The seventh-ranked Concordia women’s basketball team unveiled a new-look starting lineup complete with three freshmen and two juniors in Saturday’s NAIA Division II Women’s Basketball Game of the Week. With the Bulldog backcourt tandem of Kristen Conahan and Bailey Morris on the mend, No. 2 Northwestern (17-0, 9-0 GPAC) rolled up an 86-68 victory at the Bultman Center in Orange City, Iowa.
The top-ranked Bulldogs were greeted by a hyper-charged atmosphere inside Lynn Farrell Arena on Wednesday (Jan. 8) when they fell at the hands of No. 4 Hastings, 66-59. Grace Barry had 17 points to lead Concordia.
Riley Sibbel totaled a combined 41 points as the top-ranked Bulldogs defeated both No. 12 Northwestern and No. 6 Dordt last week. Sibbel's 26 points versus Dordt represented a new career high for the GPAC Player of the Week.
Concordia and Hastings will meet as top-five ranked squads for the first time since 2003 in a big-time battle on Wednesday. Both teams are 9-0 in conference play. The Bulldogs will then return home to host Jamestown on Saturday.
Senior Riley Sibbel came through with a career high 26 points and the top-ranked Concordia women's basketball team stifled No. 6 Dordt in a 69-55 win inside Walz Arena on Saturday (Jan. 4).
The top-ranked Bulldogs began a critical three-game stretch of top 12 opponents by toppling No. 12 Northwestern, 97-81, on Thursday (Jan. 2). Grace Barry (18) and Philly Lammers (17) led Concordia in scoring.
It's back to GPAC action for the top-ranked Bulldogs, who remain undefeated in conference play (7-0). Concordia has two matchups with ranked opponents this week: Northwestern and Dordt.
Millard West High School products Taylor Farrell (team high 18 points) and Philly Lammers (12 points, 12 rebounds) starred while leading top-ranked Concordia to a bounce back win on Saturday (Dec. 21).
The program's 23-game win streak went by the wayside at No. 2 Southeastern on Friday (Dec. 20). Top-ranked Concordia had beaten the Fire three times since the start of the 2018-19 season.
A triple-double in the win at No. 7 Morningside helped lead to Grace Barry earning the GPAC Player of the Week award, as announced on Dec. 17. Barry ranks in the top 10 nationally in steals and assists per game.
A prep star in both basketball and softball, Abby Krieser eventually made basketball her college choice. She hasn't looked back while developing into an all-around player and leader for Coach Olson's program.
When Concordia upset No. 5 Marian in the second game of the 2023-24 season, it signaled that the 2023-24 Bulldogs meant business. Led by a special senior class, Concordia showed it could compete with anyone in the NAIA.
For the first time in school history, Concordia University, Nebraska will play host to NAIA basketball national tournament games. Concordia has been named a host site for first/second round NAIA Women's Basketball National Championship play.
The senior class is one that has persevered while shaping the 2023-24 squad into an elite one. Student-athletes like Kendal Brigham came to Concordia because it offered a close-knit community. They found that and much more.
Confetti, cupcakes and the whole family greeted Drew Olson in the locker room following Wednesday’s win over Morningside. The victory marked another feather in the cap for Olson, the winningest coach in Concordia Athletics history.
It's been three-and-a-half quick years since Taysha Rushton made her college decision official. Any reservations the Texan had about spending her college days in Nebraska subsided through close friendships and a love for basketball.
The top eight scorers, including all five starters, return from last season's national tournament team. The roster makeup gives Coach Drew Olson his most experienced group since 2019-20. The aim is to get back to Sioux City in March.
Eight years since she last starred for the Bulldogs, Bailey Morris continues to be characterized by competition and a love for the game. Says Morris of her Concordia years: "Those are some good memories for me. Those things have carried with me over the last eight years."
The 2022-23 season was one of growth for a Bulldog squad led by Taysha Rushton and a strong nucleus of third-year players. Coach Drew Olson's squad came together down the stretch for a win at No. 19 Jamestown and a national tournament blowout of Columbia.
Last season's Bulldog squad navigated the most challenging schedule in the NAIA and managed to reach the national tournament. Taysha Rushton leads a 2022-23 team that believes it's grown since the end of the 2021-22 campaign.