SEWARD, Neb. – There may not be two basketball programs in the country more familiar with each other than Concordia and Dakota Wesleyan. The top-ranked Bulldogs are getting set to welcome the fourth-ranked Tigers to Walz Arena in what will mark the third-straight GPAC championship meeting in Seward for the two rivals. Tipoff on Tuesday is set for 7 p.m. CST.
Once again, the contest will be aired live via 104.9 Max Country, the radio home of Concordia athletics. The Concordia Sports Network will provide a live stream.
Two comfortable postseason wins have led 13th-year head coach Drew Olson’s squad into the title game. The Bulldogs have extended their GPAC tournament home win streak to 18 after toppling eighth-seeded Briar Cliff, 80-55, on Feb. 20 and fifth-seeded Hastings, 89-66, on Feb. 23. In the victory over the Broncos, who had won nine of their previous 10 games, Concordia put together one of its most efficient offensive performances of the season. The Bulldogs shot 56.4 percent in the first half while building a lead of greater than 20 points. Not surprisingly, Concordia displayed exceptional balance with eight players scoring eight points or more, topped by 17 from Taylor Cockerill.
The next turnover forced will be the 1,000th by Bulldog opponents this season. The 2014-15 squad (1,014 turnovers forced) is the only team in program history to cause 1,000+ turnovers in a season. That ’14-15 team, led by NAIA Division II National Player of the Year Bailey Morris, forced an average of 26.7 turnovers per contest, but even that pales in comparison to the 2018-19 team average of 31.2. Concordia continues to hold down the top three spots on the GPAC steals leaderboard: Grace Barry (3.75), Riley Sibbel (2.69) and Philly Lammers (2.59).
A 2017-18 NAIA first team All-American, Lammers has again made a case for GPAC Player of the Year accolades. He’s also been nearly unstoppable this postseason when catching the ball in the post. She’s a combined 13-for-17 (.765) from the field over the GPAC quarterfinal and semifinal rounds. Among conference players, Lammers ranks first in blocks (1.34), second in field goal percentage (.584) and third in steals. She needs 15 more points to reach 1,500 for her career. In addition, senior Quinn Wragge is 13 points away from moving into fifth place on the school’s all-time scoring list (see below).
Program’s all-time scoring leaders
1. Bailey Morris (2011-15) – 2,054
2. Sarah Harrison (2001-05) – 1,800
3. Kari Saving (2001-05) – 1,773
4. Whitney Stichka (2004-09) – 1,765
5. Stephanie Schilke (1994-98) – 1,736
6. Quinn Wragge (2015-19) – 1,724
7. Lynda Beck (1988-92) – 1,720
Concordia enters the GPAC championship game having won six of the past seven meetings with Dakota Wesleyan. The lone loss during that stretch came in the 2018 NAIA Division II national title game. The previous two get-togethers in conference championship games have been classics. The Bulldogs outlasted the Tigers, 78-77, in overtime in the 2017 title clash. A year ago, Brenleigh Daum’s driving layup in the final seconds lift Concordia to a 90-88 victory over Dakota Wesleyan. The Tigers have never won inside Walz Arena and last emerged from Seward with a victory in 2002 (17 losses in a row since).
No matter the result on Tuesday night, head coach Jason Christensen’s squad should be rewarded with one of the four No. 1 seeds. Dakota Wesleyan has won four in a row since falling in Seward, 79-66, on Feb. 9. The latest victory is the Tigers’ most impressive to date – a 75-66 decision at No. 2 Northwestern, which had been 16-0 at home this season. The ringleaders behind Dakota Wesleyan’s advancement to the title game have been the usual suspects. Sarah Carr went off for 37 points in the quarterfinal win over Morningside. Kynedi Cheeseman then poured in 30 in the semifinals.
Dakota Wesleyan has made its way to the GPAC championship game for the fourth year in a row (also lost at Morningside in 2016). Only four programs have captured GPAC women’s basketball tournament titles (conference began in 2000-01): Concordia (5), Morningside (5), Hastings (4) and Northwestern (4). Dakota Wesleyan managed to win the GPAC regular season title in 2002.
The NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball National Championships bracket will be released Wednesday by the NAIA. A selection show is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Wednesday. It will be available via the NAIA’s Facebook page.
Projected Starters
(Scoring average in parentheses)
Concordia (29-3, 19-3 GPAC)
G – Grace Barry, Jr., 5-7 (10.9)
G – Taylor Cockerill, So., 5-9 (15.9)
G – Riley Sibbel, Jr., 5-9 (5.3)
F – Quinn Wragge, Sr., 6-0 (10.8)
F – Philly Lammers, Jr., 5-11 (14.7)
Dakota Wesleyan (28-4, 18-4 GPAC)
G – Kynedi Cheeseman, Jr., 5-10 (18.8)
G – Madison Mathews, Sr., 5-8 (6.7)
G – Rylie Osthus, Sr., 5-9 (11.7)
F – Sarah Carr, Jr., 6-0 (17.8)
F – Makaela Karst, Jr., 6-2 (10.4)
2019 GPAC Women’s Basketball Tournament
Quarterfinals – Wednesday, Feb. 20
No. 1 Concordia 80, No. 8 Briar Cliff 55
No. 5 Hastings 66, No. 4 Dordt 63
No. 3 Dakota Wesleyan 88, No. 6 Morningside 75
No. 2 Northwestern 60, No. 7 Midland 36
Semifinals – Saturday, Feb. 23
No. 1 Concordia 89, No. 5 Hastings 66
No. 3 Dakota Wesleyan 75, No. 2 Northwestern 66
Championship – Tuesday, Feb. 26
No. 3 Dakota Wesleyan (28-4) at No. 1 Concordia (29-3), 7 p.m.