chandler (Bellevue, Neb.) looked sharp, finishing with 19 digs while not committing an error on 40 serve receive attempts.

Kelsea Jones paced Hastings with 17 kills, one block and 11 digs. Jill Whalen was also in double digits in kills with 11.

The Bulldogs travel to Portland, Ore., to take part in the Cavalier Invitational Tournament hosted by Concordia Portland on Aug. 31 and Sept. 1. Along with the host school, the Bulldogs will take on Southern Oregon University, Lewis and Clark State College and Montana State University-Northern.

Bulldogs extinguish Flames in five

5 SEP 2007

Four different Bulldogs reached double digits in kills as the Concordia University, Nebraska volleyball team edged the College of St. Mary Flames, 3-2 (-28, 23-30, -29, 26-30, -12), Wednesday night in Seward.

The Bulldogs (5-1, 1-0 GPAC) remain undefeated at home on the season while the Flames, who opened the season ranked 14th in the NAIA, fall to 4-6 on the young season.

St. Mary led for most of the first game, but the Bulldogs rallied for a come from behind win, 30-28. In the second game Concordia struggled to find points, playing out of system throughout.

The Bulldogs, who garnered a vote in this week's NAIA poll, won a tight game three, 31-29 before falling in the fourth game. Concordia pulled away from a 10-all tie in the deciding game, taking advantage of a service error on the Flames.

The Flames setter, Annie Jankowski, kept the Bulldogs off balance the entire night, picking up double digits in kills (10), via the setter dump. Jankowski was one of just two St. Mary players in double digits. The other, Amanda Cook led everyone with 26 kills on 67 attempts.

Senior middle blocker Katie Werner shared game high honors for the Bulldogs in kills (15) along with sophomore outside hitter Kelsey Affolter. A pair of Lincoln Lutheran products, sophomore Kelli Ziegler and freshman Lauryn Nyhoff added 12 and 10 kills respectively.

Defensively sophomore libero Jacki Chandler continued her solid play with 25 digs. Freshman Kelsie Scholting added 18 dis. Werner and sophomore Dani Hoagland dominated the net, combining for nine of Concordia's 14 blocks on the night.

Finally, senior setter Kate Brown had 29 assists, nine digs and a service ace. Ziegler also added 29 assists, 20 digs and 2.5 blocks.

Concordia will take part in the Graceland invitational this Friday and Saturday before returning to GPAC play on Sept. 11 at Doane College in a 7:30 p.m. match.

Bulldogs split at Graceland, Ziegler on all-tournament team

7-8 SEP 2007

Sophomore Kelli Ziegler was named to the all-tournament team at the Graceland "Pizza Shack" Invite while the Buldogs went 2-2, picking up wins over Culver-Stockton (-27, -27, -25) and Graceland (-26, 24, -28).

In the opening match of the tournament the Bulldogs lost their first five-game match of the season to Indiana Wesleyan (30-27, 21-30, 25-30, 31-29, 15-10).

Concordia also dropped their final match of the event in straight games to Olivet Nazarene (-22, -24, -10). According to Coach Rachel Miller the Bulldogs struggled with serve receive in the final match.

Sophomore setter/right side hitter Kelli Ziegler was named to the all tournament team, racking up 40 kills during the tourney to go along with 49 digs and 78 set assists.

The Bulldogs return to GPAC play on Sept. 11 at Doane College in a 7:30 p.m. match.

Bulldogs 3-1 at Quality Hotel Classic. Werner, Ziegler named all-tournament

14-15 SEP 2007

The Concordia University, Nebraska volleyball team finished 3-1 at the Hastings College/Quality Hotel Classic in Hastings, Neb., this past weekend. The Bulldogs also played a mid-week GPAC contest against 19th ranked Doane College, falling 3-0.

In the GPAC contest the Bulldogs fell to the Tigers, 30-22, 35-33, 30-26. Concordia struggled in the opening game, hitting just .049 as a team. In the tightly contested second game, the hitting improved (.244), but for the match Concordia hit just .164, while Doane hit .208.

Senior middle blocker Katie Werner continues to finish well, hitting .400 (15 kills), and was a defensive force, finishing with four solo and three assist blocks.

After the four games at the Quality Hotel Classic, the Bulldogs are now 10-5, 1-1 GPAC on the season. Both Werner, and Kelli Ziegler were named to the all-tournament team.

Concordia opened the tournament with a 3-0 win over Central Methodist (31-29,30-37,30-21). Also on Friday the Bulldogs downed St. Xavier University 3-0 (30-26, 35-33, 33-31). St. Xavier was receiving votes in last NAIA Poll.

The only loss for Concordia at the tournament came to NAIA No. 25 Texas Brownville 3-0 (31-29, 30-25, 30-22). In the loss to Texas Brownville, Concordia hit just .124 and had a pair of players hit negative.

Concordia bounced back in the final game of the tournament, sweeping Park University (30-25,30-21,30-21). Both Werner and Dani Hoagland finished the match with double digits in kills. Werner hit .333, had 12 kills and four blocks while Hoagland had 11 kills, hit .625 and also had four blocks.

Werner had success on defense all weekend. She had 10 kills and nine blocks against Texas Brownville. Ziegler, played a well rounded game during the event finishing with 47 blocks, over 20 kills and 68 kills.

Concordia plays three matches in the next six days, including a non-conference match with Bellevue University sandwiched between a pair of GPAC matches versus Nebraska Wesleyan and Midland Lutheran.

Marathon matches slow Bulldogs

19 & 21 SEP 2007

Concordia University, Nebraska volleyball fans got their money worth this week as both of the Bulldogs matches went five sets. Unfortunately, the Bulldogs came up short both times, falling to Nebraska Wesleyan (30-22,20-30,30-19,24-30,13-15), and 23rd-ranked Bellevue University (30-22,23-30,30-17,31-33,4-15).

Concordia (10-7, 1-2 GPAC) suffered back-to-back losses for just the second time this season. According to Head Coach Rachel Miller the Bulldogs are having a hard time putting together a complete match.

"Right now we are struggling to find consistency throughout the entire match. We have great play that is interrupted by mental lapses," Miller said. "Blocking continues to be our strong point as can really shut down our opponents attack. We just need to put together a complete match."

In the two matches the Bulldogs accumulated 32 blocks. Against the Bellevue Bruins the Bulldogs racked up 22 blocks as a team, led by Katie Werner with 11 block assists and Dani Hoagland with three solo and six block assists.

Kelli Ziegler put together another solid weekend, notching a triple double in the match against Wesleyan. She finished with 17 kills, 35 set assists and 31 digs. She added another triple double against Bellevue with 12 kills, 18 set assists and 21 digs. She also chipped in with eight assist blocks.

Werner continues to put the ball away at a high clip, hitting .3.17 and .324 against NWU and Bellevue respectively.

In the Nebraska Wesleyan contest five Bulldogs finished with double digit kills. Ziegler (17), Werner (17), Hoagland (10), Heidi Zoucha (11) and Kelsey Affolter (11).

Defensively Jacki Chandler had 31 digs and was error free in the serve receive department in 41 attempts. Chandler added 27 digs against Bellevue.

The blue and gold also continues to miss in the serving game, coming up with 11 service errors and just four service aces.

After playing 15 of their 17 games on the road the Bulldogs return to the friendly confines of the "Dog House" for a three-game home stand. Concordia will take on Midland in a JV/Varsity doubleheader beginning at 6 p.m. on Tuesday before playing back-to-back on Friday and Saturday evening.

Bulldogs block well in sweep

25 SEP 2007

The Concordia University, Nebraska volleyball team finished with 17 blocks as a team in a sweep of the Midland Lutheran Warriors (-28, -29, -29) Tuesday night at the "Dog House" in Seward.

Concordia (11-7) is now 2-2 in GPAC play while Midland (7-10) falls to 2-3.

The Bulldogs continued the recent solid play at the net defensively out blocking the Warriors 17-6.5. Sophomore Dani Hoagland finished with three solo and five assist blocks. Senior Katie Werner added one solo and seven assist.

Werner led the team in kills with 13, hitting .385 on the night. Sophomore setter/right side Kelli Ziegler notched a triple-double for Concordia, finishing with 10 kills, 18 set assists and 10 digs. It is the third triple-double in as many matches for Zielger.

Midland was paced by Amanda Hunt who finished the game with 14 kills.

The Bulldogs are in action again this Friday, taking on Northwestern College (Iowa) in a 7:30 p.m. contest in Seward.

Homestand ends with sweep

28-29 SEP 2007

The Concordia University, Nebraska volleyball team had a busy weekend, falling to 14th-ranked Northwestern College 3-1 (30-26, 30-20, 21-30, 30-27) on Friday before sweeping Mount Marty College, (-19, -21, -19) on Saturday night in Seward, Neb.

After the weekend the Bulldogs are 12-8 overall (3-3 GPAC).

Against Mount Marty freshman Alexa Oelke led the Bulldogs with 12 kills, hitting an impressive .346 in her first collegiate start. Oelke was one of four Bulldogs who hit over .300 on the night.

Concordia didn't waste any time against Mount Marty, jumping out to quick leads in two of the three games. In the opening game the Bulldogs hit .467 as a team, finishing with 17 kills in 30 attempts with only three errors.

Kelsey Affolter hit a red hot .438 in the match, notching nine kills. Katie Werner and Kelli Ziegler also finished above the .300 mark with nine and eight kills respectively.

Mount Marty was paced by their setter, Abby Haiar, who had kills on 17 attempts. As a team the Lancers finished with just 24 kills, hitting an anemic .102.

On Friday the Bulldogs got off to a good start in most of the games, taking early leads. But Northwestern was able to turn things around thank in part to solid defense. The Red Raiders finished the match with 68 digs as a team and had three players reach double digits in digs, led by Janna Bloemendaal.

Northwestern struggled in the third game, a 30-21 victory for the Bulldogs, hitting negative. The Red Raiders had just eight kills compared to 13 errors in the third game. As a team Concordia actually out-hit the Red Raiders for the match (.121 - .102).

Werner led the Bulldogs in kills with 17. She also added one solo and six block assists. Kelli Ziegler notched another triple-double finishing with 10 kills, 20 set assists and 11 digs. She also added four blocks. Dani Hoagland just missed double digits in kills, finishing with nine. Hoagland also added three solo and two block assists.

Northwestern was paced by Rand Hulstein who finished the game with 14 kills. She was one of four Red Raiders to finish in nine or more with kills. Hillary Hanno had a pair of solo blocks and three assist to go along with nine kills.

Concordia takes to the road, traveling to Blair, Neb., and Sioux Center, Iowa, this week to take on Dana and Dordt College on Oct. 3 and Oct. 6 respectively. The next home action for the Bulldogs comes on Oct. 10 as Doane College comes to town for a 7:30 p.m. match.

Dordt remains hot, downs Bulldogs

3 & 6 OCT 2007

The Concordia University, Nebraska volleyball team earned a split in a pair of GPAC games this past week. The Bulldogs picked up a win over Dana College (22-30, -19, -22, -24) during the week before falling to the Dordt College Defender's 3-0 (-23, -23, -27) on Saturday. Both matches were on the road.

In the win over Dana the Bulldogs struggled offensively in game one, hitting just .073. Concordia bounced back hitting over .300 in the next three games, including a red hot .519 in game three.

Five different Bulldogs finished with double digits in kills for the match, led by senior Katie Werner (12). Junior Heidi Zoucha, sophomores Kelli Ziegler and Dani Hoagland, along with freshman Alexa Oelke all finished with 10 kills. Werner and Hoagland accounted for five of the teams 10 blocks.

Defensively the Bulldogs were led by sophomore libero Jacki Chandler who notched 22 digs. Oelke just missed a double-double, as she finished with nine digs. From the service stripe Ziegler added four aces, as the Bulldogs finished with 11 aces as a team.

On Saturday afternoon the Bulldogs faced a tall challenge as they traveled to Sioux Center, Iowa, to take on Dordt College. The Defenders were coming off back-to-back sweeps of Northwestern and Hastings. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs the Defenders (24-6, 5-4 GPAC) picked up their third consecutive sweep.

In the opening game the Bulldogs played even with Dordt, forcing a 12-12 tie. But the Defenders rattled off five straight points to take a 17-13 lead and Concordia never got closer than 23-21 on the way to a 30-23 win for the Defenders.

In the next two games the Defenders jumped out to early leads (10-5 in game two and 22-15 in game three). In the third game the Bulldogs fought back to within 27-26, but Dordt was able to hold the Bulldogs off, 30-27.

Werner was the only Bulldog to reach double digits in kills, finishing with 10. She also added one solo and was in on 10 block assists. As a team the Bulldogs hit just .066. Chandler again led Concordia in digs with 14.

Dordt was led by Larissa Veldhuizen's13 kills and Kristin De Ronde added 12. In all the Defenders had four players reach double digits in kills.

Concordia is now 13-9 overall and 4-4 in the conference and will take on Doane College at home on Oct.10th at 7:30 p.m. before traveling to take part in the St. Ambrose tournament over the weekend.

Winning continues, Bulldogs sweep weekend

16-19 OCT 2007

The Concordia University, Nebraska volleyball team picked up a pair of wins in their final regular season home games this weekend. The Bulldogs swept Dakota Wesleyan University on Friday night and defeated the University of Sioux Falls, 3-1, on Saturday afternoon in Seward.

With the win on Friday the Bulldogs reached the 20-win plateau for the third consecutive season. Overall, Concordia is now 21-9 overall (8-4 GPAC) and have won eight consecutive matches.

On Friday Concordia made quick work of Dakota Wesleyan, sweeping the Tigers (30-21, 30-24, 30-17). The Bulldogs jumped out to early leads in games one and two, but in game two the Tigers came back to pull within one, 13-12, after trailing by as many as much as 8-1. Concordia struggled as a team in the second game, hitting just .162 after putting up a impressive .394 in the opener.

In the final game the Tigers made things interesting keeping within one until midway through the game. Concordia then went on a seven-to-one run to put some distance between them and DWU. Concordia, who it a red-hot .444, then closed the game on a 12-3 run, sealing the match.

Sophomore Dani Hoagland led the Bulldogs with 11 kills, hitting .450 on the night. Jacki Chandler led Concordia defensively with 10 digs and had just one reception error on 22 attempts.

For Dakota Wesleyan, Kalie Whealy led the way with seven kills. Whealy also finished with four solo and four assist blocks for Dakota Wesleyan.

On Saturday, after honoring the two Bulldog seniors (Katie Werner and Kate Brown) prior to the match, Concordia picked up their second win in as many days defeating the University of Sioux Falls Cougars, 3-1, (-25, 22-30, -22, -21).

Concordia led start to finish in the opening game, jumping out to an 8-3 advantage as Sioux Falls was never able to close the gap. The Cougars bounced back to take game two thanks in part to a 5-0 after a tie at five. Concordia was never able to close the game, as they hit just .062 as a team.

In the third game the Bulldogs closed the game with a 14-4 run. The deciding game was all Concordia as they jumped out to an 8-0 advantage and never looked back, leading by as many as 13.

Werner paced Concordia, hitting a blistering .483 en route to a game-high 16 kills. She also added four solo and four assist blocks. Sophomore Kelli Ziegler continued to add to her triple-double total for the season, finishing with 13 kills, 29 set assists and 10 digs. Also reaching double digits in kills was junior Heidi Zoucha who notched 10 kills. Chandler led the way defensively with 17 digs.

Sioux Falls had two players reach double-digit kills, Jamie Gerdes (13) and Beth Mathes (12). The duo also led the Cougars in the dig department, finishing with 11 and 16 respectively.

The Bulldogs finish the regular season with a four game road swing, facing three teams in the top five of the GPAC standings, including Morningside and Hastings. Concordia faces Hastings on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in Hastings, Neb.

Road not kind to Bulldog netters

23-27 OCT 2007

The Concordia University, Nebraska volleyball team had a busy week, playing three matches, all against teams in the top five in the GPAC. The Bulldogs were swept in all three games, losing to Hastings College, Briar Cliff University and Morningside College.

With just one regular season game remaining the Bulldogs are currently in seventh place in the GPAC standings with a record of 21-12 (8-7 GPAC). Concordia wraps-up the regular season on Oct. 31 taking on Midland Lutheran in Fremont, Neb.

The Bulldogs started out their week against Hastings College, in Hastings. The Broncos entered the contest ranked No. 19 in the NAIA. Concordia defeated the Bulldogs in their first meeting - the season opener for Concordia.

This time it was all Broncos, as they cruised to a 30-19, 30-17, 30-21 sweep of the Bulldogs. Concordia hit just .092 as a team on the night, finishing with 33 kills. Kelli Ziegler led the way, with eight kills, and eight digs. Hastings hit .348 and pounded out 55 kills in the win.

On Friday the Bulldogs made the trip to Sioux City, Iowa to take on Briar Cliff University. Again the Bulldogs struggled to put balls away and were swept (30-21, 30-22, 30-22), as the Chargers finished with 80 digs in the match. As a result, Concordia hit .106 and again had just 33 kills. No one reached double digit in kills for the Bulldogs. Sophomore Dani Hoagland finished with eight kills. Defensively Jacki Chandler led the Bulldogs in digs for the second consecutive game with 14.

After an overnight stay in Sioux City, the Bulldogs traveled to the other end of the town to take on GPAC leading Morningside. The Mustangs, ranked No. 13 in the nation, defeated Hastings on the previous night and made quick work of the Bulldogs (30-13, 30-25, 30-27).

The hitting percentage improved over the previous two games (.134) and two Bulldogs reached double digits in kills, Kate Werner (11) and Hoagland (10). Concordia had 10 service errors in the game. The Mustangs and two with double digit kills, Amber Jarzynka and Cara DeStighter with 12 and 13 respectively.

Seeds for the GPAC Tournament will be announced late Wednesday night after the conclusion of all regular season matches.

Werner earns weekly GPAC honors, named co-MVP in Portland

Katie Werner of Concordia University, Nebraska was recognized as the Hauff Mid-America Sports/Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Co-Volleyball Player of the Week. Hauff Mid-America Sports is the presenting sponsor of the GPAC player-of-the-week award program.

Werner, a senior from Syracuse, Neb., shared the honor with Abby Bade of Nebraska Wesleyan.

The Bulldogs 6-2 middle blocker, averaged 4.2 kills per game and hit .298 as the Bulldogs went 4-1 on the week. In a four-set win over ninth ranked Hastings she posted 16 kills as the Bulldogs snapped Hastings' 25 match regular season conference win streak.

Werner has reached double digits in kills in each of Concordia's five matches this season.

"Katie came into the season well prepared, both physically and mentally," said Head Coach Rachel Miller. "She has been putting the ball away very well and playing with tremendous confidence."

Concordia (4-1, 1-0 GPAC) is scheduled to take on intra-state foe, College of St. Mary in a home match on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m.

Ziegler sweeps weekly setter awards

Kelli Ziegler of Concordia University, Nebraska picked up a pair of honors for her performance during the last week. Ziegler was recognized as the Hauff Mid-America Sports/Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) Setter of the Week as well as being tabbed the Region III Setter of the week.

Ziegler, a sophomore from Lincoln, Neb., helped guide the Bulldogs who were receiving votes in the last NAIA Poll, to a 3-2 record on the week.

The 5-11 setter/right side for the Bulldogs averaged 7.16 assists per game in Concordia's 6-2 offense. For the week she dished out 107 assists. When she wasn't setting she played a very tough right side hitter position with 2.74 kills per game and 3.63 digs per game. Her efforts earned her All-Tournament Honors at the always competitive Graceland "Pizza Shack" Tournament.

The Bulldogs are 7-3 on the season. In a four-set win over ninth-ranked Hastings Ziegler posted 16 kills as the Bulldogs snapped Hastings' 25 match regular season conference win streak.

"Kelli is a versatile player that provides consistency in all areas of the game. She has been making very good choices on offense and then backs that up with great defensive play," said Head Coach Rachel Miller. I'm looking for her to continue to step up her level of play as the season progresses."

Concordia athletes named to World-Herald All-Nebraska Teams

Eight athletes from Concordia University, Nebraska were selected to the 2007 Omaha World Herald All-Nebraska College Teams. Five other Concordia athletes were honorably mentioned. The lists, released Christmas morning, were for football, soccer and volleyball.

Football led the way with five players being named to the World-Herald team and three more made the honorable mention list. Most notably senior running back JaMaine Lewis from St. Louis, Mo., was named the honorary offensive captain. Lewis was joined on the offensive side by junior offensive lineman Andrew Sunderman. On the defensive squad junior noseguard Matt Baller and senior safety Brett Mertens each garnered honors. Senior dual-threat back Jeff Neujahr was named as the team's punt returner. Juniors Brock Simonsen and Tom Schutte along with senior Trent Laune were honorably mentioned.

Concordia led all GPAC schools for volleyball with two World-Herald selections: senior middle blocker Katie Werner from Syracuse, Neb. and Kelli Ziegler, a sophomore from Lincoln, Neb.

Freshman sensation Arturo Vega, from El Paso, Texas, was the lone selection for either squad on the All-State soccer team. Anthony Reichwaldt, a freshman goal keeper from Lincoln, Neb., was honorably mentioned. Sophomore Carolyn Chrzan from Burbank, Calif., was honorably mentioned for the women's team.