Four Inducted Into Athletic Hall Of Fame
MOORHEAD, Minn. (10/13/12)— Concordia
inducted three former athletes and a longtime coach into the
Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday during the annual Homecoming
celebration.
This year’s inductees included two-time All-MIAC men’s
basketball player Darrel Pederson ‘86, All-American football
player Terry Storm ‘89, two-time All-American women’s
golfer Kari (Walrath) Ehlers ’96 and former men’s and
women’s basketball coach and current men’s and
women’s golf coach Duane Siverson.
Pederson led the MIAC in scoring in 1986 and was named to the MIAC
All-Conference Team that season. He was also named to the MIAC
All-Conference Honorable Mention Team in 1985. Darrel was named
Concordia’s Most Valuable Player in 1985 and 1986.
Storm earned All-American honors for the Cobber football team in
his senior season in 1988. He was a two-time All-MIAC award winner
and still holds the school record for interceptions in a
career. Storm was the captain for Concordia’s MIAC
title team in 1988.
Ehlers was a two-time NCAA All-American and four time MIAC
All-Conference athlete for the Cobber women’s golf team from
1992-96. She also helped Concordia finish third at the NCAA
Division III Meet in 1995. Ehlers placed in the top 5 of the MIAC
in all four years.
Siverson began his coaching career at Concordia in 1978 and became
one of the most successful coaches in Cobber athletic history.
Siverson coached women’s and men’s Cobber basketball
for 33 seasons, and women’s and men’s golf for 30
seasons and counting. In women’s basketball his most
successful teams were the 1988 NCAA Division III national champions
and the 1987 runners-up. In 1988, Siverson was honored as National
Coach of the Year. He coached the Cobber men’s basketball
team to their first NCAA tournament appearance in 1996. As coach of
women’s golf, he guided the team to six NCAA top three
finishes, and 11 of their first 12 MIAC golf championships from
1989 to 2000.
Darrel Pederson
‘86
Darrel Pederson enrolled at Concordia in 1982 after leading his
Lake Park (Minn.) High School basketball team to the district
championship. Raised on a family farm that he continues to operate
today, Pederson was a standout athlete in football, basketball and
baseball.
In his senior season in 1986, Pederson led the Minnesota
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in scoring and was named to the
All-Conference basketball team. He was chosen by his teammates as
Concordia’s Most Valuable Player in 1985 when he led the team
in rebounding, and 1986 when he was the scoring leader. He finished
with 921 points for his career, the seventh best in school
history.
After earning his degree in elementary education and coaching, Pederson joined the teaching staff of the Perham-Dent (Minn.) School District. He coached the Perham Yellowjackets girls’ basketball team to three district titles and three Heart of Lakes Conference titles, and the school’s first Minnesota state tournament appearance in 1991. He has twice been honored as Coach of the Year.
Pederson’s service to the community is exemplary. He spent
20 years officiating Minnesota State High School League games. He
is a member of the Lake Park Lutheran Church Council where he has
served as vice-president and president, and he is currently a
member of the Lake Park Audubon School Board. He is married to
fellow Cobber Kristi Leiseth ‘87 and they are the parents of
three children.
Terry Storm
‘89
Terry Storm was a standout multi-sport athlete at Walker (Minn.)
High School. As a Cobber athlete, Storm was selected to the MIAC
All Conference football teams in 1987 and 1988, and received first
team All-American honors in 1988 as a cornerback. He was team
captain of the 1988 Cobbers, a four-time MIAC Defensive Player of
the Week, and finished his career as Concordia’s all-time
career interception leader.
Storm was considered to be one of the best defensive backs in Division III football. He was a tenacious, smart competitor who made his teammates better players. Storm’s ability was instrumental in leading the Cobbers to the 1988 MIAC championship and the NCAA playoffs.
After earning a degree in chemistry and biology, Storm graduated
from the University of Minnesota School of Pharmacy in 1992. He
continues to practice pharmacy today in Thief River Falls, Minn.,
where he was honored as Health Practioner of the Year in 2012. He
has served on the church council of Redeemer Lutheran Church, and
has been involved in numerous athletic groups. He has coached youth
baseball and basketball and is a member of the board of directors
of the Thief River Falls Back Court Boosters. Terry and Barbara
Storm are the parents of two children.
Kari (Walrath)
Ehlers ‘96
Coming from a distinguished family background in golf at
Watertown, S. D, Kari (Walrath) Ehlers enrolled at Concordia in
1992. As a member of the Cobber women’s golf team, Ehlers
earn
ed MIAC All-Conference honors four consecutive years, and
consistently placed in the top five in all Minnesota
Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournaments during her athletic
career at Concordia.
Her calm demeanor and even disposition made her a natural leader of the women’s team during a time of playing with and against some of the all-time best golfers in the region. She was instrumental in helping Concordia finish third at the NCAA National Tournament in 1995 when both Division II and Division III athletes competed together.
In 2000 and 2002, Kari and her husband, fellow Cobber golfer
Charlie Ehlers ’95, won the Minnesota Golf Association
Four-Ball Couples championships. She currently is the assistant
boys’ and girls’ golf coach at Marshall (Minn.) High
School. She works in the Marshall school system as a fifth and
sixth grade English as a Second Language teacher. She also is a
Sunday school and confirmation teacher at St. Stephen Lutheran
Church. The Ehlers are parents of three children.
Duane
Siverson
Duane Siverson began his coaching career at
Concordia in 1978 and became one of the most successful coaches in
Cobber athletic history. Siverson possesses the unique ability to
coach multiple sports, and in numerous seasons he led his teams to
championships. He has received well-deserved recognition as
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Coach of the Year
multiple times for coaching basketball and golf.
Siverson coached women’s and men’s Cobber basketball
for 33 seasons, and women’s and men’s golf for 30
seasons and counting. He also coached the inaugural fastpitch
softball team. In women’s basketball his most successful
teams were the 1988 NCAA Division III national champions and the
1987 runners-up. These teams were ranked in the top five nationally
for five consecutive years. In seven seasons as coach, the Cobbers
won four MIAC titles, appeared in seven NCAA tournaments and
reached the national quarterfinals four times. In 1988, Siverson
was honored as National Coach of the Year.
He coached the Cobber men’s basketball team to three of their four most winning seasons, and their first NCAA tournament appearance in 1996. His 338-263 career coaching record makes him the all-time winningest basketball coach at Concordia. As coach of women’s golf, he guided the team to six NCAA top three finishes, and 11 of their first 12 MIAC golf championships from 1989 to 2000. He has been honored as NCAA Regional Coach of the Year and with the Merit Award from the National Golf Coaches Association. Siverson has coached 19 All-American golfers at Concordia.
In 2008 he was inducted into the Hall of Greats by his alma
mater, Yankton College. Siverson serves on numerous golf committees
in the Fargo-Moorhead area, teaches junior golf, and is an active
member of the National Golf Foundation. He and his wife, Bonnie,
are the parents of two sons.