Golden Cobbs Award Winners 2024
MOORHEAD, Minn. (4/18/24)--- The Concordia Student Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC) hosted the 11th annual Golden Cobbs award ceremony on Thursday night in Memorial Auditorium.
The Golden Cobbs are a year-end celebration of all the great accomplishments from the past year in Concordia athletics.
The awards ceremony was preceded by a free dinner which was supplied by Buffalo Wild Wings who is one of the sponsors for the ceremony.
The awards ceremony featured 18 different category winners. In addition to the awards voted on by fans, family and friends – achievements in academics by the Concordia student-athletes were also recognized.
| 2024 Golden Cobbs Pre/Post Show Pic Gallery | 2024 Golden Cobbs Award Winners Pic Gallery |
| 2024 Golden Cobbs Award Ceremony Complete Video |
This year's Bucky Burgau Impact Award was awarded to Concordia Hall of Fame student-athlete, coach and administrator Bob Nick. Bob Nick, who died in December, was part of the Cobbers athletic department as a player, coach and athletic administrator. He was a faculty member at Concordia for more than 40 years and helped coach football, tennis and basketball. Bob influenced thousands of lives during his time at Concordia.
Here is a complete list of the award winners from the 11th annual Golden Cobbs awards:
Male Athlete of the Year: Gabe Zierden, Wrestling
Gabe Zierden became the first Cobber to wrestle in an NCAA National Championship match since 2011. He earned All-American honors for the first time in his career. During the year Zierden won his 100th career match. He ended the season with 38 wins which is tied for the program record for a single season.
Female Athlete of the Year: Peyton Selle, Women's Track & Field
Peyton Selle won the Female Athlete of the Year for the second yeat in a row. Selle won the 2024 MIAC Indoor Pentathlon – her third straight conference pentathlon championship. During the event, she broke the 24-year-old school record in the 60-meters hurdles. Selle also earned a spot in the NCAA Meet – which would have been her fourth consecutive trip to the national meet – but was unable to attend because of an injury.
Male Newcomer of the Year: Angel Reyes, Football
Angel Reyes was named the MIAC Rookie of the Year – the first CC player to win the award since its inception in 2022. A standout on the offensive line, he played in all 10 games for the Cobbers and helped the offense finish second in the MIAC in rushing yards per game.
Female Newcomer of the Year: Callie Metsala, Swimming & Diving
Callie Metsala broke the Concordia school record in the 100-yard butterfly at the MIAC Championship Meet. Her record-setting time of 1:00.91 in the prelims qualified her for the “A” final – the first Cobber to qualify for an “A” final since 2019.
Coach of the Year: Kim Wagers, Women's Basketball
Kim Wagers took home Coach of the Year honors for the second consecutive year. She led the Cobber women’s basketball team to its first NCAA playoff berth since 2014. Wagers helped three players earn MIAC All-Conference honors – the most the team has had since 1993.
Best Single Performance By a Male Individual Sport Athlete: Gabe Zierden, Wrestling
Gabe Zierden became the first Cobber to wrestle in an NCAA National Championship match since 2011. He advanced to the title match by winning three straight matches, which helped him earn All-American honors for the first time in his career.
Best Single Performance By a Female Individual Sport Athlete: Peyton Selle, Women's Track & Field
Peyton Selle won the 2024 MIAC Indoor Pentathlon – her third straight conference pentathlon championship. During the event she broke the 24-year-old school record in the 60-meters hurdles. Selle also earned MIAC All-Conference Honorable Mention honors in the high jump.
Best Single Performance By a Men's Team Sport Athlete: Cooper Mattern, Football, School Record 4-1 Passing Yards vs. Hamline
Cooper Mattern went 23-for-29 in the Cobbers’ Homecoming win over Hamline. He threw for 401 passing yards which was a new school record. Mattern also threw for five touchdowns, which tied a school record.
Best Single Performance By a Women's Team Sport Athlete: Makayla Anderson, Basketball, Career-High Point Total vs. St, Benedict
Makayla Anderson had a dominant game around the basket in the Cobbers’ home win vs. St. Benedict. She went 11-for-19 from the floor and came away with a career-high 25 points. Anderson also had a game-high nine rebounds and dished out three assists.
Best Men's Milestone Moment of the Year: Gabe Benson, Golf, Wins the MIAC Championship Meet
Gabe Benson became the first Cobber men’s golfer to win the MIAC Championship Meet since 2010. His final score of 5-under par (211) was the lowest score by a Concordia golfer in a 3-day MIAC Meet in program history.
Best Women's Milestone Moment of the Year: Emily Beseman, Basketball, 1000th point//500th Career Rebound
Emily Beseman finished her Cobber career with a milestone moment when she became only the 11th player to record at least 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in her career. The milestone mark came in the Cobber’s NCAA playoff game when grabbed a season-high 11 rebounds to get to the 500-rebound milestone.
Men's Game/Contest of the Year: Men’s Hockey Win Over St. Olaf at Hockey Day Minnesota
Concordia staged a third-period comeback to beat St. Olaf at the annual Hockey Day Minnesota. The Cobbers trailed the Oles 2-1 with 5 minutes left in the third period and then got the game-tying goal from Isaac Henkemeyer-Howe and two from Hunter Olson to come away with the 4-2 win.
Women's Game/Contest of the Year: Women’s Soccer MIAC Playoff Win at St. Benedict –
The Cobbers broke their 9-year MIAC playoff drought by beating St. Benedict 2-0 in the conference quarterfinals in St. Joseph. Concordia scored a goal in each half to win at St. Ben’s in the MIAC playoffs for the first time in program history.
Team of the Year: Women’s Basketball
Concordia women’s basketball stepped onto the national playoff scene for the first time since 2014. The Cobbers used their second straight MIAC Tournament championship game appearance to receive a berth in the NCAA National Tournament. CC went 12-0 at home in 2024 and finished the year with a 20-6 overall record and an 18-2 mark in league play.
Super Cobb: Madie Guler, Women's Basketball & Track & Field
Athletic:
- 2-sport athlete
- Played in all 26 games in 2024
- Finished in the Top 5 of Division III for assist-to-turnover ratio
- Played in 86 career games in her career
- Had 67 assists in her career
- MIAC All-Conference in the 4x100-meter relay at the 2023 MIAC Outdoor Meet
- MIAC All-Conference Honorable Mention in the 4x400-meter relay at the 2023 MIAC Outdoor Meet
Academic:
- 3.95 GPA in Biology & Psychology (Pre-Med)
- Teaching Assistant
- 2024 CSC Academic All-District
- MIAC Academic All-Conference
- Dean’s List
Service:
- SAAC member
- Member of the Homecoming Committee
- Campus Events Commission
- Orientation
- Volunteer for Legacy Foot Delivery, Reading in the Classroom and Cobber Kids
- Youth Summer Basketball Camp helper
Small Team GPA: Men's Tennis
Large Team GPA: Volleyball
Bucky Burgau Impact Award: Bob Nick