SEWARD, Neb. – The Concordia University women’s soccer team was rewarded last week for staying the course through some frustrating moments this fall. After back-to-back double overtime defeats, the Bulldogs experienced the other side of such a result. Brynn Suddeth’s golden goal lifted the Bulldogs to a 2-1 win at Briar Cliff on Oct. 19. Head coach Chris Luther’s squad now carries momentum into a week that will put it up against College of Saint Mary on the road and Jamestown at home.
This Week
Wednesday, Oct. 23 at College of Saint Mary (6-6-2, 3-4-1 GPAC), 3 p.m.
-Live Webcast
Saturday, Oct. 26 vs. Jamestown (8-6, 6-2 GPAC), 1 p.m.
-Live Stats/Webcast
It will be senior day on Saturday at Bulldog Stadium. The senior class consists of Becky Freeman, Jessica Knedler, Morgan Raska, Kaitlyn Sims and Suddeth. Goalkeeper Lindsey Carley is a senior academically but has one more season of athletic eligibility remaining. The four-year seniors have been on board for plenty of memorable moments, including the 2016 GPAC tournament title and 2017 GPAC regular-season championship. The 2016 through 2018 squads all reached the conference tournament championship game. Concordia’s overall record since the start of the 2016 season is 47-20-11.
At 4-3-1 in league play, the current Bulldogs still have work to do to ensure that they qualify for the eight-team GPAC tournament that will begin with the quarterfinals on Nov. 7. They are currently in seventh place with 13 points in the league standings. That position is a step down from where the program has been in recent years, but Concordia has shown an ability to compete with the league’s top teams. It has not lost a conference game by a margin any greater than two goals. The Bulldogs also pushed the league’s top-rated team, Hastings, to double overtime (the Broncos won, 1-0).
The road win over Briar Cliff is most significant one this season for Concordia. The Chargers own wins over both Hastings and Midland and were 6-1 in league play prior to that defeat. The Bulldogs had trailed for the entire second half until Tori Cera’s equalizer came in the 83rd minute. Suddeth then ended the contest in the 109th minute with a header off a perfect feed from Kaley Heinz. In what’s been a strange season, four Concordia players share the team season goals lead with two apiece.
College of Saint Mary could pull even with the Bulldogs in the league standings with a win on Wednesday. The Flames just had an eventful week that saw them play three games in five days. The results were a 0-0 draw with a Doane, a 4-1 loss at Northwestern and a 2-0 win over Morningside. It’s been that sort of up-and-down season for Jordan Irsik’s squad. College of Saint Mary has slightly outscored its opponents this season, 22-20, behind Elli McMeekin’s team high five goals.
Jamestown is in its second season as a member of the GPAC. The Jimmies placed fourth in the conference last season and are currently tied for fourth this fall. They have a tough week on the road while also heading to Dordt for a matchup on Thursday. Jamestown had a three-game win streak ended over the weekend in a 1-0 loss (outshot 20-5) to No. 20 Midland. Head coach Nick Becker’s team has outscored its foes, 32-17, on the season. It owns a notable road win over Briar Cliff.
Next week will be the final one of the regular season. The Bulldogs will host Doane on Nov. 30 and then travel to play at Dakota Wesleyan on Nov. 2.