Bulldogs rout York in Volleyball season opener

The Concordia Bulldogs opened their 2026 season ranked No. 3 in the NAIA Women’s Volleyball Preseason Coaches Top 25 Poll with a 3-0 victory over the York University Panthers on Aug. 18 inside Friedrich Arena.

The Bulldogs won the first set 25-21 before dominating the second set 25-12. York tried its best against Concordia in the third set, but the Bulldogs put an end to the match with a 25-20 victory.

Concordia controlled the match offensively, holding advantages in kills, hitting percentage, aces, digs and blocks. The Bulldogs recorded 46 kills compared to York’s 16 and hit .295 as a team compared to the Panthers’ .049. Concordia also held advantages in aces, 8-4, digs, 41-38, and blocks, 5-3.

Junior Shandy Fa’ali’i led the Bulldogs with 14 kills and a .267 hitting percentage. Fa’ali’i, who transitioned from defensive specialist to outside hitter during the offseason, was one of several Bulldogs adjusting to new roles on the court for this season.

“It’s really early in August, so we’re still trying to find our connections,” Fa’ali’i said. “A lot of new people on the court, and just being connected to someone new, it’s about the communication and talking through it.”

Junior Danica Martin finished with seven kills, while Makenna Starkey also recorded seven kills and added four blocks. Maddie Paulsen contributed five kills. Ella Brueggemann recorded three aces, while Emma Brueggemann led Concordia with 12 digs.

The Bulldogs started the match with a strong offensive attack but struggled at times with consistency, committing 18 service errors.

Head coach Ben Boldt said the team’s ability to move on to the next point was one of the biggest positives from the season opener.

“We didn’t necessarily play our cleanest match tonight, but I thought that we were ready to play for the next point, no matter if we won the point before or we lost the point before,” Boldt said. “So I thought we were pretty gritty.”

The season opener also featured several new faces and roles for the Bulldogs. Six of the 14 players who saw action made their collegiate varsity debuts for Concordia, including senior Bella Hedke, junior Danica Martin, sophomore Jenna Sladky and freshmen Myla Emery, Kyla Griess and Samantha Kimbell.

Emery, a freshman setter, started in the Bulldogs’ season opener as Concordia began building chemistry with a revamped roster.

Fa’ali’i said the freshmen have quickly embraced the team’s expectations.

“They have really dove into what this team is about,” Fa’ali’i said. “They never question it. They’re always ten toes in.”

With the first match behind them, Boldt expects the Bulldogs’ chemistry and execution to continue improving as the season progresses.

“I think the more that we play together, the more that our team will understand where their teammates are,” Boldt said. “We’ll just continue to play faster and figure out how we move on the floor.”