A game-defining 38-8 run powered the third-ranked Bulldogs to a 74-49 win over Concordia University, Ann Arbor at the 69th annual CIT on Friday (Jan. 24). Grace Barry and Philly Lammers combined for 37 points.
Concordia enjoyed a plus-13 turnover margin and shot 14-of-26 from 3-point range in running away from No. 7 Morningside, 85-61, on Wednesday (Jan. 22). Next up for the Bulldogs is CIT in River Forest, Ill.
In a showdown of top 10 teams in Hastings, the ninth-ranked Broncos stayed hot in topping the eighth-ranked Concordia women’s basketball team, 78-65, on Wednesday night. Hastings (19-2, 10-2 GPAC) won for the 15th-straight time while following star guard Jamie Van Kirk’s 16 second half points to victory. The Bulldogs dropped to 16-5 overall and 10-3 in the GPAC.
Third-ranked CUNE will play three games during a four-game stretch this week with No. 7 Morningside coming to town before the Bulldogs trek to the Chicago area in search of their seventh-straight CIT title.
With junior guard Bailey Morris back in the lineup, the seventh-ranked Concordia women’s basketball team regained the form that saw it win seven GPAC games in a row prior to last Saturday’s setback. The Bulldogs dominated the game’s final minutes on the way to a 79-63 win over Briar Cliff (12-9, 5-6 GPAC) on Saturday afternoon.
An 18-0 run out of the gate propelled the third-ranked Bulldogs to a 76-64 victory at Briar Cliff on Saturday (Jan. 18). The trio of Grace Barry, Claire Cornell and MacKenzie Helman picked up the slack with Philly Lammers sidelined.
The seventh-ranked Concordia women’s basketball team will end a stretch of 28-consecutive days without a home game when it takes the floor on Saturday against Briar Cliff (12-8, 5-5 GPAC). The second-place Bulldogs (15-4, 9-2 GPAC) continue the back half of the conference schedule against a Charger team that they defeated 80-72 in Sioux City, Iowa, on Nov. 23.
The third-ranked Bulldogs followed a familiar script by pushing the pace, forcing a bevy of turnovers and by getting contributions from many. The result on Wednesday (Jan. 15) was a 108-64 win at College of Saint Mary.
It's time for the second half of the GPAC regular-season slate. Eleven games deep, the 10-1 Bulldogs are again a contender for the league title. They will be on the road this week to play College of Saint Mary and Briar Cliff.
Five Bulldogs reached double figures in scoring, led by 18 points from freshman Taylor Farrell, in a 105-56 pummeling of Jamestown on Saturday (Jan. 11). Concordia forced 38 turnovers and held the Jimmies to 31.1 percent shooting.
Mackenzie Koepke had played in 102 of a possible 103 games over her first three seasons. After missing the 2021-22 season due to injury, the Lincoln Lutheran alum, a link back to the national championship team, is determined to go out on her own terms.
Just a few weeks after playing the 123rd and final game of her collegiate career, Rylee Pauli reflected on four years of Concordia Women's Basketball. There were ups, downs, unique experiences and incredible highs.
Led by do-it-all guard Taysha Rushton and relentless senior Rylee Pauli, the 2021-22 Bulldogs extended the program's national tournament streak while beating five teams that qualified for nationals throughout the season.
Four starters, including First Team All-GPAC star Taysha Rushton, return for a Concordia Women's Basketball program coming off an appearance in the NAIA national quarterfinals last season. Depth will be a strength.
Taylor Cockerill and Taysha Rushton were the ringleaders for a squad that reached the NAIA national quarterfinals while playing an exciting brand of hoops in 2020-21.
For Concordia Women's Basketball, tradition never graduates. That's become evident in 2020-21, even as the program 'rebuilt' following the graduation of several stars.
In season No. 15 as head coach, Drew Olson has reached the 400-win milestone. As his current and former players will attest, Concordia Women's Basketball is about more than winning.
From October 2011 through December 2020, Concordia Women's Basketball was included in every possible NAIA top 25 ranking, a run of 97-straight poll appearances.
It's a new-look Concordia Women's Basketball team, but the program is determined to prove it's still a major force in the GPAC and nationally. Taylor Cockerill and Mackenzie Koepke are the headlining returners.
Don't forget about TC. The leading scorer for the 2018-19 national championship team, Taylor Cockerill is roughly 90 percent of the way back from the knee injury she suffered last October.