2018 Women's Soccer Schedule/Results
13-3-5 overall | 8-1-3 GPAC (3rd) | Season Stats | Roster
| Date | Opponent | Location | Result | Record |
| Aug. 25 | Tabor College | Seward, Neb. | W, 4-1 | 1-0 |
| Aug. 29 | MidAmerica Nazarene University | Seward, Neb. | T, 1-1 (2 OT) | 1-0-1 |
| Sept. 5 | McPherson College | Seward, Neb. | W, 6-1 | 2-0-1 |
| Sept. 8 | Kansas Wesleyan University | Salina, Kan. | T, 1-1 (2 OT) | 2-0-2 |
| Sept. 11 | Bellevue University | Bellevue, Neb. | L, 3-4 | 2-1-2 |
| Sept. 15 | Friends University | Wichita, Kan. | W, 1-0 | 3-1-2 |
| Sept. 19 | *College of Saint Mary | Seward, Neb. | W, 6-0 | 4-1-2, 1-0 |
| Sept. 22 | *Northwestern College | Orange City, Iowa | W, 3-1 | 5-1-2, 2-0 |
| Sept. 26 | *Morningside College | Sioux City, Iowa | W, 3-2 (2 OT) | 6-1-2, 3-0 |
| Sept. 29 | *Dordt College | Seward, Neb. | W, 3-2 | 7-1-2, 4-0 |
| Oct. 3 | *(15) Hastings College | Seward, Neb. | T, 1-1 (2 OT) | 7-1-3, 4-0-1 |
| Oct. 6 | *Presentation College | Seward, Neb. | W, 6-0 | 8-1-3, 5-0-1 |
| Oct. 10 | *Doane University | Crete, Neb. | W, 5-0 | 9-1-3, 6-0-1 |
| Oct. 13 | *Dakota Wesleyan (Senior Day) | Seward, Neb. | W, 4-0 | 10-1-3, 7-0-1 |
| Oct. 16 | *Mount Marty College | Yankton, S.D. | W, 12-0 | 11-1-3, 8-0-1 |
| Oct. 20 | *University of Jamestown | Jamestown, N.D. | T, 1-1 (2 OT) | 11-1-4, 8-0-2 |
| Oct. 24 | *Midland University | Fremont, Neb. | T, 1-1 (2 OT) | 11-1-5, 8-0-3 |
| Oct. 27 | *Briar Cliff University | Seward, Neb. | L, 2-3 | 11-2-5, 8-1-3 |
| Oct. 31 | Morningside (GPAC Quarterfinals) | Seward, Neb. | W, 1-0 | 12-2-5 |
| Nov. 3 | (17) Midland (GPAC Semifinals) | Fremont, Neb. | W, 1-0 | 13-2-5 |
| Nov. 8 | (11) Hastings (GPAC Championship) | Hastings, Neb. | L, 0-1 (2 OT) | 13-3-5 |
2018 Roster
| No. | Name | Pos. | Ht. | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| 0 | Jessica Knedler | GK | 5-4 | Jr. | Colorado Springs, Colo. | Colorado Springs Christian HS |
| 00 | Kalie Ward | GK | 5-5 | Fr. | Cheyenne, Wyo. | Loudoun County HS |
| 1 | Lindsey Carley | GK | 5-5 | So. | Urbandale, Iowa | Johnston HS |
| 2 | Ashley Thalken | F | 5-3 | Fr. | Columbus, Neb. | Columbus HS |
| 3 | Michaela Twito | MF | 5-5 | So. | Ames, Iowa | Ames HS |
| 4 | Callie McNary | F | 5-6 | Fr. | Hastings, Minn. | Hastings HS |
| 5 | Victoria Cera | MF | 4-11 | So. | Las Vegas, Nev. | Centennial HS |
| 6 | Sydney Rogers | MF | 5-6 | Fr. | Overland Park, Kan. | Blue Valley HS |
| 7 | Ashley Martin | D | 5-3 | Sr. | Longmont, Colo. | Silver Creek HS |
| 8 | Morgan Raska | MF | 5-6 | Jr. | North Platte, Neb. | North Platte HS |
| 9 | Madeline Haugen | MF | 5-6 | Fr. | San Diego, Calif. | Valhalla HS |
| 10 | Maria Deeter | MF | 5-8 | Sr. | Seward, Neb. | Lincoln Lutheran HS |
| 11 | Hannah Sain | MF | 5-4 | Sr. | Lincoln, Neb. | Lincoln Northeast HS |
| 12 | Sarah Wuthrich | F | 5-8 | So. | Encinitas, Calif. | La Costa Canyon HS |
| 13 | Jennika Chapman | MF | 5-3 | So. | Westminster, Colo. | Jefferson Academy |
| 14 | Katie Miles | F | 5-2 | Fr. | Marshall, Mo. | Marshall HS |
| 16 | Kaitlyn Radebaugh | F | 5-5 | So. | Roca, Neb. | Norris HS |
| 17 | Kaylee Brown | MF | 5-4 | Sr. | Fort Collins, Colo. | Fossil Ridge HS |
| 18 | Chelsea Bright | D | 5-5 | So. | Van Meter, Iowa | Van Meter HS |
| 19 | Rebekah Freeman | F | 5-7 | Jr. | Harrisonville, Mo. | Harrisonville HS |
| 20 | Brynn Suddeth | F | 5-3 | Jr. | Wichita, Kan. | Eisenhower HS / Allen CC |
| 21 | Mikeila Martinez | MF | 5-5 | Fr. | Fairfield, Calif. | Armijo HS |
| 22 | Lauren Martin | MF | 5-4 | Sr. | Longmont, Colo. | Silver Creek HS / St. Cloud State |
| 23 | Taylor Roby | MF | 5-6 | Sr. | Omaha, Neb. | Concordia Lutheran HS |
| 24 | Drew Morrisey | D | 5-2 | Fr. | Aurora, Colo. | Eaglecrest HS |
| 25 | Tori Pearson | D | 5-8 | Sr. | Folsom, Calif. | Union Mine HS / Folsom Lake College |
| 26 | Michaela Stevens | D | 5-7 | Sr. | Mesa, Ariz. | Red Mountain HS |
| 27 | Cassie Montiel | D | 5-2 | So. | Columbus, Neb. | Columbus HS |
| 28 | Emily Sanders | MF | 5-7 | So. | Shawnee, Kan. | Shawnee Mission Northwest HS |
| 29 | Kaitlyn Stradtmann | D | 5-7 | Sr. | Belvidere, Ill. | Rockford Lutheran HS |
| 30 | Cheyenne Smith | GK | 5-7 | Fr. | Alpine, Calif. | Granite Hills HS |
| Carrie Black | D | 5-4 | So. | Highlands Ranch, Colo. | Lutheran HS | |
| Faith Bohaty | MF | 5-1 | Sr. | Seward, Neb. | Seward HS | |
| Kaitlyn Sims | D | 5-5 | Jr. | Winter Springs, Fla. | Winter Springs HS |
STAFF
Greg Henson, Head Coach (6th Year)
Chris Luther, Assistant Coach
Amy Panayi, Graduate Assistant Coach
Adam Lewis, Goalkeeper Coach
Jeannelle Condame, Student Assistant
Women's soccer starts season just outside NAIA top 25
Aug. 15, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – The national polls have been another example of the Concordia University women’s soccer program’s rise under head coach Greg Henson, who is in his sixth year leading the Bulldogs. Concordia will open up 2018 where it finished 2017 – just outside of the top NAIA top 25. The Bulldogs checked in second among “others receiving votes” in the 2018 NAIA Women’s Soccer Preseason Coaches’ Top 25 Poll released on Tuesday (Aug. 14).
Since the start of the 2014 campaign, Henson’s squads have cracked the top 25 of the NAIA poll on seven separate occasions and have made numerous additional appearances in the receiving votes category. The all-time highest ranking in school history is 16th achieved during the middle of the 2015 season. In three of the previous four seasons, Concordia finished their campaigns listed under receiving votes in postseason polls. The 2014 squad that won the GPAC tournament title was the first team out of the 25 in the postseason poll that season.
Picked second in the GPAC after garnering five first-place votes, the Bulldogs are no longer the underdogs in the league. Henson doesn’t believe it will change the mindset of his team, which fell short of reaching the national tournament in 2017 after falling in the GPAC championship game in a PK shootout.
Says Henson, “The biggest thing we talk about all the time is the past is the past. Trophies are in the trophy case collecting dust. It’s a brand new year. Everyone is 0-0 and everyone has a new look to them. Our team has a new look and new personality. We can’t worry about what we’ve done before. We’ve really built ourselves on that the last few years.”
Concordia returns an impressive nucleus led by the likes of senior captain Maria Deeter along with reigning GPAC Defensive Player of the Year Lindsey Carley and another first team All-GPAC selection in Chelsea Bright. The Bulldogs appear positioned for another run at a championship season.
All-time national rankings
*Have ended a season receiving votes in 2014, 2016 and 2017
2017
Nov. 7 – 21st
Oct. 31 – 22nd
2015
Oct. 6 – 23rd
Sept. 29 – 18th
Sept. 22 – 16th
Aug. 18 – 21st
2014
Nov. 16 – 24th
Season preview: 2018 Concordia women's soccer
Aug. 17, 2018
Head coach: Greg Henson (70-25-11, three GPAC titles, sixth year)
2017 Record: 15-2-4 overall; 9-0-1 GPAC (1st); GPAC tournament runner up
Key Returners: D Chelsea Bright; GK Lindsey Carley; MF Tori Cera; MF Maria Deeter; D Ashley Martin; MF Lauren Martin; F Kaitlyn Radebaugh; D Taylor Roby; MF Michaela Twito.
Key Newcomers: MF Madeline Haugen, MF Mikeila Martinez; F Callie McNary, GK Cheyenne Smith, F Brynn Suddeth
Key Losses: F Sami Birmingham; D Jeannelle Condame; D Leah Shohat; MF Esther Soenksen.
2017 GPAC All-Conference: Chelsea Bright (first team); Lindsey Carley (Defensive Player of the Year, first team) Maria Deeter (first team); Lauren Martin (second team); Kaitlyn Radebaugh (second team); Sami Birmingham (honorable mention); Tori Cera (honorable mention); Michaela Twito (honorable mention).
Outlook
This program shows no signs of letting up under the direction of Greg Henson, who has guided Concordia University women’s soccer to three GPAC titles, two national tournament appearances and a total of 60 wins since the start of the 2014 season. Those successes lead into a 2018 campaign with expectations that go perhaps beyond any other a Bulldog women’s soccer squad has faced. It no longer takes on the role of the underdog, at least within the GPAC.
Though its status inside the league has changed, the program retains the mindset preferred by the head coach: hard working and blue collar. Give them any reason to feel slighted and they feed off of it.
Says Henson, “Regardless of class or experience, this is the deepest roster that we’ve had since I’ve been here. I told the players the other day that I’ve said that every year I’ve been here. It continues to be true. It creates some good problems for the coaching staff to sort through and figure out what that lineup’s going to be. The good news is that we’re going to have a lot of options coming off the bench to fortify us and help us in a lot of different areas.”
Concordia earned a second-place slotting in the GPAC preseason poll while picking up a program all-time best five first-place votes. The Bulldogs did say goodbye to the winningest senior class in school history, but they bring back so much experience and talent that expectations are naturally high.
This is the swan song for senior midfielder Maria Deeter, whose stellar first three seasons have quickly gone by. She’ll go down as one of the program’s all-time greats. She’s clearly established herself as one of the top players in the conference. Her idea of a successful final collegiate season is mostly about achieving lofty team goals.
“I think this year we’re going in with big expectations,” Deeter said. “We obviously want to win championships. We want to win them all. That’s the ultimate goal. We want to get to that (national) tournament and take the next step for the program. To leave the legacy for the program, it would be awesome to take that next step and be on more of a national stage.”
One goal in 10 conference games. That’s all last year’s team surrendered. To expect that sort of dominance again is probably a bit unrealistic. However, GPAC Defensive Player of the Year Lindsey Carley is back in the fold. So too is first team All-GPAC center back Chelsea Bright, already a team captain as a sophomore.
There’s more. Additional 2017 all-conference honorees Tori Cera, Lauren Martin, Kaitlyn Radebaugh and Michaela Twito also return to the lineup. Throw in seniors like Ashley Martin and Taylor Roby as major figures ready for a big senior seasons. As a group, the ’17 squad outscored its opponents by a combined total of 56-14. During the surge they earned a signature victory over then 20th-ranked Hastings on Oct. 25 in the regular-season finale in front of one of the biggest soccer crowds of the entire GPAC season. It was a third-straight win by a 1-0 score against conference foes in a thrilling stretch run.
Sometimes you have to stop and enjoy the ride. Says Deeter, “I feel like it’s the accumulation of all the hard work you put in. It’s a very rewarding feeling but also nerve-wracking. You work so hard and you don’t want to lose. I’ve been on both sides (of the GPAC championship game). It’s still rewarding to get there because not many teams make it there. It’s electric and being able to host is even better. It’s always a goal so hopefully we can get there one more time for the senior class.”
Despite coming off a championship season, complacency has not set in. The aftermath of Nov. 10, the night of the GPAC title game in Seward, still stings. The Bulldogs lost out on penalty kicks in a heartbreaker that robbed them of a chance at the national tournament.
They’ve waited all offseason to atone for it – not that they had anything to be ashamed of. It’s just a group that always wants more. Many of them tasted the national tournament in Florida in 2016. Preseason camp has already revealed a team determined to get back to that level.
“This is easily the most competitive fall we’ve had in terms of talent on the roster with players battling for positions,” Henson said. “We spoke about that at the start of camp. No jobs have been won. No jobs have been lost. Everybody is still competing and we expect everyone to come out and work hard. We’ve seen that throughout every session we’ve run. We hope we continue to see that as we move forward and prepare for our first scrimmages and the regular-season opener.”
Deeter gets a lot of the headlines, but she’s just one of 11 who do their jobs well. Few did it better in 2017 than Carley, who was one of the GPAC’s surprise breakout performers. She allowed a measly eight goals in over 1,460 minutes in goal. Of course she was helped by a back line anchored by Bright, another budding star. On the opposite end, Radebaugh always seemed to surface with big goals in big moments. There were none bigger than her game winner that sunk Hastings in the regular-season finale.
Radebaugh was just the latest freshman to emerge. At least one rookie makes a big impact every year under Henson. Some of the leading candidates among freshmen to fill the bill are midfielder Madeline Haugen (San Diego, Calif.), midfielder Mikeila Martinez (Fairfield, Calif.), forward Callie McNary (Hastings, Minn.) and Cheyenne Smith (Alpine, Calif.), who is adept in goal but can also serve additional roles.
Newcomers are quickly brought up to speed on what this program is about. There’s a time for fun, like last week’s trip to the Omaha Zoo that broke up the preseason grind. There’s also a time for seriousness, especially on those 18 game days (plus the postseason) each year.
Says Henson, “Every team has a new personality. Everything starts now. We can’t worry about what we’ve done before. We really built ourselves on that. That’s how we’ve gotten to where we’ve been. We can’t rest on our laurels and expect teams to lay down for us and allow us to win games. We have to go out and earn the victories every single day.”
Deeter takes on that same mantra. She’s focused on the here and now. Someday she’ll look back on what an incredible ride it has been. “It’s hard to fully understand and grasp everything that we’ve done, especially with this senior class,” Deeter said. “Once we’re done it will be easier. Even now it’s like, yeah we had a great year last year but we still have unfinished business. There’s still stuff we want to accomplish.”
The 2018 season will officially open up on Aug. 25 when the Bulldogs host Tabor College (Kan.) at 2 p.m. CT.
Bulldogs ring in 2018 by hosting Tabor
Aug. 23, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – More than two weeks of preseason prep will have passed by the time the Concordia University women’s soccer team officially opens up the 2018 season. Preparations have included a pair of scrimmages against opposing institutions as well as an intrasquad match. Head coach Greg Henson’s squad will begin regular-season action on Saturday when Tabor College (Kan.) visits Bulldog Stadium for a 2 p.m. CT kickoff.
All Concordia women’s soccer varsity regular-season games will be streamed live via the ConcordiaSportsNetwork. New this season to the webcasts will be enhanced high definition picture.
Much is expected of a program that has produced three total GPAC titles and two national tournament appearances over the previous four seasons. Senior Maria Deeter and her classmates have been major players in that run. Stellar play from the midfielder from Seward is a given. What Henson hopes to see emerge is a dependable goal scorer or two up top. Sophomore Kaitlyn Radebaugh is a candidate, but she is still working her way back after tearing her ACL at the end of the 2017 season. Another potential top goal scorer is newcomer Brynn Suddeth, who knocked in 23 goals over two seasons at Allen Community College.
Defensively, the Bulldogs expect to be a force once again. GPAC Defensive Player of the Year Lindsey Carley is back in goal. It appears that freshman Cheyenne Smith will join sophomore Chelsea Bright to form a solid center back duo. A season ago, Concordia allowed just one goal during 10 conference regular-season games on the way to a GPAC championship. Many others contribute to such dominant defensive results. Saturday will be the first chance to see how the pieces may fit together for another potential title chase.
A member of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference, Tabor finished 5-10-2 overall last season. They finished with an even goal differential (27 goals scored, 27 goals allowed). The Bluejays will have to replace their leading goal scorer, Dakota Spencer (13 goals), who banked nearly half of the team’s goals a year ago. Tabor was picked by league coaches to finish 10th out of 13 teams in the KCAC.
The Bulldogs will remain at home next week to host MidAmerica Nazarene University (Kan.) on Wednesday, Aug. 29. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CT.
Martin-Deeter connection lifts Bulldogs in season opener
Aug. 25, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – Maria Deeter wasted little time getting her senior season off to a rousing start. She knocked home a pair of goals in the opening 10 minutes of Saturday (Aug. 25)’s season opener against visiting Tabor College (Kan.). On a sunny and humid afternoon, the early goals proved to be enough thanks to another stifling defensive effort. The Concordia University women’s soccer team won, 4-1.
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s program continues to be dominant at home. The Bulldogs were 9-1-1 inside Bulldog Stadium in 2017.
“We wanted to get the first game jitters out of the way right away and get off to a good start on the season,” Henson said. “We didn’t know a whole lot about Tabor coming into the match and what to expect. I was really happy to see us get those first two goals. I thought our pace dropped off a little bit after that but after making some substitutions and bringing in some fresh legs, I thought we picked up nicely.”
By the nine-minute mark, Concordia already held a 2-0 advantage courtesy of Deeter’s 24th and 25th career goals. The first came off Lauren Martin’s corner kick that conveniently found Deeter in the box. Martin also set up the team’s second and third goals. From just outside the eight-yard box, senior Kaylee Brown drilled a goal to the right of the keeper for the third goal of her career.
Henson felt like his team should have been able to widen the margin from there. The Bulldogs took a 3-0 lead to the halftime break but saw the Bluejays get within two (3-1) after Allison Cubbon got in behind the back line and slotted the ball over the goal line. It was the only shot Tabor mustered all day. Concordia has hung its hat on stellar defensive play in recent seasons and has the advantage of returning GPAC Defensive Player of the Year Lindsey Carley.
Tabor gifted the Bulldogs an own goal in the 85th minute to essentially put the game away. The ball was placed in a dangerous spot via a free kick by freshman Cheyenne Smith, who won a starting spot at a center back position alongside Chelsea Bright. Smith’s ball struck a Bluejay, glanced off the left post and slid across the goal line.
Concordia doesn’t plan on having to count on such luck moving forward. They departed the steamy Bulldog Stadium turf feeling like they have another gear to reach.
“Be 90 minutes fit,” said Lauren Martin in response to what can be improved upon. “It’s hard with the heat right now, but we need to come out and perform for 90 minutes. We can’t slow down. We can’t take it easy. It has to be at our pace at all times – and at our skill level.”
The Bulldogs easily won in the shot department, 16-1. Deeter came close to recording a hat trick when her header attempt was saved in the second half. Freshman Madeline Haugen also fired three shots, including one on frame. Haugen joined Smith and Mikeila Martinez as one of three freshmen in the starting 11.
The Bulldogs will be back at home on Wednesday (Aug. 29) to host MidAmerica Nazarene University (Kan.). Kickoff in Seward is set for 7 p.m. CT. The two programs last met in 2016 with the result being a 2-2 double overtime draw in a contest that took place in the Kansas City area.
MidAmerica Nazarene visits Wednesday for week's lone game
Aug. 28, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – The Concordia University women’s soccer team has a win under its belt in 2018, but it hopes for a sharper performance on Wednesday night (Aug. 29) when MidAmerica Nazarene University (Kan.) visits Bulldog Stadium for a 7 p.m. CT kickoff. The Bulldogs will then have the weekend off before continuing their run of three-straight home games to open up the season. Wednesday’s contest will be carried live via the ConcordiaSportsNetwork.
Sitting just outside the NAIA’s national preseason top 25, Concordia entered 2018 with expectations as sky high as they have ever been for the program. The Bulldogs seemed to back up the preseason rankings by building a 2-0 lead in the opening nine minutes of last week’s 4-1 season opening win over Tabor College (Kan.). Senior captain Maria Deeter earned credit for both of those goals, which were the 24th and 25th of her career. Fellow senior Lauren Martin notched three assists in the victory.
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson believed his team had the ability to put more goals on the board in the opener. The hope is for a prominent goal scorer to emerge up top and take some burden off of Deeter, an essential figure in the team’s offensive and defensive efforts. Unfortunately, an injury to sophomore Kaitlyn Radebaugh could leave her sidelined for a significant period of time. On the plus side, Concordia appears to have another staunch defensive squad, led by the likes of goalkeeper Lindsey Carley and young center backs Chelsea Bright and Cheyenne Smith. Tabor managed only one shot the entire game on Aug. 25.
Wednesday’s battle will be a rematch of a 2016 tussle between Concordia and MidAmerica Nazarene. That matchup resulted in a 2-2 double overtime draw. That 2016 squad went on to win a GPAC tournament title and reach the national tournament. The Pioneers, a member of the Heart of America Athletic Conference, will be opening their season on Wednesday night following a 9-7-2 overall record in 2017. They return their leading goal scorer Savannah Moxley, who tallied nine goals last fall.
The Bulldogs will be back at home next Wednesday (Sept. 5) to play host to McPherson College (Kan.) before traveling to Salina, Kan., to take on Kansas Wesleyan University on Sept. 8.
Concordia-MNU play to 1-1 draw
Aug. 29, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – For the second-straight meeting between the Concordia University women’s soccer team and MidAmerica Nazarene University (Kan.), the two sides played to a 110-minute draw. In Wednesday night (Aug. 29)’s rematch of a 2016 contest, the result was a 1-1 tie. The Bulldogs were unable to make a 26th-minute goal stand up.
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad now stands at 1-0-1 on the young season. Concordia has played both of the season’s first two matches inside Bulldog Stadium. Four days earlier the Bulldogs earned a 4-1 win over Tabor College (Kan.).
“I was really happy with the effort, the energy and the sense of urgency we brought to the game tonight,” Henson said. “It was something I thought we were lacking on Saturday, even though we got the result. We knew MNU would come in and be a tough test for us early in the season. They’re a quality program. The last time we played them we were kind of fortunate to steal a tie from them at their place. We got off to a good start and really settled in quickly.”
Roughly two-and-a-half minutes into the first overtime, Concordia came close to sneaking in the golden goal off a corner kick. Lauren Martin struck the ball into the eight-yard box where the goalkeeper appeared to get on hand on it. It caromed to Victoria Cera whose shot was deflected just shy of the goal line.
It was Cera’s goal, described by Henson as a “great individual effort,” that staked the Bulldogs to a 1-0 lead at halftime. Maria Garcia emerged with the equalizer for the Pioneers (0-0-1) in the 57th minute. MidAmerica Nazarene took advantage of a misplay that occurred after a goal kick.
“We came back well from there and really settled back in and continued to be on the front foot,” Henson said. “We put the pressure on them. We had a couple close chances both ways in the second half that could have gone in. It was a very evenly played game between two very good teams.”
Lauren Martin assisted Cera’s goal. It marked Martin’s fourth assist already this season. In goal, Lindsey Carley played all 110 minutes.
Henson saw this outing as a step forward as compared to the season opener. Said Henson, “As a coaching staff coming out of the game on Saturday, even though we got the result against Tabor, we weren’t pleased or satisfied with the way we played that game. This was a great answer for us. We get a little time off now to regroup for the next challenge.”
MidAmerica Nazarene is coming off a 9-7-2 overall record in 2017. The Pioneers and Bulldogs played to a 2-2 draw back in late August of 2016 in the most recent meeting between the two programs.
Concordia will now have the weekend off. It will next play inside Bulldog Stadium next Wednesday (Sept. 5) with McPherson College (Kan.) (0-1) serving as the opponent.
Two KCAC foes make up this week's slate
Sep. 4, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – A run through an early season slate heavy on Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference opponents continues this week for the Concordia University women’s soccer team. Head coach Greg Henson’s squad has been idle since a 1-1 double overtime draw with MidAmerica Nazarene University (Kan.) on Aug. 29. The only other outing so far in 2018 was a 4-1 win over Tabor College (Kan.) on Aug. 25.
The Bulldogs will be at home for the third-straight time to open the season when McPherson College (Kan.) visits Seward for Wednesday’s 7 p.m. CT kickoff. Concordia will then be at Kansas Wesleyan University on Saturday. For those planning to travel on Saturday, please note that the location of the game has been moved to Salina Stadium on the campus of Salina High School Central. Start time is 3 p.m. CT.
This week
Wednesday, Sept. 5 vs. McPherson, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 8 at Kansas Wesleyan, 3 p.m.
Wednesday’s action will be streamed live via the Concordia Sports Network. Kansas Wesleyan will have a live webcast on Saturday through its Stretch Internet portal.
Home has been kind to the program. Since the start of the 2014 season, the Bulldogs are a combined 36-6-3 when playing inside Bulldog Stadium. One of those three ties came last week when the Bulldogs were unable to maintain a 1-0 lead that came courtesy of a 26th-minute goal by Victoria Cera. The Pioneers eventually equalized in the 57th minute for the game’s final tally. Once again, a second half goal prevented Concordia from earning its first shutout of 2018.
It should be only a matter of time before the Bulldogs put together a clean sheet. They recorded 12 shutouts during last season’s run that saw them go 15-2-4 and win the GPAC regular-season title outright. They surrendered just a single goal during conference regular-season action. On the flip side, Henson is still looking for goal scorers to emerge. In the early going of this season, Maria Deeter’s two goals are tops on the team. Cera and Kaylee Brown have one apiece. In 2017, Concordia outscored its opponents by a combined total of 56-14.
The Bulldogs will match up with McPherson for the first time since 2010 when the result was a 2-1 Concordia win at McPherson. Also nicknamed the Bulldogs, McPherson (0-2) has already played one GPAC foe in Doane. McPherson fell by a 2-1 final. It also dropped a 4-0 decision to Bellevue this past Sunday. McPherson is coming off a 7-10 mark last fall. Emma Singleton has scored the team’s lone goal so far this season.
Concordia is making the return trip to Kansas Wesleyan after the Coyotes visited Seward last September. That match ended in a 2-2 draw. The first road test for the Bulldogs should present a significant challenge. Kansas Wesleyan has already defeated GPAC foes Northwestern, 4-2, and Dordt, 3-1. Michelle Pena is off to a big start in the goal scoring department. She knocked in two goals in both of the aforementioned Coyote victories. Kansas Wesleyan was picked to finish second out of the 13 women’s soccer teams in the KCAC.
Next week will bring about the final two nonconference games of the regular season. The Bulldogs will be at Bellevue University on Tuesday, Sept. 11 and at Friends University (Kan.) on Saturday, Sept. 15.
Concordia routs McPherson with second half splurge
Sep. 5, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – Despite a slow start, the Concordia University women’s soccer team again protected its home turf while entertaining nonconference foe McPherson College (Kan.) underneath the lights on Wednesday night (Sept. 5). In a battle of teams nicknamed the Bulldogs, the home team overcame a seventh-minute goal by Emma Singleton and claimed a 6-1 win.
Both of the wins earned by sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad have come over Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference opponents. Concordia is now 2-0-1 overall (37-6-3 at home since the start of the 2014 season).
“We were definitely a little sluggish out of the gate,” Henson said. “We made a costly mistake that they punished us for. We have to quit doing that. But I’m very pleased with the result and the response from the players. The first half was kind of one of those games where you have to let them figure it out. They settled in and started to play.
“The result and the response in the second half really showed who we are and what our character can be.”
On this particular night, the home Dawgs just needed someone to break the ice. That finally happened in the 39th minute when Maria Deeter came crashing into the goalkeeper. Just before she did, she somehow headed a pass to freshman Cheyenne Smith for a tap-in goal. It was quite a night for Smith, who entered preseason camp as a goalkeeper. She later blasted the highlight reel goal of the night, drilling a free kick from 50 yards out for her second goal.
Smith’s second tally capped the night’s scoring in a contest Concordia expected to control. The home Bulldogs ended up with a 33-4 advantage in the shot count. As a center back, Smith would not have been the mostly player on the field to come through with a multi-goal performance.
“It surprised me a lot,” Smith said of the free kick goal. “I wasn’t expecting it to go in.”
No player for Concordia has been more dangerous on the attack so far than Lauren Martin, who assisted on a goal by Becky Freeman (44th minute) and another by Deeter on a ball that ping-ponged around and into the back of the net. Martin also scored one of her own in the 72nd minute. The Longmont, Colo., native has six assists through the season’s first three games.
Smith and fellow freshman Madeline Haugen both earned credit for their first career goals. Haugen got hers in the 55th minute as the beneficiary of being in the right place at the right time after the ball glanced through the goalkeeper’s hands. Taylor Roby picked up the assist.
The goal scoring explosion was a welcome sight for Henson, whose squad played without Kaitlyn Radebaugh once again. Now Concordia just needs to clean up its possession and return to the stingy defensive habits it displayed throughout 2017.
“We need to limit the mistakes we make that provide opportunities for the opponent,” Henson said. “We know what those are. We’ve talked about them repetitively. If we can stop causing ourselves problems and fix some areas, settle into games a little earlier and be cleaner, I think we’ll be in good shape.”
The Bulldogs will take their act on the road for the first time this season when they travel to Salina, Kan., on Saturday for a matchup between a pair of squads receiving votes in the national poll. The contest against Kansas Wesleyan University (2-0) will be held at Salina Stadium on the campus of Salina High School Central with kickoff at 3 p.m. CT.
Bulldogs draw with Coyotes in battle of RV's
Sep. 8, 2018
SALINA, Kan. – All things considered, the result on Saturday afternoon (Sept. 8) can easily be viewed in a positive light for the Concordia University women’s soccer team. The opponent, Kansas Wesleyan University, entered the weekend having already defeated GPAC foes Northwestern and Dordt. After 110 minutes of play, the Bulldogs and Coyotes settled for a 1-1 draw.
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad now stands at 2-0-2 overall. The program still has not officially suffered a defeat since Sept. 9, 2017.
“We saw some other players step up and give us an opportunity to be successful,” Henson said. “Kaylee Brown started and had a big game for us. (Morgan) Raska has been strong all season. Some players that don’t get a ton of the attention really showed well today.
“It was their home opener. Early on they really came out flying and put us under pressure. It was a physical game. I thought it was a tale of two halves. Kansas Wesleyan is a talented team with some dangerous players. I thought in the second half and overtimes we did a nice job containing them.”
A lead provided by Becky Freeman’s goal in the 26th minute was short-lived. The Coyotes (2-0-1) responded with the equalizer in the 29th minute by Michelle Pena. Concordia knew that if it wanted to leave Salina without an ‘L,’ it had to mark Pena (four goals this season) the rest of the way. All three of the shots she fired off came within the game’s first 29 minutes.
Attacking chances did not come in bunches in this matchup between squads receiving votes in the NAIA national poll. Kansas Wesleyan ended up with an 11-7 edge in the shot department. For the most part, it was an even clash.
Said Henson, “Second half we were able to get forward more and get more opportunities to challenge them. Overall it was a solid 110-minute battle. I think it’s a game that will serve us well as we move towards conference play.”
The likes of Brown and others were needed to rise to the occasion on Saturday due to the absences of Ashley and Lauren Martin, who missed the game for family reasons. That meant Henson had to tinker with his lineup, down two starters who typically play all 90.
Not only did Brown start, Freeman also got the nod at kickoff.
“We definitely shuffled the deck. We changed some things around. We ended up making a couple changes midway through the first half to strengthen ourselves a little bit in the midfield. Michaela Twito did a nice job and helped settle the game down. We made some changes knowing we were missing the Martins. I thought the team responded well to that. It gives us some more options moving forward.”
Sophomore Lindsey Carley played all 110 minutes in goal and made six saves. Carley was called upon to make one save in the first overtime. Both teams managed only a shot apiece over the 20 minutes of overtime.
The Coyotes defeated by Northwestern and Dordt by margins of two goals. Concordia and Kansas Wesleyan also played last season in Seward with the result being a 2-2 double overtime tie.
Two more nonconference games remain on the slate before GPAC action gets started. Next up is Tuesday (Sept. 11)’s journey to Bellevue University (1-2) for a 5 p.m. CT kickoff.
Bulldogs hit the road for final week of nonconference play
Sep. 10, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – Two challenging road contests await the Concordia University women’s soccer team this week as the Bulldogs wrap up nonconference regular-season action. Concordia (2-0-2) will renew what’s been an annual rivalry with Bellevue University (1-2) on Tuesday. Then on Saturday, the Bulldogs will be in Wichita, Kan., to challenge Friends University (3-1), a member of the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference.
This week
Tuesday, Sept. 11 at Bellevue, 5 p.m. CT
Saturday, Sept. 15 at Friends, 12 p.m. CT
Friends will have a live stream on Saturday via its Stretch Internet portal.
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad is coming off its first road game of 2018. The result was a 1-1 double overtime draw at Kansas Wesleyan University in a matchup on Sept. 8 between teams receiving votes in the national poll. In the latest GPAC ratings released on Monday, Concordia checked in at No. 4 behind Hastings, Midland and Jamestown. All four of those teams are either ranked or receiving votes, meaning the GPAC is arguably the most competitive it ever has been in the sport of women’s soccer. The Bulldogs could use a two-win week if they want to make a run at cracking the top 25 like they did twice last season when they were ranked as high as 21st.
Officially, it’s been more than a year since the program’s last defeat – a 2-1 overtime loss at Graceland University (Iowa) on Sept. 9, 2017. Concordia has alternated wins and ties through its first four games this season. The draw at Kansas Wesleyan was a favorable result considering the absences of starters Ashley and Lauren Martin, who will both return on Tuesday. Lauren Martin has already recorded six assists (her average of 2.0 per game leads all NAIA women’s soccer players). The Bulldogs continue to look for goal scorers to emerge. Senior Maria Deeter currently tops the team with three goals.
Bellevue has perennially been a difficult opponent to handle. Last season the Bruins came into Bulldog Stadium and left with a 4-1 victory. That has been Concordia’s most lopsided loss over the past three seasons. Bellevue got its first win on Sept. 2 by toppling McPherson College (Kan.), 4-0. The Bruins have been idle since then. Meanwhile, Friends owns wins over Southwestern Christian University (Okla.), Park University (Mo.) and Wayland Baptist University (Texas). The Falcons finished the 2017 campaign at 8-8-2 overall.
Deeter and the Dawgs will open up conference play next week (Wednesday, Sept. 19) when College of Saint Mary visits Seward. Concordia will close the week on Saturday, Sept. 22 by playing at Northwestern.
Lo-Mar stars in offensive battle at Bellevue
Sep. 11, 2018
BELLEVUE, Neb. – Head coach Greg Henson expected his team to be involved in several defensive battles this fall. The latest outing proved to be the opposite for the Concordia University women’s soccer squad. Despite holding a 2-1 advantage late in the first half, the Bulldogs dropped a 4-3 decision to in-state rival Bellevue University while playing on the grass at Bellevue Soccer Club on Tuesday (Sept. 11).
The result means that Henson’s program has suffered an official loss for the first time since Sept. 9, 2017. Concordia is 2-1-2 overall this season.
“It was a typical Concordia-Bellevue game and unfortunately the outcome was not in our favor,” Henson said. “It was a fast game between two good teams going at it. It was similar to four years ago (also a 4-3 loss). Every time we play them here it seems like there’s not a lot of defense played. The positive was getting three goals on the board.
“They exposed some weaknesses in some things we have been trying to fix but had been getting away with early in the season. Those are things that are all repairable.”
Lauren Martin did her best to supply the necessary offensive firepower. She didn’t miss a beat after not making the trip for the 1-1 draw at Kansas Wesleyan University over the weekend. She had a hand in all three Bulldog goals on Tuesday, adding her seventh and eighth assists of the season (keeping up her average of 2.0 per game). She also gave her side a fighting chance by cutting a two-goal deficit to one with a score in the 66th minute.
For most of Henson’s squads, including three that have won GPAC titles, a three-goal outburst has essentially been money in the bank. Now Concordia goes back to work on tightening up some defensive issues while trying to maintain its current rate on the attack.
“Having her back was a huge boost from an offensive standpoint,” said Henson of Lauren Martin. “We have to continue to find more opportunities for players to get forward and score goals. Averaging three goals per game is not a bad thing. We have to get a clean sheet at some point. We just have to find ways to be more consistent.”
Martin’s corner kick set up Maria Deeter for a goal in the sixth minute. It tied the game, 1-1, at the time. Martin again put the Bruins (2-2) in a danger with a corner kick that resulted in a Victoria Cera goal in the 23rd minute. The Bulldogs took a 2-1 lead that would not hold. Bellevue got a pair of goals from Maria Tome Flores and one apiece from Emily Weyant and Morgan Sheard.
The Bruins have had Concordia’s number in recent years. The Bulldogs clipped Bellevue, 2-1, in 2015 but have dropped the last three in the series. Oddly enough, Henson’s 2014, 2016 and 2017 teams that won GPAC championships all lost to Bellevue.
Said Henson, “It seems like Bellevue has been the turning point for us in past years and hopefully it’ll be the same for us this year. The game really mirrored that 2014 game and after that we really came together as a team.”
The Bulldogs will be on the road again this weekend for a trip to Wichita, Kan., where they will play at Friends University (3-2) for a 12 p.m. CT kickoff. The two sides last met in 2016 in Seward with the result being a 2-1 double overtime win for Concordia thanks to Deeter’s golden goal. Saturday’s contest will be the final nonconference action of the regular season for the Bulldogs.
Bulldogs grind out win, earn first shutout of 2018
Sep. 15, 2018
WICHITA, Kan. – This looked more like the blueprint that helped the Concordia University women’s soccer team earn the outright GPAC regular-season title in 2017. Essentially, that means stifling the opposing attack while striking when the opportunity knocks. A 22nd-minute goal from junior Becky Freeman was all the offense the Bulldogs needed in a 1-0 victory at Friends University in Wichita, Kan., on Saturday afternoon (Sept. 15).
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad earned its first shutout of 2018 and improved to 3-1-2 with nonconference regular-season action now in the books.
“I’m very happy with the shutout. It’s been a long time coming for our back four and Carl (Lindsey Carley) to get a clean sheet,” Henson said. “I thought we did a good job of limiting their quality chances. There were a couple scary set piece opportunities that we gave them late in the game, but overall I thought we did a nice job limiting dangerous opportunities. Carl did a great job of earning her first shutout of the year.”
Henson went on to refer to the contest as a “midfield battle.” The Bulldogs were able to get loose about midway through the first half when senior Kaylee Brown assisted on Freeman’s third goal of the season. Then it became all about seeing out the win and keeping the Falcons (3-3) at bay. Friends had not yet been shut out this season.
That changed with the work of a Concordia back line expected to get stronger as the season goes along. Carley was credited with making seven of her nine saves in the second half, including two in the final 10 minutes. The back four in front of Carley included center backs Chelsea Bright and Tori Cera and outside backs Taylor Roby and Cheyenne Smith. As midfielders, Maria Deeter and Michaela Twito helped the Bulldogs win the “midfield battle.”
This game was nothing like the 4-3 loss at Bellevue that occurred on Tuesday. Concordia has to get back to being a hard-nosed defensive team if it is to defend last season’s GPAC title.
“We focused this week on 1v1 defending and individual and group defending tactics,” Henson said. “We made some adjustments and some changes with personnel in an effort to make us more dangerous going forward and at the same time, also strengthen us along the back four. We had some players in some new positions. I thought today we saw some great strides individually and collectively.”
Freeman has emerged as one of the team’s leading goal scorers so far. She was again in the starting lineup on Saturday. Said Henson, “One of the things we were looking at is getting some players in positions where they could be more dangerous. I think two of our more dangerous threats going forward are Lauren Martin and Becky Freeman. We’re giving them an opportunity to work together up front. Right now we need that consistent goal scoring threat.”
The start of conference play is coming up on Wednesday (Sept. 19) when College of Saint Mary (0-6-1) will make a visit to Bulldog Stadium for a 7 p.m. CT kickoff. The Flames are still in search of their first win of 2018 after falling 11-0 at Bellevue University on Saturday.
Bulldogs grind out win, earn first shutout of 2018
Sep. 15, 2018
WICHITA, Kan. – This looked more like the blueprint that helped the Concordia University women’s soccer team earn the outright GPAC regular-season title in 2017. Essentially, that means stifling the opposing attack while striking when the opportunity knocks. A 22nd-minute goal from junior Becky Freeman was all the offense the Bulldogs needed in a 1-0 victory at Friends University in Wichita, Kan., on Saturday afternoon (Sept. 15).
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad earned its first shutout of 2018 and improved to 3-1-2 with nonconference regular-season action now in the books.
“I’m very happy with the shutout. It’s been a long time coming for our back four and Carl (Lindsey Carley) to get a clean sheet,” Henson said. “I thought we did a good job of limiting their quality chances. There were a couple scary set piece opportunities that we gave them late in the game, but overall I thought we did a nice job limiting dangerous opportunities. Carl did a great job of earning her first shutout of the year.”
Henson went on to refer to the contest as a “midfield battle.” The Bulldogs were able to get loose about midway through the first half when senior Kaylee Brown assisted on Freeman’s third goal of the season. Then it became all about seeing out the win and keeping the Falcons (3-3) at bay. Friends had not yet been shut out this season.
That changed with the work of a Concordia back line expected to get stronger as the season goes along. Carley was credited with making seven of her nine saves in the second half, including two in the final 10 minutes. The back four in front of Carley included center backs Chelsea Bright and Tori Cera and outside backs Taylor Roby and Cheyenne Smith. As midfielders, Maria Deeter and Michaela Twito helped the Bulldogs win the “midfield battle.”
This game was nothing like the 4-3 loss at Bellevue that occurred on Tuesday. Concordia has to get back to being a hard-nosed defensive team if it is to defend last season’s GPAC title.
“We focused this week on 1v1 defending and individual and group defending tactics,” Henson said. “We made some adjustments and some changes with personnel in an effort to make us more dangerous going forward and at the same time, also strengthen us along the back four. We had some players in some new positions. I thought today we saw some great strides individually and collectively.”
Freeman has emerged as one of the team’s leading goal scorers so far. She was again in the starting lineup on Saturday. Said Henson, “One of the things we were looking at is getting some players in positions where they could be more dangerous. I think two of our more dangerous threats going forward are Lauren Martin and Becky Freeman. We’re giving them an opportunity to work together up front. Right now we need that consistent goal scoring threat.”
The start of conference play is coming up on Wednesday (Sept. 19) when College of Saint Mary (0-6-1) will make a visit to Bulldog Stadium for a 7 p.m. CT kickoff. The Flames are still in search of their first win of 2018 after falling 11-0 at Bellevue University on Saturday.
Conference play arrives for defending GPAC champs
Sep. 18, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – After somewhat of an up and down nonconference portion of the schedule, the Concordia University women’s soccer team hopes to be hitting its stride now that the first week of GPAC action has arrived. Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad is fresh off a 1-0 win at Friends University (Kan.). The response defensively was a welcome sight after a 4-3 loss to Bellevue University early last week.
This week
Wednesday, Sept. 19 vs. College of Saint Mary (0-6-1, 0-0-1), 7 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 22 at Northwestern (1-5, 0-0), 7:15 p.m.
The contest on Wednesday will be streamed live on the Concordia Sports Network. Saturday’s game can be viewed live via Northwestern’s Stretch Internet portal.
Currently ranked fourth in the official GPAC ratings, the Bulldogs (3-1-2) will not have an easy road to a second conference regular-season title in a row. Not only are rivals Hastings and Midland strong again, the league also now features a Jamestown program that finished 14-5-1 overall in 2017. GPAC women’s soccer appears as competitive at the top at it ever has been. The four aforementioned squads each received votes (Hastings No. 22, Midland No. 25) in the national poll released last week.
That doesn’t mean Concordia has to take a backseat to anyone. The Bulldogs enter this week with a record of 14-0-1 over their last 15 GPAC regular-season games. They went 9-0-1 during conference play in 2017 on their way to the title. Henson’s teams have typically found ways to peak at the right time. It’s also safe to assume that captain Maria Deeter (27 career goals) will do everything she can to make this a GPAC championship team like the 2014, 2016 and 2017 squads. It seems Concordia is still working on the proper lineup configurations. Henson made adjustments again before the win at Friends.
College of Saint Mary has struggled through the first seven games of its schedule. The Flames dropped an 11-0 decision at Bellevue in their most recent outing. College of Saint Mary has surrendered 41 goals so far this season. First-year head coach Jordan Irsik’s squad began GPAC play with a 1-1 double overtime draw at new GPAC member Presentation College (S.D.) on Aug. 28.
Northwestern has typically been a team that has given the Bulldogs fits. Henson coached squads had not defeated the Red Raiders until the GPAC semifinals of last season. Northwestern just earned its first win of the season in a 2-1 overtime victory at York College on Sept. 15. Before hosting Concordia on Saturday, the Red Raiders will welcome Jamestown to Orange City, Iowa, on Wednesday. Northwestern has been outscored by a combined total of 22-6 through its first six games of 2018.
The Bulldogs will also be in action twice next week. They will be at Morningside on Wednesday, Sept. 26 and then hots Dordt on Saturday, Sept. 29.
Suddeth pulls a hat trick in GPAC opening win
Sep. 19, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – In a contest reminiscent of its 6-1 win over McPherson College (Kan.) two weeks earlier, the Concordia University women’s soccer team waited until late in the opening half to finally break through on the attack. The Bulldogs were the aggressor the rest of the way in a lopsided affair. Brynn Suddeth’s hat trick helped boost Concordia to a 6-0 home victory on Wednesday night (Sept. 19).
Although sixth-year head coach Greg Henson likely felt like his team could have put away additional goals earlier in the evening, the Bulldogs (4-1-2, 1-0 GPAC) will take the win and three standings points. They are now 15-0-1 over their last 16 GPAC regular-season games.
“I thought we came out with a lot of energy and started well, something we haven’t done in the past,” Henson said. “Obviously we didn’t get on the scoreboard early. A lot of that is a credit to Saint Mary. They came out to play. In the GPAC you know you’re going to get a dogfight against any opponent. After the halftime break we did a better job of taking quality chances. I’m pleased with the second half performance.”
Henson had to caution his team against taking any opponent for granted, even one coming off an 11-0 loss like the Flames (0-7-1, 0-1-1) had suffered at Bellevue University last week. The first career goal for freshman Callie McNary in the 35th minute settled things in. After missing its first 10 shots, Concordia had relieved the early offensive frustrations, at last.
Eventually it became the coming out party for junior forward Brynn Suddeth, a transfer from Allen Community College. Suddeth had tallied 23 goals over her two seasons at Allen. Her outburst on Wednesday included a goal each in the 56th, 77th and 89th minutes. It marked the second time Suddeth has pulled of the hat trick in a college game.
“Maria Deeter called it,” Suddeth said. “She said I was just going to put one away and then I was going to go off. It feels amazing and I feel like I’m back to myself again.”
Newcomers collected five of the night’s six goals. Freshman Madeline Haugen also got on the board in the 86th minute after making a nifty move to beat a defender and slot the ball past the keeper. Junior Becky Freeman also found the back of the net in the 61st minute after skillfully playing a perfect through ball from Lauren Martin around the keeper.
Let’s talk more about Martin. The senior from Longmont, Colo., has been terrific all season. She entered the night with eight assists this season (one off the national lead) and then assisted on the first, third and fourth goals on Wednesday.
The hope is that the second half can be the start of Concordia finding its groove in conference play. Perhaps “Suds,” as they call her, will continue to make the Bulldogs more dangerous going forward. Said Henson, “If we can get the ball on her foot inside the 18 we expect her to find the back of the net. Overall, the players we expect to step up, stepped up tonight. I’m really pleased with the effort from the offensive end.”
Henson went on to commend several others who contributed to the win. Lauren Martin looked comfortable moving back out wide. Mikelia Martinez recorded two assists and Deeter had one. Meanwhile, Concordia put up its second clean sheet in a row. Goalkeeper Lindsey Carley made three saves, but was rarely challenged significantly.
The Bulldogs will now face their first road challenge of the conference season when they travel to Orange City, Iowa, on Saturday for a clash with Northwestern (1-6, 0-1 GPAC). Concordia went 1-0-1 last season versus the Red Raiders with the win coming at home in the GPAC semifinals.
Bulldogs claim rare win in Orange City
Sep. 22, 2018
ORANGE CITY, Iowa – Though Northwestern entered the weekend with an uncharacteristically rough overall record, the Concordia University women’s soccer team could not have expected a win in Orange City, Iowa, to be easy. In the GPAC era (2000-present), the program had never left the town victorious. That changed with a 3-1 Bulldog win on Saturday evening (Sept. 22).
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad has taken care of business in its first two GPAC contests and is now 5-1-2 overall and 2-0 in conference play. Concordia is 16-0-1 over its past 17 GPAC regular-season outings.
“We’ve been intentional about coming out with positive energy from the opening whistle. I thought we really did that today,” Henson said. “We played well. It was probably our closest thing to playing a full 90 minutes. I thought we played well in all aspects of the game today. We did all the little things that we ask them to do.”
Fresh off a hat trick in the 6-0 win over College of Saint Mary on Wednesday, junior Brynn Suddeth made her first career start on Saturday. She answered the call by getting the Bulldogs on the board with an 11th-minute goal. Concordia essentially played in the lead the rest of the way.
Only briefly could the Red Raiders (1-7, 0-2 GPAC) celebrate a 27th-minute goal by Paige Drenth. Only about 30 seconds later, the Bulldogs were mobbing Maria Deeter for what ultimately proved to be the game winner. Even in a game in which Concordia was the clear aggressor (18-8 shot advantage), it took a while before it could finally enjoy a lead of more than a single goal.
The emergence of Suddeth and junior Becky Freeman is one of the biggest stories of late. Freeman notched a goal for the third-straight game when she found the back of the net (assisted by Taylor Roby) in the 58th minute. The Bulldogs continue to find ways to put away goals with a balanced team effort.
“She is seizing her opportunities,” Henson said of Suddeth. “I think she’s really coming into her own right now in terms of being the player she’s capable of being for us. I’m real pleased with her effort. Freeman gets on the board as well. Those are two players we’re hoping will continue to trend up and be a threat up front when they’re in there together.”
Henson also credited Deeter for doing the dirty work in the middle of the field along with sophomore Michaela Twito. He also commended the likes of Lauren Martin (national assists leader) and the back four, which has featured Tori Cera and Cheyenne Smith as center backs. They helped limit Northwestern to three shots on goal, keeping goalkeeper Lindsey Carley clean.
The Red Raiders recently picked up their first win of the season (2-1 at York College), but have played a strong schedule. They opened GPAC play on Wednesday with a 4-1 home loss to Jamestown.
Another trip directed northwest will come on Wednesday (Sept. 26) when the Bulldogs go head-to-head with Morningside (3-3-1, 2-0 GPAC) in Sioux City, Iowa. Kickoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. CT. The two programs met each other in GPAC championship games in 2015 and 2016 and in last year’s conference quarterfinals. Concordia defeated the Mustangs twice in 2017.
GPAC win streak to be tested by Morningside, Dordt
Sep. 24, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – The Concordia University women’s soccer team took care of business in the opening week of conference play. The defending GPAC regular-season champions continued their unbeaten streak in conference play by blowing out College of Saint Mary, 6-0, at home before going on the road to knock off Northwestern, 3-1. Head coach Greg Henson’s squad enters the week at 5-1-2 overall and at 2-0 in conference play.
This week
Wednesday, Sept. 26 at Morningside (3-3-1, 2-0), 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 29 vs. Dordt (4-4, 2-0), 1 p.m.
Wednesday’s game can be streamed live via Morningside’s YouTube channel. Then on Saturday, the Concordia Sports Network will provide live coverage.
The Bulldogs have not dropped a GPAC regular-season game since a 3-1 home loss to Midland on Oct. 12, 2016. Concordia then went on to win its final five conference regular-season games of 2016 (and won the GPAC tournament) before going 9-0-1 during the 2017 GPAC regular-season title run. Throw in two victories to start conference play this fall and the Bulldogs are now 16-0-1 over their last 17 GPAC regular-season games. The lone tie in that stretch was a 0-0 draw at Northwestern last season.
Orange City, Iowa, has typically been a difficult place for Concordia to play. In fact, the Bulldogs had never won there in the GPAC era – until last week. Junior Brynn Suddeth, a transfer from Allen Community College, emerged as the big story of last week for the Bulldogs. A hat trick in the win over College of Saint Mary pushed Suddeth into the starting lineup at Northwestern. She seized the opportunity by scoring the game’s first goal. Also up top, junior Becky Freeman has notched one goal in three games in a row and in five of the last six.
With an average of 3.13 goals per game, Concordia ranks as the second most prolific goal scoring team in the GPAC (37th best nationally). The offensive attack has gotten a big boost from senior Lauren Martin, who leads all NAIA players with 11 assists. She added three to her total in the win over College of Saint Mary. Defensively, the Bulldogs have tightened up their play of late. They have conceded only one goal over the past three games.
Both of this week’s opponents also emerged from the weekend with 2-0 GPAC records. Rated fifth in the official GPAC poll released on Monday (Sept. 24), Morningside has opened up conference play with wins by scores of 4-0 over Presentation and 6-0 over Mount Marty. Meanwhile, Dordt has defeated Presentation, 5-2, and Doane, 3-0. The Mustangs have been solid defensively, allowing an average of 1.0 goal per game. Merle Bublitz tops Morningside with seven goals. The Defenders possess a nice offensive threat of their own in Kenzie Bousema (28 career goals).
A highly anticipated clash looms next week when No. 19 Hastings visits Bulldog Stadium on Wednesday, Oct. 3. The Bulldogs will conclude next week by hosting Presentation, a new GPAC member (soccer only), on Saturday, Oct. 6.
Deeter's golden goal boosts Bulldogs in scrappy affair
Sep. 26, 2018
SIOUX CITY, Iowa – As the No. 8 seed in the GPAC tournament last season, Morningside gave the top-seeded Concordia University women’s soccer team all it could handle in the conference quarterfinals. The latest matchup between programs that met in the 2015 and 2016 GPAC tournament title clashes was another classic. A Maria Deeter golden goal in double overtime sent the Bulldogs home from Sioux City, Iowa, with a 3-2 victory on Wednesday night (Sept. 26).
The eighth-game winning goal of Deeter’s career meant that sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad remained perfect in conference play. Concordia is now 6-1-2 overall and 3-0 in the GPAC.
“Every time we play Morningside we know it’s going to be a tough game,” Henson said. “Tonight they were definitely a tough nut to crack. They have a quality program and we knew we were going to be in for a fight. I thought we came out with good energy. The girls showed a lot of resiliency and fought back (from 1-0 deficit). We finally found the winner (in double overtime).”
It was Deeter who won the scramble in the box at a point when it seemed the Bulldogs were about to settle for their third draw of the season. Instead, Deeter found the back of the net for the 30th time in her career. Senior Kaylee Brown was credited with the assist on the goal that allowed the Bulldogs to celebrate a fifth-straight series win over the Mustangs (3-4-1, 2-1 GPAC).
Deeter had also leveled the score in the first half after Morningside had taken an early 1-0 lead via a penalty kick goal. Concordia never faced another deficit. Sophomore Michaela Twito got on the board less than 20 minutes into the second half with a goal assisted by fellow sophomore Tori Cera. Twito’s goal provided a short-lived lead. An impressive strike into the upper left corner of the goal by the Mustangs’ Paytn Harmon equalized just a few minutes later.
A seasoned veteran with 72 collegiate games of experience under her belt, Deeter will never be afraid of any moment. Of course, she has plenty of talent surrounding her within a culture of winning.
“Tonight turned into a typical conference game,” Henson said. “It was a scrappy game. We would much rather put the ball on the floor and keep possession, but it got scrappy. We needed someone to step up in a big moment and win the game for us. Maria Deeter did that for us tonight and she’s done that countless other times. Sometimes it’s just a matter of will.”
After putting up four goals over the opening week of GPAC play, Brynn Suddeth assisted Deeter’s first goal on Wednesday. The Bulldogs wound up with a narrow 13-12 shots advantage. Concordia had a more significant edge in corner kicks (10-2). In goal, sophomore Lindsey Carley made four saves while Mustang keeper Tristan Beaulieu was called upon to make eight saves.
The Bulldogs will return home on Saturday and host Dordt (4-5, 2-1 GPAC) in a 1 p.m. CT contest. The Defenders suffered their first conference loss on Wednesday, dropping a 2-0 decision at Jamestown. Last season Concordia clipped Dordt, 1-0, as part of the stretch run of a GPAC regular-season title push.
GPAC play behind two more Deeter goals
Sep. 29, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – A pair of first half goals produced by senior Maria Deeter staked the Concordia University women’s soccer team to a lead it would not relinquish. The GPAC unbeaten streak continued via a 3-2 victory over visiting Dordt on a crisp and misty Saturday afternoon (Sept. 29) at Bulldog Stadium.
The latest win became a little more tense than sixth-year head coach Greg Henson would have liked, but the Bulldogs were successful in pushing their unbeaten run in GPAC regular-season play to 19 (18-0-1). They are 7-1-2 overall and 4-0 in conference action.
“I thought we really came out and controlled play,” Henson said. “I thought we did a nice job of controlling possession and getting players in behind for goal scoring opportunities. We got two on the board in the first half and were feeling good about where we were at. At this time of year, all we’re looking for is a win and three points in the conference standings.”
It’s no surprise that Deeter has made her presence felt in conference play. She seems determined to will her team to victory, if that’s what it takes, on any given day out. Three days after knocking in the golden goal at Morningside, Deeter burned Dordt (4-6, 2-2 GPAC) by finding the back of the net in the 14th and 30th minutes.
The first goal typifies Deeter’s hard-nosed style. Lauren Martin’s corner kick sent her flying towards the goal. Deeter headed the ball into the goal and then went crashing into the back of the net. By day’s end, Deeter’s season goal count stood at nine, one off a career high she set last season.
“In soccer, it’s a weird game,” Deeter said. “Sometimes the ball bounces your way. Once you get one it’s all about confidence. You see one go in, you see another go in. It’s just kind of a ripple effect. We’ve been playing really well, moving the ball. Offensively, I think we’ve all been clicking.”
A big part of that offensive attack is Martin, one of the NAIA’s leaders in assists. She earned her 12th assist on Deeter’s first goal and then boosted the Bulldogs to a commanding 3-0 lead with a goal in the 49th minute. It was a stellar effort in which Martin dribbled by two defenders and then poked the ball over a drawn-out keeper.
Brynn Suddeth chipped in with a pair of assists while collaborating on a victory that had many contributors. Henson continues to make tweaks to a lineup that included Kaylee Brown and Mikeila Martinez in Saturday’s starting 11. Now is about the right time to figure things out with Concordia currently sitting tied for first along with Briar Cliff and Hastings in the GPAC standings.
“We made a couple changes in the lineup for today,” Henson said. “I thought the group that started the match did very well and jelled well together. The real positive was our ability to get back into a possession style of play. We’ve gotten away from that the last couple of games. I thought we did a nice job of getting back to it today.”
A highly anticipated showdown looms on Wednesday night (Oct. 3) when No. 18 Hastings (7-0-1, 4-0 GPAC) makes its way to Bulldog Stadium. The two programs met in Seward in the 2017 GPAC championship game with the result being a Broncos penalty kick shootout victory. Since the start of the 2014 campaign, the Bulldogs are officially 3-2-2 against Hastings.
“Hastings is a great team and a great program,” Deeter said. “You can’t deny that. I think we’ve always played them tough and I expect nothing less. I know we’re going to be locked in. A lot of us have been looking forward to this game for a while now. We have to play our game and not get caught up in the moment.”
Hastings showdown kicks off third week of GPAC play
Oct. 1, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – Of course every game is worth the same in regards to the GPAC standings, but it’s felt like more than just another game when the Concordia University women’s soccer team and Hastings get together. The Bulldogs and the 18th-ranked Broncos will go head-to-head at 5:30 p.m. CT inside Bulldog Stadium on Wednesday. Concordia will also host new GPAC soccer member Presentation on Saturday with hopes of remaining in first place by week’s end.
This week
Wednesday, Oct. 3 vs. No. 18 Hastings (7-0-1, 4-0), 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 6 vs. Presentation (1-9-1, 0-6-1), 5:30 p.m.
Both of this week’s games will be featured live on the Concordia Sports Network with Frank Greene calling the action.
While the Bulldogs (7-1-2, 4-0 GPAC) have settled in at No. 4 in the official GPAC rankings, they enter the week tied atop the league standings along with Briar Cliff and Hastings. As a matter of fact, Concordia has gone nearly two full years since its last loss in a GPAC regular-season game (Oct. 12, 2016 vs. Midland). After claiming 3-2 wins last week over both Morningside and Dordt, the Bulldogs improved to 18-0-1 over their last 19 conference regular-season contests. So far in 2018 conference play, Concordia has outscored its first four opponents by a combined total of 15-5.
Senior Maria Deeter is on a goal scoring splurge. She contributed two goals apiece in last week’s victories. The biggest highlight was her golden goal in the 109th minute of the double overtime win at Morningside. The big week means Deeter (nine goals this season) has moved into a tie with Midland’s Nayeli Rodriguez for the most goals among GPAC players. The Bulldogs also have the conference leader in assists. Lauren Martin has racked up 12 assists (tied for the most in the NAIA), including one in the win over Dordt.
Concordia made the series with Hastings into a more competitive rivalry by twice upsetting the Broncos in 2014 (the second win occurred in the GPAC tournament title game). Since the start of the 2014 season, the Bulldogs are officially 3-2-2 against the Broncos. Concordia is hoping for a measure of revenge after falling in a shootout in last season’s GPAC championship match versus Hastings.
“Over the last four years it’s been two good programs going head-to-head,” Henson said. “They’ve been very competitive games. We’ve played each other seven times over the last four years so there’s a lot of familiarity between the programs and the players. It’s become a strong rivalry. We know that they’re a team that we have to beat in order to accomplish our goal, which is defending our league title.”
The most impressive result on the Broncos’ record may actually be the tie that it earned back on Aug. 31 with Benedictine College (Kan.), currently ranked No. 3 in the NAIA poll. Hastings also owns a win over a top 25 opponent in Central Methodist College (Mo.). Head coach Chris Clements’ squad has outscored its opponents by a combined total of 26-5. The leading Bronco goal scorer has been Rhiannon Castle de Ortega, who has found the back of the net six times. Hastings has conceded more than one goal only once – versus Presentation in a 4-2 win.
The Saints just picked up their first win of the season on Sunday in what amounted to a 2-0 decision at Stephens College (Mo.). Presentation has one point in the GPAC standings courtesy of a draw with College of Saint Mary. The Saints have been outscored 32-9 by this season’s opponents. Goalkeeper Kristina Nelson has faced heavy fire. She’s made 83 saves in just over 1,000 minutes of action this fall.
Conference play will continue next week with Concordia playing at Doane on Wednesday, Oct. 10 before hosting Dakota Wesleyan on Saturday, Oct. 13. The Oct. 13 game will be senior day.
Deeter picks up third career GPAC weekly award
Oct. 2, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – A four-goal week that helped the Concordia University women’s soccer team to a pair of wins resulted in another honor for senior Maria Deeter. On Tuesday (Oct. 2), the conference named the Seward native the GPAC/Hauff Mid-America Sports Women’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Week. This marks the third time Deeter has garnered a GPAC player of the week award during her standout career.
Deeter’s efforts are a major reason why the Bulldogs entered this week at 4-0 in conference play and tied for first atop the GPAC standings. She produced last week’s most exhilarating highlight when she knocked in the golden goal in the 109th minute of a 3-2 double overtime victory at Morningside on Sept. 26. A Lincoln Lutheran High School product, Deeter now has generated nine multi-goal games in her career as a Bulldog. Her nine goals this season are tied for the most among GPAC players and are one off the career high she set last season.
This is just the latest honor for Deeter, a three-time All-GPAC performer (twice first team, once second team). She’s also been named to All-Plains Region and Omaha World-Herald All-Nebraska squads in each of her first three collegiate seasons. Additionally, Deeter is an NAIA Scholar-Athlete whose 32 career goals rank inside the top 10 on the program’s all-time list. Since Deeter arrived on campus, the Bulldog women’s soccer program has a combined overall record of 51-14-9 with two GPAC championships and a national tournament appearance.
Deeter and her teammates will be back in action on Wednesday (5:30 p.m. CT kickoff) when they will host 18th-ranked Hastings (7-0-1, 4-0 GPAC).
Bulldogs earn draw with 15th-ranked Hastings
Oct. 3, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – A first-half goal by junior Brynn Suddeth provided the Concordia University women’s soccer team a lead it held for more than 30 minutes on a Wednesday night (Oct. 3) featuring brisk winds. Ultimately, a physical battle with rival and 15th-ranked Hastings concluded in a 1-1 double overtime draw, a result similar to the one that played out in the 2017 GPAC championship game.
The tie means the GPAC regular-season unbeaten streak (18-0-2 over last 20) lives on for sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s program. The Bulldogs moved to 7-1-3 overall and to 4-0-1 in conference play. The tie with a nationally-ranked foe should help solidify Concordia as a team receiving votes in the NAIA poll.
“We’re happy to get a point any time that we can salvage that in a conference match, especially in a tilt against Hastings,” Henson said. “It’s become a really good rivalry for us over the last four years. But yeah, it’s bittersweet. There’s a little disappointment in only coming away with a draw. You had two good programs going at it and the (windy) conditions dealt a blow to the quality of soccer that was played. We’ll take the point, stay undefeated in conference and we can still control our own destiny moving forward.”
The Bulldogs dodged their fair share of bullets in a game that the Broncos (7-0-2, 4-0-1 GPAC) outshot the home team, 23-12. Concordia went to the locker room with a 1-0 lead after escaping a pair of Hastings shots that pelted the crossbar late in the half. Just a bit earlier – in the 38th minute – the Bulldogs celebrated Suddeth’s four goal of the season.
The Suddeth score came after Lauren Martin volleyed a corner kick into the box that was ping-ponged around and off the foot of Becky Freeman. She somehow drilled the ball through a tight window, past the keeper and to a waiting Suddeth. But the upset bid took a hit in the 69th minute when Laurie Potvin converted a penalty kick. It was the last time the ball found the back of the net on the evening.
Sophomore goalkeeper Lindsey Carley saved the other six Broncos shots on goal. Concordia did well to keep Hastings off the scoreboard during the run of play. The Broncos entered the night averaging 3.25 goals per game.
“I thought our defense played really well,” Carley said. “Tori Cera has really stepped up this year as a center back. Last year she was in the midfield. It’s definitely an adjustment for her, but I think she did really well. We cleared the ball well and adjusted to the extreme wind in the first half. Everything just went really well for us.”
Concordia had a legitimate chance for the golden goal on a couple of occasions in the 20 minutes of overtime. The first occurred when Martin maneuvered around a defender in the box and shot wide to the right. Suddeth also had a breakaway chance of her own. On the flip side, the Broncos put three shots on frame during overtime action.
“We’ve had some struggles defensively in conceding goals,” Henson said. “Unfortunately it was the third penalty we’ve allowed this season. At the end of the day, we have to overcome the adversity. I thought we did a nice job seeing the game out and making sure we walked away with at least a point.”
The Bulldogs will remain at home this Saturday to host new GPAC soccer member Presentation (1-10-1, 0-6-1 GPAC) at 5:30 p.m. CT on Saturday. The Saints continue to search for their first-ever GPAC victory. Presentation picked up its first win this season by beating nonconference foe Stephens College (Mo.), 2-0, last week.
Suddeth splurges for hat trick, Bulldogs roll Presentation
Oct. 6, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – For the second time in six games, junior Brynn Suddeth spurned the opposition with a hat trick. Suddeth and her teammates breezed past short-handed Presentation College, a new GPAC soccer member, 6-0, inside Bulldog Stadium on Saturday night (Oct. 6). “Suds” also assisted a goal as part of her big night.
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad effectively responded emotionally after a 1-1 double overtime draw with rival Hastings three days earlier. Concordia is now 8-1-3 overall and 5-0-1 in conference play (21-game GPAC regular-season unbeaten streak).
“We talked about that specifically (not taking the opponent lightly),” Henson said. “It doesn’t matter how a team has performed in the past. It just matters that we come out and make sure we secure the victory and get three points. That’s what this time of the year is all about. Presentation has been on hard times of late, but we wanted to make sure that we came out and challenged them and had the same intensity, motivation and same drive that we had against Hastings.”
The Bulldogs punished the Saints (1-11-1, 0-7-1 GPAC) almost immediately after the opening kickoff. Freshman Mikeila Martinez buried her first career goal just 43 seconds into the game and the rout was on. Presentation managed only two shots (one on goal) the entire 90 minutes. Concordia was rarely on the defensive while earning its third clean sheet of the season.
Suddeth, a transfer from Allen Community College, has now knocked in all eight of her goals since conference play began. She recorded a goal apiece on Saturday in the 19th, 47th and 55th minutes. It seemed her hat trick against College of Saint Mary on Sept. 19 was all it took for Suddeth to get rolling.
“I think once I put that first one in the back of the net it’s just one after the other,” Suddeth said. “My team is helping me tremendously. They keep playing me great balls in. Ashley Martin and Lauren Martin have assisted several of my goals. Same with Maria Deeter. They’ve been fantastic.”
Deeter did in fact assist two of Suddeth’s goals. Deeter also put one in herself in the 16th minute to make it 2-0 at the time. The Seward native has now equaled a career season high with 10 goals (33 career). The fifth goal of the night was made possible by senior Taylor Roby who crossed a shot into the box. The ball was poked into the goal by a Presentation defender.
Concordia has now scored 21 goals in its first six conference games. The Bulldogs have proven they can be dangerous moving forward with the likes of Deeter, Lauren Martin and Suddeth sporting numbers that rank them right near the top of the GPAC.
“I think this year’s team is different than a lot of teams we’ve had in the past,” Henson said. “It’s very balanced scoring with a number of different weapons that can provide opportunities for us to score goals. Lauren didn’t get an assist tonight, but she did set up several goals. Then there are others who contribute off the bench.”
The bench got plenty of action in this contest. Henson called upon 17 substitutes and used three different goalkeepers. Starter Lindsey Carley saved the only shot on goal she saw in 57 minutes of action. On the flip side, the Saints had no reserves to turn to.
The Bulldogs will continue conference action on Wednesday with a drive to nearby Doane (2-10, 0-6 GPAC) for a 5 p.m. CT kickoff in Crete. The Tigers remain in search of their first GPAC win after Saturday’s 3-0 loss at Briar Cliff. In last season’s meeting, Concordia defeated Doane, 3-0, in Seward.
Suddeth collects GPAC weekly award
Oct. 9, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – A second hat trick of the season helped junior Brynn Suddeth pick up her first conference award as a Bulldog. On Tuesday (Oct. 9), the league tabbed Suddeth as the GPAC/Hauff Mid-America Sports Women’s Soccer Player of the Week. This marks the second week in a row that the Concordia women’s soccer program has netted this award. Senior Maria Deeter picked up the same honor on Oct. 2.
Suddeth has settled into a starring role since conference play began. She continued her goal scoring exploits last week with the team’s lone goal in a 1-1 draw with No. 15 Hastings and then by finding the back of the net three times in the 6-0 win over Presentation. Suddeth also added one assist. The native of Wichita, Kan., turned in her first hat trick in another 6-0 victory that came over College of Saint Mary on Sept. 19.
“Suds” shares the conference lead for most goals scored in GPAC games only with eight. She’s added four assists this season while becoming a fixture up top. Suddeth is in her first season with Concordia after transferring from Allen Community College, where she tallied 23 goals and 16 assists over two years.
Suddeth and the Bulldogs (8-1-3, 5-0-1 GPAC) will return to action on Wednesday with a GPAC contest at Doane (2-10, 0-6 GPAC). Kickoff from Crete, Neb., is set for 5 p.m. CT.
SEWARD, Neb. – Following a blowout win over new GPAC soccer member Presentation College, the Concordia University women’s soccer team goes up against both of the league’s Tigers in this week’s action. A run of three-straight home games ends with Wednesday’s short trek to Doane. The Bulldogs will then host Dakota Wesleyan on Saturday, which will also be used to honor the program’s nine seniors.
This week
Wednesday, Oct. 10 at Doane (2-10, 0-6)
Saturday, Oct. 13 vs. Dakota Wesleyan (3-7, 1-4)
Wednesday’s game at Doane will be streamed live via YouTube. The contest on Saturday will be carried live via the Concordia Sports Network.
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad enters the week with a 21-game GPAC regular-season unbeaten streak. During that stretch, Concordia is 19-0-2 and has outscored its conference foes by a combined total of 69-8. A win or tie at Doane on Wednesday will mean that the Bulldogs will go more than two full years since their most recent conference defeat (Oct. 12, 2016 vs. Midland). At 5-0-1 this season in conference play, Concordia’s 16 GPAC standings points are two behind Briar Cliff (6-0 GPAC) atop the league standings.
The Bulldogs got back into the receiving votes category of the national rankings last week and could gain even more traction in the poll that will be released today (Oct. 9). Last week’s 1-1 double overtime draw with 15th-ranked Hastings helped move Concordia up to No. 3 in the newly announced official GPAC rankings. The offensive star of the week was junior Brynn Suddeth, who notched four goals and an assist over the home games against Hastings and Presentation. Suddeth’s eight goals this season have all come during conference play.
Seward native Maria Deeter, a three-time All-GPAC honoree, headlines the senior class that will be recognized on Saturday. Seniors Ashley and Lauren Martin have also garnered all-conference accolades during their careers. As a group, the seniors have helped the program to a combined four-year record of 52-14-10 with a GPAC regular-season title, a GPAC tournament championship, three conference tournament title game appearances and one NAIA national tournament berth. Other seniors are Kaylee Brown, Tori Pearson, Hannah Sain, Michaela Stevens, Kaitlyn Stradtmann and Taylor Roby.
Doane is still in search of its first GPAC victory having dropped a 3-0 decision at Briar Cliff its last time out. Doane has been outscored 31-7 through its first 11 games. Three different players have scored two goals apiece for Doane. Dakota Wesleyan’s lone GPAC win came by a 4-1 score at Presentation. Dakota Wesleyan possesses a dangerous goal scorer in Alyssa Weidler (eight goals), who has accounted for more than half of the team’s 15 goals this season. DWU has been solid defensively having yielded 18 goals over its first 10 games.
Concordia will be headed to the Dakotas next week to take on Mount Marty on Tuesday, Oct. 16 and then Jamestown, another new GPAC member, on Saturday, Oct. 20.
Concordia-Jamestown play to 1-1 draw up north
Oct. 20, 2018
JAMESTOWN, N.D. – A lot has been on the line every time the Concordia University women’s soccer team has stepped on the field. Unfortunately, a lead the Bulldogs had held for more than 25 minutes of play in the second half fell by the wayside in a contest that concluded with a 1-1 draw in double overtime at Jamestown on Saturday (Oct. 20). It was the first meeting between the two programs since a 3-2 Concordia win over the Jimmies in 2013.
The tie means that sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad lost its grip on sole possession of first place in the GPAC standings. The Bulldogs (11-1-4, 8-0-2 GPAC) are now locked in a three-way tie for first with Hastings and Midland.
“I thought we came out well,” Henson said. “We knew it was a situation where both teams are talented programs and both teams would be able to possess the ball. I thought that was really how the game played out. There were periods of time where we had it and looked dangerous and periods where they had it and looked dangerous. It was a good midfield battle between two good teams.”
Henson was curious to see how his team would respond on the road against a quality opponent after a run of four-straight wins by comfortable margins. Concordia got a boost off the bench from junior Becky Freeman, who delivered the game’s first goal. It came in the 49th minute, supplying a lead that would last until the 75th minute.
That was right about the time things started to break down. Senior captain Maria Deeter left the game with an injury not long before Lateasha Hughes knocked in the equalizer off a corner kick. Suddenly, the Bulldogs were placed on their heels. The Jimmies (9-5-2, 6-2-2 GPAC) had a 6-3 shot advantage during the second half that put Concordia’s GPAC unbeaten streak at risk.
Reigning GPAC Defensive Player of the Year Lindsey Carley rose to the occasion and ensured that the Bulldogs would add at least one point in the GPAC standings. She made two notable saves down the stretch, including one in the 85th minute. She denied a shot by Gabriella Diarte. Carley was credited for three saves on the afternoon.
“She made the save of the year to this point in the season,” Henson said. “She proved why she was the defensive player of the year. We haven’t called upon her to have to make those types of saves too much this season, but she stepped up and gave us a chance to win the game in overtime. She made two saves that really counted.”
Concordia ended up with an 11-8 advantage in the overall shot count. Tori Cera managed to put a shot on frame in the second overtime that was saved by Jamestown keeper Lauren Sayler. Henson made mention of Cera for her work at center back and of Mikeila Martinez and Michaela Twito for controlling play in the middle of the field.
Now possessing a 25-game GPAC regular-season unbeaten streak (22-0-3), the Bulldogs have work to do in the final week of the regular season if they are to defend their 2017 conference title. Concordia will be headed to 20th-ranked Midland (11-1-2, 8-0-2 GPAC) on Wednesday for a crucial showdown in Fremont. Kickoff is set for 5 p.m. CT.
Said Henson, “We still control our own destiny and have two more games to go in the regular season to try to win the conference championship. As I told the players, there’s no reason to hang their heads. The fight and the effort was there.”
GPAC title on the line in final week of regular season
Oct. 23, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – It’s all a competitor could want – to enter the final week of the regular season with a chance to at least share a conference championship. Winner of the 2017 GPAC regular-season title, the Concordia University women’s soccer team hopes to defend it this week. The Bulldogs have a showdown at No. 20 Midland coming up on Wednesday before they host Briar Cliff on Saturday.
This week
Wednesday, Oct. 24 at No. 20 Midland (11-1-2, 8-0-2), 5 p.m.
Saturday, Oct. 27 vs. Briar Cliff (8-7-1, 7-3), 1 p.m.
Wednesday’s game can be streamed live via Midland’s Stretch Internet portal. Then on Saturday, the Concordia Sports Network will have coverage.
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad finds itself in another battle with Hastings and Midland in a three-way deadlock atop the GPAC standings. The Bulldogs (11-1-4, 8-0-2 GPAC) managed to extend their GPAC regular-season unbeaten streak to 25 (22-0-3) last week with a 12-0 win at Mount Marty and a 1-1 double overtime draw at Jamestown. However, the tie meant that Concordia lost its grip on sole possession of first place. The Bulldogs could still earn the No. 1 seed in the GPAC tournament (which comes with an automatic bid to nationals), but they likely have to win twice this week to claim it.
By many measures, the 2018 Concordia team rivals the accomplished squads in recent years as one of the best in program history. With 13 goals scored last week, the Bulldogs ran their season count to 60 (third most in a season in school history). Individually, senior Lauren Martin broke the program’s single-season standard for assists by recording her 15th and 16th of the year in the win at Mount Marty. Also in the victory, senior Maria Deeter (37 career goals) moved within one goal of the No. 5 ranking on the program’s all-time goal scoring list. Deeter ranks third among GPAC players with 14 goals this season while junior Brynn Suddeth is sixth on that same list with 12 goals.
Unfortunately, Concordia may have to make its conference title push without the services of Deeter, who left the game at Jamestown with an injury. Those big shoes would likely be filled by freshman Madeline Haugen. On the plus side, the Bulldogs have a strong midfield with the likes of Mikeila Martinez and Michaela Twito working in those roles. Becky Freeman (seven goals) is someone who can help replace the potential lost production offensively.
The attacking duo of PT Perez (13 goals) and Nayeli Rodriguez (15 goals) makes Midland one of the conference’s most dangerous offensive teams. However, the Warriors are most adept at stifling their opponents. They rank sixth nationally in terms of fewest goals allowed per game (0.43). Hastings is the only GPAC team that has managed to score on Midland, which features goalkeeper Rachel Thigpen (ranked eighth nationally in goals allowed per game). Briar Cliff just dropped a 1-0 decision at Midland. The Chargers have vastly improved upon their 4-6-1 GPAC mark in 2017.
Concordia has already clinched a spot in the GPAC tournament, which will begin with the quarterfinal round next Wednesday (Oct. 31). The conference semifinals are set for Nov. 3 with the championship game to follow on Nov. 8.
Bulldogs draw at Midland with GPAC title implications at stake
Oct. 24, 2018
FREMONT, Neb. – The chances of the Concordia University women’s soccer team earning at least a share of a second GPAC regular-season title in a row likely ended in Fremont, Neb., on Wednesday evening (Oct. 24). While the Bulldogs needed a win, in a way they were fortunate to salvage the 1-1 double overtime draw that resulted in the battle with 18th-ranked Midland. A hand ball call in the box gave Concordia the opportunity to equalize in the 87th minute.
It still has been more than two years since sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s program has suffered a loss in a GPAC regular-season game (26 straight league matches). Considering their draws with Hastings and Midland, the Bulldogs (11-1-5, 8-0-3 GPAC) have again proven to be on the same level as the league’s elite.
“It was a collective effort,” Henson said. “We weren’t looking for one player to step up. We were looking for everyone to contribute and put the onus on themselves. I thought we responded very well as a team, not just the players on the field but the players on the bench supporting their teammates. I thought the whole program did a great job responding to a tough situation over the weekend. They came out ready to play.”
In a rivalry matchup that got chippy, Concordia played without the services of three-time All-GPAC performer Maria Deeter (injured at Jamestown last week). Freshman Madeline Haugen got the start in her place and the Bulldogs carried on. They had prep time this week knowing that Deeter would be missing from the lineup.
Despite the glaring absence, Concordia competed like the championship program it has become under Henson’s direction. For the game, The Bulldogs outnumbered the Warriors in shots on goal (6-5). It’s simply exceedingly difficult to put the ball in the back of the net against a Midland team that entered the night having conceded only one goal in conference play.
That total grew with 3:36 left in regulation. A hand ball in the box made both benches erupt. Concordia had new life when sophomore Tori Cera drilled the penalty kick into the goal to level the score. A controversial ruling was about all that had been missing from a night that featured 10 combined cards. The Bulldogs even played down a player for nearly half of the 110 minutes.
Concordia successfully held dangerous goal scorer Nayeli Rodriguez (three shots – one on goal) off the scoreboard. The Warriors (11-1-3, 8-0-3 GPAC) owned a lead for more than 33 minutes of action in the second half after Marley Farrell’s goal off a corner kick. Only Cera’s PK goal kept Midland from keeping pace with Hastings (9-0-2 GPAC) atop the league standings. The Warriors used PT Perez, also dealing with injury, for only brief periods on Wednesday.
In the closing seconds of double overtime, the Bulldogs got out on the run with a chance to win it. Midland keeper Rachel Thigpen came forward and took the punishment in a collision in the box to prevent a potential score. It was exemplary of the gritty play on both sides.
“We had chances at the end to win the game,” Henson said. “Our players really left it all on the field tonight, which is all you can ask for when you’re in the championship hunt. The teams that we’ve played that are nationally ranked, we’re right there with them. We played well tonight.”
The Bulldogs will close out the regular season on Saturday when Briar Cliff (8-8-1, 7-4 GPAC) pays a visit to Bulldog Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. CT. The Chargers fell at home by a 3-1 score to Dakota Wesleyan on Wednesday. Concordia would be likely to claim the No. 3 seed in the conference tournament with a win.
Concordia ends regular season with home defeat
Oct. 27, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – Despite an 18-5 advantage in the shot count, the Concordia University women’s soccer team experienced a rare feeling. For the first time in more than two years, the Bulldogs suffered a loss in GPAC regular-season play. Visiting Briar Cliff spoiled the regular season home finale by emerging from Bulldog Stadium with a 3-2 victory on Saturday afternoon (Oct. 27).
In terms of seeding for the GPAC tournament, Saturday’s outcome ended up having no effect. Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad will enter the postseason with the conference’s No. 3 seed. Concordia is now 11-2-5 overall and 8-1-3 in conference play.
“I don’t know if we came in overconfident or we came in with the attitude that the game didn’t matter as much as it should have,” Henson said. “There were spurts and periods during that game where the mentality wasn’t there and we lost focus. When you do that against good teams like Briar Cliff they’re going to make you pay. That’s something we have to clean up heading into postseason.”
The Chargers (9-8-1, 8-4 GPAC) are vastly improved as compared to one year ago when they were handled by the Bulldogs, 5-1. Briar Cliff had an answer after falling behind 1-0 in the 35th minute. Neither team led by more than one goal during a back-and-forth battle. Taylor Beaulieu eventually sunk Concordia with the game winner in the 71st minute. She went unmarked in the box, allowing for the opportunity to slot the ball past goalkeeper Lindsey Carley.
Even a big day on the attack from senior Lauren Martin failed to save the Bulldogs. She recorded a goal apiece in the 35th and 48th minutes. The latter goal quickly erased what had been a 2-1 deficit. She did her part in helping to make up for the absence of leading goal scorer and senior captain Maria Deeter, who missed her second game in a row due to injury. Concordia was also without freshman Madeline Haugen.
Losses within the conference have become so few and far between that this one felt like a bit of a stunner. The Bulldogs had gone 22-0-4 in their previous 26 GPAC regular-season games. Prior to Saturday, their most recent conference defeat came at the hands of Midland on Oct. 12, 2016.
Now it’s time to regroup. Concordia has put together an impressive run in GPAC postseason play having reached the championship game four years running (titles in 2014 and 2016). The draw at Midland on Wednesday and Saturday’s loss means the Bulldogs slipped down to the No. 3 seed in the league tournament. They entered the week tied with Hastings and Midland for first place.
In the quarterfinal round of the GPAC postseason, Concordia will host the sixth seed at 7 p.m. CT on Wednesday (Oct. 31). The Bulldogs must win the tournament in order to earn a bid to nationals. Pairings will officially be set on Sunday.
“It’s literally a one-game-at-a-time mentality,” Henson said. “We have to come out with the same energy, focus and effort like we had on Wednesday night at Midland. If we do that, we have the ability to be successful … We’ll regroup and on Monday we start anew and try to put ourselves in a position to go out and win a conference tournament.”
New season starts with home GPAC quarterfinal tilt Wednesday
Oct. 28, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – The Concordia University women’s soccer program may have come up short of defending its 2017 GPAC regular-season title, but the conference postseason tournament offers a fresh start. The Bulldogs will enter the GPAC tournament as the No. 3 seed, which means they have drawn sixth-seeded Morningside in a quarterfinal clash that will kick off at 7 p.m. CT in Seward on Wednesday. Pairings were set on Sunday with the close of the regular season.
Wednesday’s game can be streamed live via the Concordia Sports Network.
The hope is that sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad can quickly brush off the 3-2 loss suffered in Saturday’s regular-season finale and recapture the conference tournament magic it has displayed in recent years. Concordia has advanced to the GPAC tournament final four years running with titles coming in 2014 and 2016. The only chance the Bulldogs have left to make their third NAIA national tournament appearance in five seasons is to win the GPAC tournament. Concordia is officially 9-1-2 in conference postseason action since the start of the 2014 campaign.
Unfortunately, the Bulldogs have been without senior captain Maria Deeter since she went down with an injury in the draw at Jamestown on Oct. 20. Without her, Concordia played to a 1-1 double overtime draw at No. 18 Midland prior to the home loss to Briar Cliff. That defeat snapped a run of 26-straight GPAC regular-season contests without a loss (22-0-4). In the loss, Lauren Martin notched a pair of goals while concluding a big senior regular season.
The Bulldogs became more of an offensive-minded team this fall. They have outscored their 12 conference opponents by a combined total of 47-11 after outscoring 10 GPAC regular-season foes 27-1 in 2017. Deeter (14), Brynn Suddeth (12) and Martin (nine) are the top goal scorers for a team that has found the back of the net 63 times (third most in a single season in school history). Martin leads all GPAC players with her program single season record of 16 assists.
A quarterfinal win is unlikely to come easy against Morningside. The Bulldogs and Mustangs battled into two overtimes when they met in Sioux City, Iowa, back on Sept. 26. Deeter’s golden goal in the 108th minute lifted Concordia to a 3-2 win. The Mustangs also competed closely with the league’s top two seeds, suffering 1-0 defeats to both Hastings and Midland. The Bulldogs will have to be able to contain Merle Bublitz, who ranks in a tie for first among GPAC players with 16 goals this season.
Wednesday’s winner will advance to play against either second-seeded Midland or seventh-seeded Dordt in the GPAC semifinals on Saturday. The highest seeds host in each round.
2018 GPAC Women’s Soccer Tournament
Wednesday, Oct. 31 – Quarterfinals
No. 8 College of Saint Mary (4-13-1, 4-7-1) at No. 1 Hastings (13-0-3, 10-0-2), 7 p.m.
No. 5 Briar Cliff (9-8-1, 8-4) at No. 4 Jamestown (11-5-2, 8-2-2), 6:30 p.m.
No. 6 Morningside (10-7-1, 8-4) at No. 3 Concordia (11-2-5, 8-1-3), 7 p.m.
No. 7 Dordt (7-11, 5-7) at No. 2 Midland (12-1-3, 9-0-3), 7 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 3 – Semifinals
No. 1/8 vs. No. 4/5, time TBA
No. 3/6 vs. No. 2/7, time TBA
Thursday, Nov. 8 – Championship
Time TBA
Cera's big strike moves Bulldogs to GPAC semifinals
Oct. 31, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – It’s almost always a tight one when the Concordia University women’s soccer program locks horns with Morningside. With a berth in the GPAC semifinals at stake, the Bulldogs made a 79th minute goal by Tori Cera stand up in yet another conference tournament triumph. Third-seeded Concordia sent the sixth-seeded Mustangs packing with a 1-0 victory inside Bulldog Stadium on Wednesday night (Oct. 31).
Head coach Greg Henson has now led the program to at least the conference semifinals in each of his six seasons with the Bulldogs. Concordia will take a 12-2-5 overall record into the next round of postseason play. It effectively shook off a 3-2 loss to Briar Cliff in the regular-season finale.
“It’s just a matter of refocusing,” Henson said. “The playoffs are a second season. It’s brand new for everybody and the records don’t matter anymore. We were focused on playing 90 minutes at a time. We earned the opportunity to play at home in the first round and we wanted to take advantage of it and seize the moment.”
Cera did exactly that. This wasn’t going to end in penalty kicks like the most recent GPAC postseason contest played on the home turf. With 11:42 left on the clock, Cera stepped up and drilled a shot from nearly 40 yards out into the back of the net. It marked her fifth goal of the season and most significant one yet.
It’s really not hyperbolic to say that this was the goal of the year. Down their leading goal scorer, the Bulldogs have to scrap for a lot of what they get.
“It’s definitely up there,” Cera said when asked to compare to other goals scored in her career. “I’ve never shot that far. I had the opportunity so I just took it and it went in.”
After the opening few minutes, prime goal scoring chances were few and far between for Concordia. It missed out early on shots taken by Lauren Martin and Becky Freeman before the third minute had elapsed. Morningside (10-8-1) outshot the Bulldogs, 12-5. In goal, sophomore Lindsey Carley made four saves while earning the shutout.
With a couple of breaks, the Mustangs could have rolled out of town with a win. Concordia survived a scary sequence just after the 60’ mark when center back Cheyenne Smith’s slide tackle stifled a shot attempt. In the ensuing moments, Morningside’s Chloe Wetzbarger drilled the ball off the crossbar. Top Mustang goal scorers Merle Bublitz and Paytn Harmon both fired off three shots for the game.
There’s just something about playing in the postseason at Bulldog Stadium, where Concordia is officially 7-0-1 in conference tournament games under Henson. It doesn’t always have to be a thing of beauty.
Said Henson, “The focus for us was shutting down and keeping in check their two top goal scorers. They’re both dangerous goal scorers. We wanted to keep them in front of us and not let them in behind. We did a decent job of that. Sometimes you just have to have that survive and advance mentality.”
This contest is what the winning formula may have to look like with senior captain Maria Deeter sidelined, although she did suit up and make a brief appearance at the end of the first half.
This marked the fourth year in a row that Concordia and Morningside have matched up at some point in the conference tournament. They were combatants in back-to-back GPAC title games in 2015 and 2016. Now it’s on to face rival and second-seeded Midland (ranked 17th nationally) in the semifinals. The two sides played to a 1-1 draw in Fremont on Oct. 24.
“You expect the same type of game,” Henson said. “It’s going to be a dogfight. Two good teams are going to go at it. It’s going to be another physical, grind-it-out type of game.”
Saturday’s semifinal at Midland (13-1-3) will kick off at 2 p.m. CT. The winner will play in the GPAC championship game on Thursday, Nov. 8 versus either top-seeded Hastings or fifth-seeded Briar Cliff.
Bulldogs to return to Midland for GPAC semifinals
Nov. 1, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – For the second time in a week-and-a-half, the Concordia University women’s soccer team will be headed to Fremont, Neb. The third-seeded Bulldogs earned their spot in the GPAC tournament semifinals thanks to a 1-0 home quarterfinal win over sixth-seeded Morningside on Wednesday night. Now the focus turns to another battle with 17th-ranked Midland (13-1-3).
Concordia and Midland will kick things off in the semifinals at 2 p.m. CT from Heedum Field. The two sides also met in the 2016 conference semifinals. A live stream can be found via Midland’s Stretch Internet portal.
It certainly was no easy chore for sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad to get past Morningside in the quarterfinals. The contest was stuck in a 0-0 stalemate until sophomore Victoria Cera emerged with what may end up being the highlight reel goal of the season. From nearly 40 yards out, Cera drilled the ball over the top of the keeper and into the back of the net. The Bulldogs saw out the victory despite being outshot 12-5.
GPAC postseason success has become an annual thing for Henson’s programs. Since Henson took over the program prior to 2013, Concordia has made at least the conference semifinal round each season and enters this Saturday hoping to advance to the final game for the fifth year in a row. Since the start of 2014, the Bulldogs are officially 10-1-2 in GPAC tournament play with Concordia splitting two separate penalty kick shootouts against Hastings. The Bulldogs are aiming for their third GPAC tournament title in five seasons (2014, 2016).
Concordia could use another big strike on Saturday like the one it just got from Cera. Goals will be challenging to find against a Midland team that has allowed only two all season against conference opponents. To complicate matters, the Bulldogs have had to cope without senior captain Maria Deeter, although she did see brief action at the end of the first half against Morningside. Without her, Lauren Martin (nine goals, 16 assists) represents the team’s biggest threat.
One goal was also enough for the Warriors in their quarterfinal win over seventh-seeded Dordt. Star forward Nayeli Rodriguez found the back of the net in the 64th minute for what turned into the game winner. Head coach Greg Jarosik’s squad pairs stingy defensive tendencies with its goal scoring duo of Rodriguez and PT Perez (14 goals) up top. Midland is attempting to reach the GPAC final for the first time since 2009. In the regular season meeting in Fremont on Oct. 24, the Bulldogs and Warriors played to a 1-1 draw.
Whichever team comes out on top in Fremont will advance to play in the championship game on Thursday, Nov. 8 against either top-seeded Hastings or fifth-seeded Briar Cliff.
2018 GPAC Women’s Soccer Tournament
Wednesday, Oct. 31 – Quarterfinals
No. 1 Hastings 6, No. 8 College of Saint Mary 0
No. 5 Briar Cliff 0, No. 4 Jamestown 0 (Briar Cliff advances on PK’s, 4-2)
No. 3 Concordia 1, No. 6 Morningside 0
No. 2 Midland 1, No. 7 Dordt 0
Saturday, Nov. 3 – Semifinals
No. 3 Concordia (12-2-5) at No. 2 Midland (13-1-3), 2 p.m.
No. 5 Briar Cliff (9-8-2) at No. 1 Hastings (14-0-3), 6 p.m.
Thursday, Nov. 8 – Championship
Time TBA
Bulldogs GPAC championship bound for fifth-straight year
Nov. 3, 2018
FREMONT, Neb. – No matter the circumstances leading up to the conference tournament, it would be unwise to ever count out the Concordia University women’s soccer program. For the fifth year in a row, the Bulldogs will appear in the GPAC postseason championship. Concordia earned a chance to play for another title by getting past 17th-ranked Midland, 1-0, in the semifinal round in Fremont, Neb., on Saturday afternoon (Nov. 3).
The route to the final is a similar one taken by the 2016 Bulldog edition that also won 1-0 at Midland in the semifinals. Winner of three GPAC titles (two postseason, one regular season) under sixth-year head coach Greg Henson, the Bulldogs are now 13-2-5 overall this season.
“We’ve really built this program to be successful in November during playoff time,” Henson said. “We focus from the preseason all the way through on making sure we’re getting better and playing our best at the most important time of the year. Sometimes it takes a little bit longer than we would like. I feel like our team and our program is built for success in the postseason. We’ve proven that the last two games. They’ve been two difficult, grind-it-out type of games.”
This postseason, Concordia has gotten back to its tried and true winning formula of seizing the opportunity on the attack, even if it is just one, and then stifling the opponent. On the heels of a 1-0 quarterfinal victory over Morningside, the Bulldogs got the only goal they needed when Lauren Martin notched her 10th goal of the season in the 21st minute. The scoring chance was set up on a throw in by Morgan Raska, who helped Concordia take advantage of the narrow dimensions at Heedum Field.
The Bulldogs later survived a potential Warrior goal that was disallowed because of an offside call. The final shot taken by either team occurred in the 86th minute when Nayeli Rodriguez’s shot on frame was saved by Concordia goalkeeper Lindsey Carley. The reigning GPAC Defensive Player of the Year, Carley made five saves while picking up the clean sheet.
The second-seeded Warriors (13-2-3) have allowed only three goals all season against conference opponents – two of them by the Bulldogs. Even in a victorious effort, Concordia managed only two shots on goal. One of them delivered by Becky Freeman was saved by Midland keeper Rachel Thigpen.
On the flip side, the Bulldogs knew they had to be watchful of the attacking Warrior duo of PT Perez and Rodriguez, which has combined for 30 goals this season. Rodriguez took four shots with one coming on goal. Meanwhile, Perez was completely shut out of the shot column. As a team, the Warriors owned a 12-7 advantage in shots.
“I thought we did a nice job of playing solid collectively as a team,” Henson said. “They have some dangerous players who can take you 1v1. We did a good job of just standing them up, being patient and not letting them in behind. Overall from a defensive standpoint, we worked hard as a team and executed the game plan.”
Henson used three subs off the bench while mostly leaning upon a starting group that has gotten stellar play out of center back Tori Cera this postseason. Senior captain Maria Deeter did not see the field on Saturday.
Now comes the rematch of the 2017 GPAC championship game that saw Hastings celebrate a win in penalty kicks at Bulldog Stadium. This time around, the 11th-ranked Broncos (15-0-3) will host the title game. It will take place at Lloyd Wilson Field with a kickoff of 7 p.m. CT on Thursday (Nov. 8). Hastings’ route to the championship has included postseason wins over College of Saint Mary, 6-0, and Briar Cliff, 5-0.
Bulldogs aim for GPAC title Thursday at Hastings
Nov. 5, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – For an astounding fifth year in a row, the Concordia University women’s soccer team finds itself in the GPAC tournament championship game. For the third time during that run, Hastings will serve as the opponent in the title clash. This year’s matchup is set for a 7 p.m. CT kickoff on Thursday from Lloyd Wilson Field in Hastings.
Hastings will provide a live webcast via its Stretch Internet portal. Additionally, live in-game updates will be supplied via the @cunebulldogs Twitter account.
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad may not have ended the regular season the way it wanted to, but it’s attempting to make up for it with another extended postseason run. The Bulldogs seem to have rediscovered the winning formula used by the 2017 GPAC regular-season champion squad. A goal apiece from sophomore Tori Cera and senior Lauren Martin is all Concordia has needed to make its way through the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds. In goal, sophomore Lindsey Carley earned credit for shutouts in both victories with the help of a back line that limited Morningside and No. 17 Midland to a combined nine shots on goal.
The Bulldogs return eight players who started in the 2017 GPAC championship game. The battle tested group last ventured to Hastings in 2016 in what resulted in a 2-1 regular-season loss for Concordia. The Bulldogs recovered to win the GPAC tournament title game that season, just as they did in 2014. Since the beginning of 2014, Concordia is officially 11-1-2 in GPAC postseason action with the two ties being broken by penalty kicks.
This 2018 squad still has a shot to put itself in the discussion with the best teams in program history, all of which have been guided in recent seasons by Henson. This year’s team has outscored its opponents by a combined total of 65-19 over 20 games. The 65 goals scored rank as the third highest single-season total in school history. Individually, Concordia’s goals leaders are Maria Deeter (14), Brynn Suddeth (12) and Lauren Martin (10 goals, 16 assists). Mostly a spectator this postseason due to injury, Deeter saw just over two minutes of action in the quarterfinal win over Morningside.
Head coach Chris Clements’ squad enters the game ranked 11th nationally. The Broncos (15-0-3) have yet to lose this season. Within conference play, they tied both Concordia and Midland. No matter the result on Thursday, Hastings has locked up a bid to the national tournament via its GPAC regular-season title. The Broncos have outnumbered their foes, 54-11, this season with Rhiannon Castle de Ortega (14 goals) leading the charge on the attack. Hastings has been sharp in the postseason, posting wins by scores of 6-0 over College of Saint Mary and 5-0 over Briar Cliff.
The GPAC’s second automatic berth to the national championships will either go to Concordia or Midland. If the Bulldogs were to lose on Thursday, the Warriors would grab the bid due to their second-place finish in the regular season. The opening round of the national championships will be played Saturday, Nov. 17 at campus sites.
Concordia in the GPAC tournament championship game
2017 – Tied Hastings, 0-0 – 2 OT (Hastings won on PK’s, 3-2)
2016 – Def. Morningside, 3-1
2015 – Lost at Morningside, 2-1
2014 – Def. Hastings, 1-0
2018 GPAC Women’s Soccer Tournament
Wednesday, Oct. 31 – Quarterfinals
No. 1 Hastings 6, No. 8 College of Saint Mary 0
No. 5 Briar Cliff 0, No. 4 Jamestown 0 (Briar Cliff advances on PK’s, 4-2)
No. 3 Concordia 1, No. 6 Morningside 0
No. 2 Midland 1, No. 7 Dordt 0
Saturday, Nov. 3 – Semifinals
No. 3 Concordia 1, No. 2 Midland 0
No. 1 Hastings 5, No. 5 Briar Cliff 0
Thursday, Nov. 8 – Championship
No. 3 Concordia (13-2-5) at No. 1 Hastings (15-0-3), 7 p.m.
Cera tabbed GPAC Defensive Player of the Week
Nov. 6, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – Influential in Concordia’s run to a fifth-straight GPAC championship game, center back Tori Cera has been named the GPAC/Hauff Mid-America Sports Women’s Soccer Defensive Player of the Week, as announced on Tuesday (Nov. 6). Cera is the third Bulldog this season to collect a conference weekly honor, joining Maria Deeter (twice) and Brynn Suddeth.
A sophomore from Las Vegas, Nev., Cera produced the lone goal in last week’s GPAC quarterfinal win over Morningside. It was one for the highlight reel. From nearly 40 yards out, Cera connected on a shot that sailed over the keeper’s head and into the back of the net. In addition to that big strike, Cera also helped stifle the opposing attacks of Morningside and No. 17 Midland from her center back position. Concordia held those two foes to a combined nine shots on goal in a pair of 1-0 GPAC postseason victories.
Cera is dangerous on set pieces and has contributed heavily offensively even in her role on the back line. Over 41 career collegiate games, she has produced 10 goals and eight assists. Cera and the Bulldogs (13-2-5) will shoot for a GPAC tournament championship on Thursday when they play at 11th-ranked Hastings (15-0-3) in the title game. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. CT from Lloyd Wilson Field.
GPAC players of the week in 2018
Nov. 6 – Tori Cera
Oct. 16 – Maria Deeter
Oct. 9 – Brynn Suddeth
Oct. 2 – Maria Deeter
Carley, Deeter represent women's soccer on All-District teams
Nov. 8, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – Two key figures for another GPAC championship contending women’s soccer program, sophomore Lindsey Carley and senior Maria Deeter were recognized on Thursday (Nov. 8) by College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Both Carley and Deeter were named to the 2018 Google Cloud Academic All-District® and Women's Soccer Team, as selected by CoSIDA. More specifically, Carley and Deeter landed on the All-District 3 team of the NAIA.
The Google Cloud CoSIDA Academic All-District® Women’s Soccer Teams have been released to recognize the nation’s top student-athletes for their combined performances athletically and in the classroom. For more information about the Academic All-District® and Academic All-America® Teams program, please visit http://cosida.com.
Carley, named the 2017 GPAC Defensive Player of the Year, has turned in another fine season in 2018. The native of Urbandale, Iowa, has started 19 games in goal while playing more than 1,775 minutes. She has recorded six shutouts and sports a goals against average of 0.96 and a save percentage of .787. In her career, Carley has seen action in 36 games and has been credited with 13 shutouts. She was also tabbed first team All-GPAC last season.
Deeter, a two-time first team All-GPAC and a one-time second team All-GPAC selection, is Concordia’s leader with 14 goals scored (four game winners) this season. She has added six assists while helping lead the Bulldogs back to the GPAC tournament championship game for the fifth year in a row. Deeter has been named a GPAC Offensive Player of the Week twice this season and was recently tabbed the Bulldog Athletic Association Female Athlete of the Month for October. The Seward native has produced 37 goals and 27 assists over 80 career games.
First-team Academic All-District® honorees advance to the Google Cloud Academic All-America® ballot. First-, second- and third-team (if necessary) Academic All-America® honorees will be announced in early December.
Women’s Soccer Academic All-District Honorees
Lindsey Carley (2018)
Maria Deeter (2018)
Emily Fleming (2012)
*Rachel Mussel (2012, 2013, 2014)
Melissa Stine (2014)
*Academic All-American
Season ends in GPAC title heartbreak for hard-fighting Dawgs
Nov. 8, 2018
HASTINGS, Neb. – For the second season in a row, the Concordia University women’s soccer team suffered a heartbreaking fate in the GPAC postseason championship game. With 4:37 left in double overtime, Courtney Doeschot put away the golden goal for a 1-0 Hastings victory on an icy cool Thursday night (Nov. 8) at Lloyd Wilson Field. The two sides played with a fresh snow pushed to the edges of the stadium turf.
The loss prevented sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s squad from earning a third national tournament berth in five seasons. The Bulldogs (13-3-5) have played in each of the past five conference tournament title games.
“I thought we played like champions, which is what we expect out of our players, day-in and day-out,” Henson said. “Whether, it’s in practice, regular season, conference tournament or whatever the case is, you go out and give your all for more than 100 minutes – and that’s what you saw tonight. It’s unfortunate that we conceded that goal in double overtime. I thought we played really well in segments. Hastings is a good program, a good team and a great rival for us.”
Concordia did its best to follow the formula that worked in 1-0 GPAC postseason triumphs over Morningside in the quarterfinals and No. 17 Midland in the semifinals. There just wasn’t a whole lot going on the attack for the Bulldogs, who mustered a grand total of five shots in more than 105 minutes of action on Thursday. The closest Concordia came to cracking the scoreboard was a 49th minute shot by Michaela Twito that struck the crossbar and went straight down in an instance when the ball bounced the Bronco way.
That ball spent a lot of time away from the Bulldog attacking third, but a back line anchored by sophomore Tori Cera and freshman Cheyenne Smith was up to the task. Hastings (16-0-3) led the shot count 19-5, though many of its shots were under pressure, outside the box and off frame. Concordia keeper Lindsey Carley made five saves.
With the season on the line, senior captain Maria Deeter, wearing a knee brace, stepped back into the starting lineup in the midfield after having been sidelined for essentially every contest since suffering an injury at Jamestown on Oct. 20. She went out like the champion she’s been for four seasons. Afterwards, she tweeted, “Once a Bulldog, always a Bulldog. Proud to have put the jersey on the past 4 years.”
Her meaning to the program will never be lost on her head coach. Said Henson, “What a warrior that she is with the condition she is. She gave us everything she had tonight. I thought she put us in opportunities to steal a win on some of those set pieces. We’ve been talking about (starting her) since she got the green light to come back. To cap off your college career fighting through that injury says a lot about who she is and how much success she’s going to have in the future.”
Concordia can take some solace in making the series with Hastings a competitive rivalry that did not exist before the past five years. It may forever be urban legend as to whether someone on the Bulldog side of the rivalry decked out the on-campus Bronco statue with a “tame the Broncos” sign or whether it was staged by Hastings loyalists themselves. Whatever the case, both programs love to beat each other.
The Bulldogs now say emotional goodbyes to a senior class headed by Deeter but also featuring Martin twins Ashley and Lauren, two hugely impactful players. Another senior in Taylor Roby forced her way into the starting lineup as a junior and never let go. The memories don’t have to let go either.
Said Henson, “It’s a great senior class that we’re going to dearly miss. They brought a lot to this program. They set a new level and a new bar for what’s considered a good season at Concordia.”
Without those seniors, the identity likely won’t change for a program built on hard work and tenacity. Sometimes there are bumps and bruises along the way, but the women’s soccer program under Henson has a way of winning when others have counted it out.
Deeter, Cera highlight All-GPAC women's soccer selections
Nov. 12, 2018
All-GPAC
First Team
Tori Cera
Maria Deeter
Second Team
Lindsey Carley
Ashley Martin
Lauren Martin
Brynn Suddeth
Honorable Mention
Cheyenne Smith
Michaela Twito
SEWARD, Neb. – Six representatives from the Concordia University women’s soccer program landed on either the first or second teams of the all-conference honor roll released on Monday (Nov. 12) by the GPAC. Senior Maria Deeter and sophomore Tori Cera both picked up first team accolades. This marks the third year in a row that Deeter has found her way on the first team.
Sixth-year head coach Greg Henson’s program also raked in four second team All-GPAC awards, which went to sophomore Lindsey Carley, seniors Ashley Martin and Lauren Martin and junior Brynn Suddeth. Freshman Cheyenne Smith and sophomore Michaela Twito garnered honorable mention.
It's no surprise that Deeter is again a first team selection. She was also a candidate for the GPAC Offensive Player of the Year award. She turned in a career high 14 goals (four game winners) to go along with six assists over 18 games (17 starts). The Seward native did all that damage despite missing essentially four games due to a late season injury. The accolades are mounting for Deeter, who was also a second team All-GPAC choice as a freshman and has been tabbed to the All-Plains Region team three times by the United Soccer Coaches. Over 81 career games, Deeter produced 37 goals and 27 assists while leading the program to a GPAC tournament title in 2016 and a GPAC regular-season championship in 2017.
Cera moved up to the first team after being named honorable mention as a freshman in 2017. In the heat of the season, Cera moved to center back this fall and immediately starred in the role. She helped pave the way to a GPAC tournament title game appearance by aiding in postseason shutout wins over Morningside and No. 17 Midland. She also continued to contribute offensively, putting up five goals and three assists while starting all 21 games. The Las Vegas, Nev., native has notched 10 goals and eight assists in 42 games as a Bulldog. Cera picked up the GPAC Defensive Player of the Week award on Nov. 6.
Carley, the 2017 GPAC Defensive Player of the Year, has now earned all-conference accolades in each of her two seasons as Concordia’s starting keeper. The Urbandale, Iowa, native started 20 games this season and played more than 1,880 minutes. She made 75 saves, recorded six shutouts and posted a save percentage of .789 and a goals against average of 0.957. In her career, Carley has a record of 24-3-9 and has notched 13 shutouts over 37 games.
Ashley Martin, who hails from Longmont, Colo., has now earned second team all-conference honors for the third time in her career. A key figure in each of her four seasons as a Bulldog, Martin starred for a back line that helped her team allow less than a goal per game in 2018. She registered three assists this season. In her career, Martin produced three goals and eight assists over 73 games.
The twin sister of Ashley, Lauren Martin has been placed on the GPAC’s second team for the second year in a row. Also an NAIA Scholar-Athlete, Martin was one of the nation’s assists leaders all fall. She topped the GPAC with her 16 assists. She also added 10 goals as part of a career year. A three-year member of the team who transferred from St. Cloud State University (Minn.), Martin amassed 18 goals and 24 assists in her 63 career games at Concordia.
A transfer from Allen Community College, Suddeth (“Suds”) provided a boost on the attack in her first season with the Bulldogs. She contributed 12 goals (one game winner) and four assists. The native of Wichita, Kan., produced a hat trick on three separate occasions and was named the GPAC Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 9.
Originally a goalkeeper in preseason camp, Smith transitioned to center back and made a fluid transition to the collegiate game. She scored both of her two goals this season in the win over McPherson College (Kan.) and also added an assist while serving as standout in the back. In the midfield, Twito again offered solid performances while starting 16 games. The Ames, Iowa, native has twice been named a GPAC honorable mention award winner. She contributed two goals this season.
Women's soccer upholds stature as one of league's best in 2018
Nov. 20, 2018
Over a five-year period, the Concordia University women’s soccer program has put together a body of work that stands out as arguably the best in the GPAC. While the 2018 Bulldogs came up short of hoisting any championship hardware, they carried themselves like champions. They went into every game this season with the belief that they would win, no matter if the opposition boasted a national ranking next to its name.
That type of swagger was fostered by the conference championship runs made by head coach Greg Henson’s 2014, 2016 and 2017 teams. The 2018 team entered the final game of the regular season still with a shot at a title and then reached the postseason championship game. Unfortunately, this fall did not come with the Fairytale ending.
“Our goals every year, year-in and year-out, are to win conference championships and obviously we fell short of that this year,” Henson said. “We were right there going into the last game of the year. To find our way to the conference championship game for a fifth year in a row is just a testament to our players and our program. It really has cemented itself as one of the top programs in the league. It gets tougher every season. I’m proud of the effort of our team from top to bottom this year.”
To put 2018 into perspective, it would no doubt have been the top season in program history if you took into account every campaign prior to 2014. The Bulldogs went 13-3-5 overall, topped Morningside in the GPAC tournament quarterfinals and then proved once again that they have Midland’s number. Concordia got past the then 17th-ranked Warriors, 1-0, in the GPAC semifinals.
If nothing else, 2018 deserves to be remembered in many ways as a fitting swan song for senior captain Maria Deeter. When an injury forced one of the team’s top returning goal scorers (Kaitlyn Radebaugh) to miss essentially the entire season, Deeter helped pick up the slack. She knocked in a career high 14 goals this past fall with her signature goal being a game winner in overtime at Morningside. For four seasons, Deeter consistently provided high level play and a championship mentality.
“She’s been a tremendous player and leader for us for four years,” Henson said. “She made a huge impact right from the beginning of her career. She’s been a leader on and off the field and extension of the coaching staff. It’s going to be difficult to replace a player like that.”
Deeter certainly went out fighting. Perhaps the stretch run of the season would have turned out differently had the Seward native not suffered an injury on Oct. 20. It forced Deeter to miss the last two games of the regular season and the nearly all of the first two in the conference tournament. She then gutted it out and played more than 100 minutes of the heartbreaking double overtime defeat at Hastings in the GPAC championship game.
Based on the national rankings, the 11th-ranked Broncos would have seemed like a significant favorite to beat Concordia. However, the two rivals both know better than to expect anything to come easy in head-to-head matchups. The Bulldogs are officially 3-3-3 against the Broncos since the start of the 2014 season. There is no better rivalry currently in GPAC women’s soccer.
“I think one of the best rivalries in the entire conference might be between two women’s soccer programs,” Henson said. “Us and Hastings has really become a great rivalry. Going into that match both teams know it’s going to be a tough game for 90 minutes or even more. They have been the perennial power in our conference for quite some time and to create a rivalry with them is exciting.”
The 2018 team certainly showed an ability to overcome adversity, not only in regards to injuries but also at times when doubt could have crept in. A 3-2 home loss to Briar Cliff in the regular-season finale (snapped a 26-game GPAC regular-season unbeaten streak) did not sit well. Outsiders probably wondered if the loss of Deeter had caught up to them.
But the Bulldogs proved they were more than just a single player. Exceptional seasons were also turned in by all-conference performers in sophomore Tori Cera (first team), seniors Ashley Martin (second team) and Lauren Martin (second team) and sophomore Lindsey Carley. Lauren Martin broke the program record for assists in a single season (16) while Cera selflessly moved from attacking midfielder to center back.
“Tori Cera had a great season for us and we kind of expected that going in,” Henson said. “She’s a quality player and somebody I think will continue to have a great career moving forward. She’s someone who can play anywhere on the field. As for Lauren, she came on really strong last year. She transferred in as a sophomore and took a little time to adapt to her surroundings. It was the offseason between her sophomore and junior year she really made a big jump in her mentality.”
The offseason push will ramp back up in January for a team that will look a bit different without Deeter and a senior class that included another starter in Taylor Roby. That should mean a bigger spotlight for the likes of Carley, Cera, freshman center back Cheyenne Smith, junior forward Brynn Suddeth and sophomore midfielder Michaela Twito. Suddeth provided an offensive lift with hat tricks on three separate occasions.
Both results at Midland that came with Deeter sidelined should be a confidence boost heading into 2019. Concordia drew at Midland in the regular season before winning in Fremont in the postseason (the Warriors went on to advance to the round of 16 at the national tournament). The young players also got a taste of what a GPAC championship game (and defeat) feels like.
Said Henson of moving forward, “It’s going to be a different team and there’s going to be a different personality to this group. We have a lot of young players who are very important to our future. We have to develop the talent we have and get some players healthy. We look forward to getting back out there to prepare for the 2019 season. I think we have a great group coming back and a good recruiting class coming in.”
Women's soccer honored by United Soccer Coaches
Nov. 28, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – The Concordia University women’s soccer program has been named a recipient of the United Soccer Coaches College Women’s Team Academic Award, as announced on Oct. 4. The honor was earned based upon performance in the classroom during the 2017-18 academic year. Head coach Greg Henson’s team also earned NAIA Scholar-Team status last season after posting a collective GPA of 3.49. The program was represented in 2017-18 by nine NAIA Scholar-Athletes.
United Soccer Coaches (formerly the NSCAA) announced the Team Academic Award Winners at the high school and college levels to recognize exemplary performance in the classroom during the 2017-18 academic year. A total of 824 collegiate teams (311 men, 513 women) earned the Team Academic Award, including 215 schools who had both their men's and women's programs among the recipients.
United Soccer Coaches annually celebrates the academic achievements of high school and college soccer teams whose student-athletes collectively demonstrate a commitment to excellence in their studies over the course of a full school year. College Team Academic Award recipients are active members of the United Soccer Coaches College Services Program with a composite grade point of average of 3.0 or better on a 4.0 scale for all players on the roster.
Concordia has become a regular winner of the United Soccer Coaches award. In addition, Henson’s program led the GPAC in NAIA Scholar-Athletes each season from 2013 through 2015. The 2013 Bulldogs topped the entire nation in Scholar-Athletes and its 3.75 GPAC was best among collegiate women’s soccer programs at all levels of competition. The 2017-18 Bulldogs posted the third best GPA in the NAIA among women’s soccer squads.
Eight Bulldogs represent women's soccer with Scholar-Athlete honors
Nov. 30, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – A leader in the classroom and championship program on the field, the Concordia University women’s soccer team placed eight of its members on the list of 2018 Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes, announced on Friday (Nov. 30) by the NAIA. Repeat Scholar-Athletes include seniors Kaylee Brown, Maria Deeter, Ashley Martin, Lauren Martin, Taylor Roby and Kaitlyn Stradtmann. Deeter and Lindsey Carley also recently garnered CoSIDA Academic All-District recognition.
Head coach Greg Henson’s program has produced at least seven Scholar-Athletes in each of his six seasons with the Bulldogs. The 2013 squad finished with an NAIA best 11 Scholar-Athletes and led all collegiate women’s soccer programs in combined grade-point average. This year’s total of eight honorees ranks second among GPAC schools. The 2017-18 squad continued the tradition of Bulldog women’s soccer teams earning both NAIA Scholar-Team and United Soccer Coaches Team Academic Award accolades.
In order to be nominated by an institution’s head coach or sports information director, a student-athlete must maintain a minimum grade point average of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale and must have achieved a junior academic status. A total of 732 women’s soccer student-athletes across the nation were named 2018 Scholar-Athletes by the NAIA.
Concordia University ranks as the NAIA’s all-time leader in number of Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes with 1,392 and counting. The Bulldogs have been a regular national leader for both scholar-athletes and scholar-teams and are coming off a 2017-18 academic year that resulted in 77 more scholar-athletes and 20 scholar-teams (third most in the nation). Also in 2017-18, seven Bulldog student-athletes garnered both CoSIDA Academic All-District and CoSIDA Academic All-America accolades.
2018 Women’s Soccer Scholar-Athletes
Kaylee Brown, Sr. | Fort Collins, Colo. | Criminal Justice and Communication Studies
Lindsey Carley, So. (Jr. academically) | Urbandale, Iowa | Accounting and Business Administration
Maria Deeter, Sr. | Seward, Neb. | Biology
Ashley Martin, Sr. | Longmont, Colo. | Elementary/Secondary Education
Lauren Martin, Sr. | Longmont, Colo. | Criminal Justice and Communication Studies
Taylor Roby, Sr. | Omaha, Neb. | Elementary Education
Michaela Stevens, Sr. | Mesa, Ariz. | Exercise Science
Kaitlyn Stradtmann, Sr. | Belvidere, Ill. | Spanish, English and Secondary Education
Deeter tabbed CoSIDA Academic All-American
Dec. 3, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – Named to the Academic All-District Team by College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) on Nov. 8, senior Maria Deeter picked up an even more prestigious honor on Monday (Dec. 3). CoSIDA announced Deeter as a 2018 Google Cloud Academic All-America® Women's Soccer First Team selection. Deeter is the Concordia women’s soccer program’s second all-time CoSIDA Academic All-American, joining Rachel Mussell (2014).
The Google Cloud CoSIDA Academic All-America® Women’s Soccer Teams have been released to recognize the nation’s top student-athletes for their combined performances athletically and in the classroom. For more information about the Academic All-District® and Academic All-America® Teams program, please visit http://cosida.com.
Deeter, a three-time first team All-GPAC and a one-time second team All-GPAC selection, topped the Bulldogs with 14 goals scored (four game winners) this past season. She added six assists while helping lead the Bulldogs back to the GPAC tournament championship game for the fifth year in a row. Deeter was named a GPAC Offensive Player of the Week twice this season and was recently tabbed the Bulldog Athletic Association Female Athlete of the Month for October. The Seward native produced 37 goals and 27 assists over 81 career games. The Lincoln Lutheran High School graduate is majoring in biology at Concordia.
Deeter career honor roll
- Three-time first team All-GPAC (2016, 2017, 2018) and 2015 second team All-GPAC
- Three-time United Soccer Coaches All-Plains Region (2018 all-region not yet announced)
- 2018 CoSIDA Academic All-America/All-District
- Four-time team MVP
- Two-time NAIA Scholar-Athlete
- Three-time Omaha World-Herald All-Nebraska (2018 teams not yet announced)
- Four-time GPAC Offensive Player of the Week
Women’s Soccer Academic All-District Honorees
Lindsey Carley (2018)
*Maria Deeter (2018)
Emily Fleming (2012)
*Rachel Mussel (2012, 2013, 2014)
Melissa Stine (2014)
*Academic All-American
Deeter lands on honorable mention All-America list
Dec. 4, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – For the second day in a row, Maria Deeter has been recognized with a national award. On Tuesday (Dec. 4), the NAIA announced the senior as an honorable mention All-America selection. Deeter joins Concordia Athletic Hall of Famer Jennifer Davis (2003) as the second player in Bulldog women’s soccer history to be recognized with some form of All-America recognition.
In terms of accolades, Deeter may be the most decorated performer, on the field and in the classroom, who has ever played soccer for the Bulldogs. In addition to honorable mention All-America status, her 2018 honors include first team All-GPAC, Team MVP, CoSIDA Academic All-District and All-America accolades, the NAIA Scholar-Athlete award and two GPAC Offensive Player of the Week mentions. Additional recognition could come soon from the United Soccer Coaches.
A three-time first team All-GPAC and a one-time second team All-GPAC selection, Deeter topped the Bulldogs with 14 goals scored (four game winners) this past season. She added six assists while helping lead Concordia back to the GPAC tournament championship game for the fifth year in a row. The Seward native produced 37 goals and 27 assists over 81 career games. She was a member of GPAC championship teams in 2016 and 2017. A Lincoln Lutheran High School graduate, Deeter is majoring in biology at Concordia.
Deeter career honor roll
- 2018 NAIA Honorable Mention All-America
- Three-time first team All-GPAC (2016, 2017, 2018) and 2015 second team All-GPAC
- Three-time United Soccer Coaches All-Plains Region (2018 all-region not yet announced)
- 2018 CoSIDA Academic All-America/All-District
- 2017 United Soccer Coaches Academic All-America
- Four-time team MVP
- Two-time NAIA Scholar-Athlete
- Three-time Omaha World-Herald All-Nebraska (2018 teams not yet announced)
- Four-time GPAC Offensive Player of the Week
Three Bulldogs garner All-Plains Region Team honors
Dec. 5, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – The United Soccer Coaches rewarded the Concordia University women’s soccer program with two first-team selections and one second-team choice on the NAIA All-Plains Region Team announced this week. A first team honoree, senior Maria Deeter made her fourth-straight appearance on the all-region squad. She was joined by teammates in sophomore defender Tori Cera (first team) and senior midfielder Lauren Martin (second team) with all-region honors.
There have been a steady stream of honors pouring in this week for Deeter, who was tabbed a CoSIDA Academic First Team All-American on Monday and an NAIA honorable mention All-American on Tuesday. This past season, Deeter turned in a career high 14 goals (four game winners) to go along with six assists over 18 games (17 starts). The Seward native did all that damage despite missing essentially four games due to a late season injury. Over 81 career games, Deeter produced 37 goals and 27 assists while leading the program to a GPAC tournament title in 2016 and a GPAC regular-season championship in 2017. She is a three-time first time all-conference selection.
Cera moved up to the first team of the 2018 GPAC honor roll after being named honorable mention as a freshman in 2017. In the heat of the season, Cera moved to center back this fall and immediately starred in the role. She helped pave the way to a GPAC tournament title game appearance by aiding in postseason shutout wins over Morningside and No. 17 Midland. She also continued to contribute offensively, putting up five goals and three assists while starting all 21 games. The Las Vegas, Nev., native has notched 10 goals and eight assists in 42 games as a Bulldog. Cera picked up the GPAC Defensive Player of the Week award on Nov. 6.
Martin earned back-to-back second team All-GPAC awards in her final two seasons as a Bulldog. Also an NAIA Scholar-Athlete, Martin was one of the nation’s assists leaders all fall. She topped the GPAC with her school record 16 assists. She also added 10 goals as part of a career year. A three-year member of the team who transferred from St. Cloud State University (Minn.), Martin amassed 18 goals and 24 assists in her 63 career games at Concordia.
Head coach Greg Henson’s 2018 squad made it five-straight GPAC championship game appearances for the program. The Bulldogs concluded the year with a 13-3-5 overall mark.
Bulldogs end season receiving votes for third-straight year
Dec. 6, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – For the third-straight year, and for the fourth time in five seasons, the Concordia University women’s soccer program has received votes in the NAIA coaches’ postseason poll. The Bulldogs collected six points in the final poll release of the 2018 campaign, unveiled on Wednesday (Dec. 5). Out of 12 poll announcements in 2018, head coach Greg Henson’s squad were listed among “others receiving votes” in 10 of them.
Concordia hovered near the top 25 rankings with 29 points in the poll just prior to the 1-0 double overtime loss at Hastings (No. 11 in the postseason poll) on Nov. 8. That near miss was enough for the Bulldogs to lose traction in the polls despite having also defeated Midland (No. 9 in the postseason poll) in the GPAC semifinals. Concordia finished 13-3-5 overall and placed third in the conference regular-season standings. It was also ranked third in the official GPAC ratings.
Throughout 2018, the Bulldogs again showed they could compete with top 25 competition. Concordia went a combined 1-1-3 against the likes of No. 9 Midland, No. 11 Hastings and No. 21 Kansas Wesleyan University. Maria Deeter and company also earned a draw with MidAmerica Nazarene University (Kan.), another squad that received votes nationally.
The ’18 Concordia team appeared to be one quality victory away from cracking the top 25. Under Henson’s direction, the Bulldogs have appeared in the national top 25 seven times with a peak position of 16th in September 2015. The 2014 GPAC tournament championship squad became the first in program history to break into the top 25.
Program all-time national rankings
*Have ended a season receiving votes in 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018
2017
Nov. 7 – 21st
Oct. 31 – 22nd
2015
Oct. 6 – 23rd
Sept. 29 – 18th
Sept. 22 – 16th
Aug. 18 – 21st
2014
Nov. 16 – 24th
Bulldogs land four on scholar all-region, two on All-America teams
Dec. 10, 2018
SEWARD, Neb. – A quartet of Bulldogs have pulled in accolades from the United Soccer Coaches. The organization tabbed Lindsey Carley, Maria Deeter, Ashley Martin and Lauren Martin as NAIA Scholar All-West Region Team selections. Deeter and Lauren Martin landed on the first team while Carley and Ashley Martin were second team choices. Additionally, Deeter and Lauren Martin were named to the NAIA Scholar All-America Team by United Soccer Coaches.
A biology major, Deeter has collected Scholar All-America honors for the second year in a row. The postseason awards have streamed in for the Seward native, who was voted the Team MVP all four seasons as a Bulldog. Last week she was named both a CoSIDA First Team Academic All-American and an NAIA honorable mention All-American. This past season, Deeter turned in a career high 14 goals (four game winners) to go along with six assists over 18 games (17 starts). The Lincoln Lutheran High School product did all that damage despite missing essentially four games due to a late season injury. Over 81 career games, Deeter produced 37 goals and 27 assists while leading the program to a GPAC tournament title in 2016 and a GPAC regular-season championship in 2017. She is a three-time first time all-conference selection.
Lauren Martin earned back-to-back second team All-GPAC awards in her final two seasons as a Bulldog. Also an NAIA Scholar-Athlete and an All-Plains Region selection, Martin was one of the nation’s assists leaders all fall. She topped the GPAC with her school record 16 assists. She also added 10 goals as part of a career year. A three-year member of the team who transferred from St. Cloud State University (Minn.), Martin amassed 18 goals and 24 assists in her 63 career games at Concordia.
Carley, the 2017 GPAC Defensive Player of the Year, has earned all-conference accolades in each of her two seasons as Concordia’s starting keeper. She was also a CoSIDA Academic All-District and All-Plains Region choice and an NAIA Scholar-Athlete. The Urbandale, Iowa, native started 20 games this season and played more than 1,880 minutes. She made 75 saves, recorded six shutouts and posted a save percentage of .789 and a goals against average of 0.957. In her career, Carley has a record of 24-3-9 and has notched 13 shutouts over 37 games.
Ashley Martin, who hails from Longmont, Colo., earned second team all-conference honors three times in her career. She was also an NAIA Scholar-Athlete. A key figure in each of her four seasons as a Bulldog, Martin starred for a back line that helped her team allow less than a goal per game in 2018. She registered three assists this season. In her career, Martin produced three goals and eight assists over 73 games.
The 2018 Bulldogs finished 13-3-5 overall and advanced to the GPAC tournament championship game (fifth conference title game appearance in a row for the program).
Nine Bulldogs named to OWH All-Nebraska women's soccer team
Dec. 23, 2018
Omaha World-Herald news article
SEWARD, Neb. – After making another strong push for a GPAC championship, the Concordia University women’s soccer program pulled in additional postseason honors, as announced by the Omaha World-Herald on Saturday (Dec. 22). Five Bulldogs landed themselves on the 17-member All-Nebraska state college women’s soccer team: seniors Maria Deeter and Lauren Martin, junior Brynn Suddeth and sophomores Lindsey Carley and Tori Cera.
Four others from head coach Greg Henson’s 2018 squad were tabbed honorable mention All-Nebraska: senior Ashley Martin, sophomore Michaela Twito and freshmen Mikeila Martinez and Cheyenne Smith.
It’s safe to say that no other player in program history has collected such a wealth of awards in one season. Deeter’s 2018 honors include recognition as an NAIA honorable mention All-American, CoSIDA Academic All-District and All-America selection, first team All-GPAC, team MVP and United Soccer Coaches All-Plains Region and Scholar All-American. This past season, Deeter turned in a career high 14 goals (four game winners) to go along with six assists over 18 games (17 starts). The Lincoln Lutheran High School product did all that damage despite missing essentially four games due to a late season injury. Over 81 career games, Deeter produced 37 goals and 27 assists while leading the program to a GPAC tournament title in 2016 and a GPAC regular-season championship in 2017.
Lauren Martin earned back-to-back second team All-GPAC awards in her final two seasons as a Bulldog. Also an NAIA Scholar-Athlete and an All-Plains Region selection, Martin was one of the nation’s assists leaders all fall. She topped the GPAC with her school record 16 assists. She also added 10 goals as part of a career year. A three-year member of the team who transferred from St. Cloud State University (Minn.), Martin amassed 18 goals and 24 assists in her 63 career games at Concordia.
Carley, the 2017 GPAC Defensive Player of the Year, has earned all-conference accolades in each of her two seasons as Concordia’s starting keeper. She was also a CoSIDA Academic All-District and All-Plains Region choice and an NAIA Scholar-Athlete. The Urbandale, Iowa, native started 20 games this season and played more than 1,880 minutes. She made 75 saves, recorded six shutouts and posted a save percentage of .789 and a goals against average of 0.957. In her career, Carley has a record of 24-3-9 and has notched 13 shutouts over 37 games.
Cera moved up to the first team of the 2018 GPAC honor roll after being named honorable mention as a freshman in 2017. In the heat of the season, Cera moved to center back this fall and immediately starred in the role. She helped pave the way to a GPAC tournament title game appearance by aiding in postseason shutout wins over Morningside and No. 17 Midland. She also continued to contribute offensively, putting up five goals and three assists while starting all 21 games. The Las Vegas, Nev., native has notched 10 goals and eight assists in 42 games as a Bulldog. Cera picked up the GPAC Defensive Player of the Week award on Nov. 6.
A transfer from Allen Community College, Suddeth (“Suds”) provided a boost on the attack in her first season with the Bulldogs. She contributed 12 goals (one game winner) and four assists. The native of Wichita, Kan., produced a hat trick on three separate occasions and was named the GPAC Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 9.
Ashely Martin (second team), Smith (honorable mention) and Twito (honorable mention) were also All-GPAC performers. A native of Fairfield, Calif., Martinez started 17 of 20 games in her rookie season on the collegiate scene.
All-Nebraska state college women’s soccer team
F: Rhiannon Castle de Ortega, Sr., Hastings
F: Nayeli Rodriguez, Jr., Midland
F: Berkley Sharp, So., Hastings
F: Christina Stasi, Sr., Wayne State
F: Brynn Suddeth, Jr., Concordia
M: Maria Deeter, Sr., Concordia
M: Reyvin Hernandez, Sr., Bellevue
M: Lauren Martin, Sr., Concordia
M: PT Perez, Jr., Midland
M: Jenny Sells, Sr., Hastings
D: Tori Cera, So., Concordia
D: Marley Farrell, Jr., Midland
D: Alaina Melanson, Jr., Midland
D: Laurie Potvin, So., Hastings
D: Molly Willis, Jr., UNK
G: Lindsey Carley, So., Concordia
* G: Rachel Thigpen, So., Midland
*Honorary captain
Honorable mention: Bellevue: Mai Dar, Saskia Pepel. Concordia: Ashley Martin, Mikeila Martinez, Cheyenne Smith, Michaela Twito. Doane: Kiarra Colson, Bailey Sloup. Hastings: Kaylie Agostine, Josie Knapp, Janine Lahey, Sally Stoltenberg. Midland: Hannah Stewart, Harlee Zancanelli. Nebraska Wesleyan: Laurel Heskett, Shannon Jerram, Kaitlyn Sullivan. St. Mary: Madaline Angel, Kennedy Cascio, Elli McMeekin. UNK: Ciera Clark, Allie Prososki, Tori Weber. Wayne State: Sophiea Ketchmark, Megan Phillips, Natalie Rech, Alexis Strothers. York: Breanna Bembenek, Stephanie Dye, Amber Jimenez, Justine Medina, Carmen Zavala.