Concordia Wrestling made a statement in the way that it exceeded expectations in 2022-23. In Chase Clasen's first season as head coach, the Bulldogs shrugged off their preseason GPAC placement of sixth and equaled a school record for dual wins in a season.
Faced with difficult draws, the Bulldogs gave it their best shot at the 2023 NAIA Wrestling National Championships. All four Concordia wrestlers were eliminated. As Coach Clasen stated, the results were disappointing, but the effort was not.
Due to their maintaining a cumulative grade-point average above 3.5, Henry Gaertner, Anthony Perez and Jose Sanchez have been recognized as 2022-23 NAIA Wrestling Scholar Athletes.
Four Bulldogs will represent Concordia Wrestling at the 2023 NAIA Wrestling National Championships. Creighton Baughman, Issiah Burks, Logan Davidson and Tavoris Smith will vie for spots on the podium in Park City, Kansas.
The trials, the tribulations and six years of grinding made Issiah Burks' stunningly dominant GPAC championship run that much sweeter. The Hemet, Calif., native has seized his one last chance to reach the national championships.
The Concordia Wrestling program's four national qualifiers have also been named 2023 All-GPAC award winners. All-conference accolades went to Creighton Baughman, Issiah Burks, Logan Davidson and Tavoris Smith.
Via automatic bids earned at the GPAC Championships, four Concordia wrestlers were officially announced as 2023 NAIA national qualifiers. The Bulldogs will send Creighton Baughman, Issiah Burks, Logan Davidson and Tavoris Smith to Wichita.
Issiah Burks upset his way to a GPAC title at 165 pounds while leading the Bulldogs to a third-place finish at the 2023 conference championships. Four Concordia wrestlers clinched berths to the national tournament.
Five Bulldogs have advanced to the semifinals of the 2023 GPAC Wrestling Championships and will continue their bids for titles on Saturday. After day one of the tournament, Concordia resides in third place with 42 team points.
A total of 27 automatic bids to the national tournament will be on the line this weekend (Feb. 17-18) when the 2023 GPAC Wrestling Championships are held at Doane. The Bulldogs hope to build upon their third-place GPAC duals finish.
Rarely, if ever, has success been set on a tee for Jerry Stepps III to smash out of the ballpark. Rather, it’s been quite the opposite in some cases. It never stopped Jerry from dreaming big or making it big as a senior.
Ceron Francisco will go down as an all-time great Bulldog for the way he has handled himself on and off the mat. A national runner up back in March, Ceron is headed to Charlottesville to join the Cavalier Wrestling Club.
Kirk Kaliszewski and two other national qualifiers return for a wrestling program looking to continue a run of GPAC dominance and national prominence. The Bulldogs will have a different look with 18 newcomers.
In the first season of head coach Andrew Nicola's tenure, the Concordia wrestling program maintained its perch atop the conference and the senior class went out in style.
Ceron Francisco has gone from a fascination – largely because of his stature and physical appearance separated him – to an obvious fan favorite and to one of the most respected student-athletes at Concordia.
This isn’t exactly the way Ken Burkhardt Jr. planned it. First recruited to Concordia as a linebacker on the football team, Burkhardt Jr. has become an accomplished wrestler and owner of the most wins in program history.
As Kodie Cole himself puts it, "I might have a little different story than others." There's a lot of story left to be told for Cole, who has taken a winding path to being ranked No. 1 in the nation at 133 pounds.
Concordia University wrestling has a new leader in Andrew Nicola, but expectations remain sky high. Behind a talented senior class, the Bulldogs are again the favorite in the GPAC and in the region.
Andrew Nicola, most recently an assistant coach at California Baptist University, has been hired as head wrestling coach at Concordia University. He takes the place of former head coach Dana Vote.
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