A young Concordia University softball squad took to the field in 2009 excited to face a new 14-team league and ready to gauge their talent against some of the best teams in the nation. The Golden Bears achieved many goals set for the year and were one of the best batting teams in the league. They finished the season 33-23 overall and took sixth place in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) with a 15-9 record. FINAL 2009 RELEASE
Despite having a tremendous amount of youth on the team, the Golden Bears saw numerous records set, including three new team batting records. The 2009 squad was one of the best offensive teams in program history, putting up a .305 season batting average, a .358 on-base percentage and a .434 slugging percentage. The former marks were .297 (2004), .350 (2004) and .417 (2006), respectively.
Concordia led the conference for hitting triples, setting a new CU single season record with 19 three-baggers drilled on the year. The program’s record for triples in a game jumped to four against Chadron State on February 20. Freshman Jamie Lindboe set an individual season record with nine triples her rookie year. She had two of the team’s four triples against Chadron, which set a new individual single game record. Junior Tiff Rodd later matched the mark with two triples against Northern State on April 18. The final triple record set this season was reached by Anna Bjorlin, who boosted her career-leading triple record to a new high of 13.
The Golden Bears had six players named to All-Conference teams in 2009, which matched Winona State for the most honorees by an NSIC team this season. Anna Bjorlin and Abby Brundidge were named All-Northern Sun Conference First Team, while Katie Anderson, Calli Brennan, Jamie Lindboe and Stephanie Schmikla made it on the All-NSIC Second Team. This is the second All-NSIC First Team honor for Bjorlin, who led the Golden Bears with a .360 average and 63 hits on the season. Brundidge has made her third straight All-NSIC First Team appearance after being named the season’s Preseason Player of the Year. She put up a .351 average through NSIC play. Concordia had all three if its freshmen donned to the All-NSIC Second Team. The trio took up three of the team’s top four batting averages on the year.
Concordia started the season out with a huge 2-1 win over #13 Lewis University in the season opener with freshman Calli Brennan collecting both RBI from a single and a walk. After going 7-2 to start the season, the Golden Bears hit a rough patch on their spring break trip to the Rebel Spring Games, going 6-8 overall. They ended the trip on a strong note, however, taking their second win over a ranked opponent in #7 Ferris State with a final score of 3-2. Freshman Jamie Lindboe delivered a two-RBI double to put Concordia up 2-0 in the first inning.
As is the usual par for course with an outdoor spring sport in the Midwest, the Golden Bears were faced with some weather problems as the NSIC season approached in the beginning of April. Forced to play their home openers on a neutral field (Rice & Arlington Fields in St. Paul, Minn.) with playing conditions less than desirable at game time, the Golden Bears split doubleheaders with Bemidji State and Minnesota Duluth on March 28-29. They then put up 13 wins in their next 14 games (11-12 in NSIC play) to jump ahead in the NSIC standings.
A big win for Concordia came as they played their first doubleheader at Dunning Field on April 8. Matched up against #24 Minnesota State, the Golden Bears forced a split on the day, falling 1-3 in the first game and then responding with a come-from-behind 5-4 win in the second game.
| 2009 NSIC Standings | NSIC | Overall |
| 1. Southwest Minn. St. | 21-5 | 32-21 |
| 2. Augustana College | 20-5 | 31-23 |
| 3. #6 Winona State | 20-6 | 44-11 |
| 4. Wayne State | 19-6 | 39-19 |
| 5. Minnesota State | 18-8 | 38-15 |
| 6. Concordia University | 15-9 | 33-23 |
| 7. Minnesota Duluth | 16-10 | 26-23 |
| 8. Upper Iowa | 13-13 | 22-24 |
| 9. U-Mary | 10-14 | 16-33 |
| 10. St. Cloud State | 8-18 | 21-38 |
| 11. Northern State | 6-19 | 9-31 |
| 12. MSU Moorhead | 5-18 | 9-28 |
| 13. Bemidji State | 3-21 | 8-28 |
| 14. UM, Crookston | 0-22 | 0-31 |
Concordia made a huge run in the month of April, winning 13-of-14 games from the fourth through the 19th. Stephanie Schmikla threw a complete game shutout to put the Golden Bears over St. Cloud State in non-conference action on April 10, the first of four straight games the Golden Bears took against the Huskies.
Anna Bjorlin got her bat going in a big way in the team’s finals six games of an 11-game winning streak. She was named the NFCA Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week on April 22 after batting .773 with 17 hits in 22 at-bats. Bjorlin rapped three doubles, a triple and a home run in her streak for a 1.136 slugging percentage and a .783 on-base mark. This was the second time in program history that the Golden Bears had an athlete honored as the National Player of the Week.
Armed with a 13-3 league mark and an 11-game winning streak, the Golden Bears were set for one of their toughest conference matchups of the season, hosting #9 Winona State on April 21. The Warriors struck early and used a solid pitching effort from Stacey Struzynski to take a 6-3 win in the opening game. Concordia answered with a 4-2 win in the nightcap, putting up three runs in the sixth inning to solidify the decision. Tiff Rodd drove in a pair of runs with a two-out hit singled sharply through the left side.
Concordia followed up their strong play against the Warriors with a series split at Wayne State, another leading foe in the NSIC. Schmikla threw a one-hit shutout in the 3-0 win over the Wildcats, frustrating the WSC hitters who popped out for 14 of their 21 outs. Nikki Scherr delivered the game-winning swing in the fifth inning, a two-run homer that gave the Golden Bears all the runs they would need, although Lindboe provided a security run with a homer in the seventh inning.
In a conference in which the top teams were separated by only the slimmest of margins, Concordia’s upcoming sweep by Augustana College dropped them to sixth in the NSIC standings with a 15-7 record instead of allowing them to play for a regular season title on their home turf during their regular season finale. Just two days after the blow by the Vikings, the Golden Bears were pitted against Southwest Minnesota State, who delivered two shutouts to sweep CU and earn their fourth straight NSIC title.
Concordia entered the 2009 NSIC Tournament in Marshall, Minn. on May 1 as the #6 seed. They played #3 Winona State (ranked #9 nationally) in the first game of the tournament. The Golden Bears hit the ball well, putting up seven hits to WSU’s six in the game, but they stranded eight baserunners and gave up four homers on their way to the 6-2 loss. 
They again had their bats going in the elimination game against Minnesota Duluth later in the day, striking out ten hits and seven runs. Fielding blunders led to four unearned runs for the Bulldogs, however, and with 13 Concordia baserunners left on the paths, the team was sent down in a 9-7 game. The loss ended the Golden Bear season and set their final record at 33-23 overall.
While the season did not last as long as they had hoped, the Golden Bears look ahead to a very promising future. They lose only one starter from the 2009 lineup in Natalie Mast and have a plethora of talented bats returning to the lineup for next season, as well as the promise of a highly talented recruiting class joining the roster for 2010.
Anna Bjorlin led the team with a .360 batting average followed by the three Concordia freshmen, Jamie Lindboe (.355), Katie Anderson (.321) and Calli Brennan (.318). Lindboe brought the heavy bat to the lineup, drilling nine homers and seven triples while putting up a team high .658 slugging percentage. Anderson was the team speedster, collecting 24 bunt singles to go with her perfect 19-19 stolen bases. Brennan balanced her game with eight doubles, two triples, three homers and 4-of-5 stolen bases.
Not to be forgotten in their efforts are a number of returning players. Junior Tiff Rodd was one of the best first basemen in the NSIC, putting up a .983 fielding average with only five errors all season. She batted .441 through an 18-4 streak that turned their season around and had her hand in an NSIC high 17 double plays turned.
Mast led the conference with 21 stolen bases on the year, increasing her record-setting career mark to 101. The Golden Bears were the second most aggressive base-running team in the NSIC, swiping 84 bags on the year for an average of 1.5 per game.
Sophomore Stephanie Schmikla was the leading thrower from the circle in 2009, gaining 18 season wins with 24 complete games in 30 starts. She threw four shutouts with 205.1 innings of work on the year and a 2.97 ERA. Sophomore Cassye McMahon made 26 appearances and put up a 13-9 record with a 2.41 ERA. She threw two complete games and held opponents to a .240 batting average. Jenn Kaminski is the only other player aside from Mast who will not return to the 2010 CU roster. Set to graduate early, Kaminski appeared in 12 games her final season with the Golden Bears. She pitched 36 innings with one save and put up a 2-1 record.
