Bruininks And Five Players Earn MIAC Honors!
MOORHEAD, Minn.
(3/1/12)--Concordia head coach Brett
Bruininks was named the MIAC Coach of the Year and five
Cobber players earned conference postseason honors it was released
by the league office on Thursday.
Bruininks earns his first Coach of the Year honors after guiding
the Cobbers to a 10-3-5 record in MIAC play and a second-place
finish in the final regular-season standings. The three losses set
a school record for fewest losses in conference play in a single
season. In addition, the second-place finish ties for the highest
in team history. Concordia also made the MIAC playoffs for the
second straight year under Bruininks who now owns a combined 18-9-9
record in league play in his first two years at the helm of the
Cobbers.
Concordia senior Katelyn Dold (St. Cloud,
Minn./Tech HS) highlights the five players who earned postseason
honors. Dold earns MIAC All-Conference honors for the third
consecutive season. She finished the league season with seven goals
and 14 assists for 21 total points. She was tied for third in
overall points and third in assists. Dold's 21 conference points
marks the third straight season she has recorded at least 20 points
in MIAC play. Dold had at least one point in all but five
conference games.
Joining Dold on the All-Conference Team are sophomore forwards
Breann Julius (Brookings, S.D.) and Abby
Taffe (Aberdeen, S.D.). Julius, who transferred to
Concordia after playing her freshman season at Division I
Quinnipiac University, led the MIAC in goals in conference play.
She had 17 goals to go along with five assists for a total of 22
points. Julius was fourth in the league in overall scoring and tied
for second in power play goals and game-winning goals.
Taffe earns All-Conference honors for the first time in her
career. She was tied with Dold for second on the team in scoring in
MIAC games. Taffe finished with 10 goals and 11 assists for 21
points. She was in the top 10 of the MIAC in overall points, goals
and assists. She had at least one point in 10 of the 18 league
games and scored a career-high five points in the conference opener
against St. Olaf.
Cobber freshmen Libby Fransdal (Hopkins, Minn.)
and Maddy Gendreau (Bismarck, N.D.) were placed on
the MIAC All-Rookie Team. Fransdal joined the team at the end of
November after anchoring the Cobber women's soccer team's defense
in their NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 run. She was a solid contributor
for her spot on the blue line and finished the year with four
assists and a +6 rating in her 14 conference games. Gendreau gave
the Cobbers a fourth high-scoring forward. She ended her first
conference season with seven goals and 10 assists for 17 points.
Gendreau tied for the league lead in scoring by a freshman.
The Cobbers will be looking to continue their season when they
host St. Thomas on Thursday, Mar. 1 at 7 p.m. in the semifinals of
the MIAC playoffs. It is the first time in school history that CC
has hosted a semifinal playoff game.