SEWARD, Neb. – Concordia finds itself in the final week of the 2023 season, traveling to Crete, Neb. to square off against Doane on Wednesday (Oct. 25). Last week, the Bulldogs clashed with a defensive minded Briar Cliff in a scoreless tie, then came home for senior day defeating Waldorf (2-1). With CUNE tying Briar Cliff, Hastings jumped ahead in points seizing first place in the conference. Nick Smith’s squad moves to 11-3-3 overall and 7-1-3 in the conference.
This Week
Wednesday, Oct. 25 at Doane (3-7-4, 3-5-3 GPAC), 7:15 p.m.
--Live Webcast | Live Stats | Location: Al Papik Field (Crete, Neb.)
By the numbers
· In their first match of last week, Concordia faced Briar Cliff on Wednesday (Oct. 18). The two offenses started slowly taking cracks at the goal, as the first shots were by Concordia in the 20th minute. Niah Kirchner and Kierstynn Garner took big swings as both were saved, one by the crossbar and the other by the Chargers keeper. It became clear that the home team’s plan was to push all their players behind the ball on defense. The Bulldogs would rattle off four shots in the second half, but with a packed box, the match was still locked up at nil. They would stay on the attack with an 8-0 corner kick showing over the Chargers in the last 45 minutes. The match ended with a 0-0 draw in Sioux City.
· Three seniors were honored before the 2-1 win over Waldorf on Saturday (Oct. 21). Kassidy Johnson, Hannah Haas and Bradi Ore played in their final regular season match in Bulldog Stadium, gaining a much needed conference win. Garner seemingly scored as the first whistle blew, with a long pass by Savannah Andrews, maneuvering past the goalie in a one-versus-one scenario for an easy score. In the 33rd minute, a similar goal came at the feet of KG, as the long feed came from Niah Kirchner, sending the ball from midfield. The offense stalled in the second half, as the Dawgs experienced a hunkered down defense once again. Despite Concordia’s slight edge in shots (5-3), the Warriors were able to capitalize in the 88th minute, leaving CUNE only up one. The Dawgs outshot the Warriors (13-4) and edged out the visitors in corner kicks (6-4).
· The Bulldogs are in second (24 points) in the conference standings going into the final week of the regular season. No. 22 Hastings is at the top with 26 points, having only one final game left to play as well. Dordt sits in third (20 points) as the Defenders have two games left compared to the top two conference foes. Hastings and Dordt will face off on Wednesday at 8 p.m. in Hastings, Neb. With a Dordt win or tie and a Concordia win over Doane, the Bulldogs will be GPAC regular season champions.
· Kierstynn surpassed her single season record (five) for game winning goals from last year and tied Sami Birmingham (2016) for the second most (six) in program history. She, as a sophomore, has also earned the second most career game winning goals (11) in program history, tying Jennifer Davis (2003-06) and Gentri Brown (2003-06). Garner still leads the GPAC with 17 goals scored and is starting to put herself in the conversation for the conference player of the year.
Doane
The Tigers come into the week with a 3-7-4 overall record and a 3-5-3 conference record. Doane hasn’t won a game since Sept. 20 and is 0-3-2 in October. They have won one match at home all season. With 20 goals so far this year, they have kicked 12 assists in their 14 games. They have shot 132 times, averaging 9.4 shots per game with a .591 shot on goal percentage. They have allowed 26 goals while averaging 1.86 goals allowed per game. Their two goalkeepers split time with 630 minutes apiece for Grayce Southern and Virginia Johnson. Senior Lexi Torok leads the team with six goals, as Celeste Galvan and McKenna Rathburn have three apiece behind her. Denise Gomez has a team-high four assists, always being on the front end of goals for the Tigers.
Postseason
The Bulldogs are guaranteed to host in the quarterfinals of the GPAC Tournament on Thursday (Nov. 2). Many teams have two opponents left, which will provide some last minute shuffling before entering GPAC postseason play. The worst placing could be the No. 3 seed for the tournament, and the best could be GPAC Champions and the No. 1 seed.