ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia athletic department has named juniors Tyler Johnson (Football) and Emily Palkert (Volleyball) this week's CU Male and Female Athletes of the Week. Johnson is a first time selection while Palkert earns it for the second consecutive week and third time in her career.
Tyler Johnson (LB, Jr., 6-2, 205, St. Paul, Minn.) was an impact outside linebacker against one of the top offenses in the nation on Saturday against Wayne State. He produced four tackles in the game, but all were behind the line of scrimmage for a loss, totalling 19 yards between the four plays. He also forced a fumble in the Wildcat backfield that was scooped up by teammate Alex Helms for one of the three turnovers forced by the CU defense. The fumble was forced seven yards behind the line on Wayne State's opening drive, thwarting a possession by the opponent that marched into CU territory inside the 40. On Wayne's third drive of the first quarter, Johnson stopped All-NSIC quarterback Silas Fluellen seven yards behind the line on a second and five run play, two plays later Concordia took over after a botched punt by the Wildcats. His third TFL was at the end of the first quarter, a three yard loss on a run play on first down and the Wildcats didn't recover, throwing a pair of incompletions before punting to the Golden Bears. Those three first quarter stops for loss would be key in keeping the Golden Bears competitive in the game, helping the offense establish great field position while imposing hard hits on the Wildcat offense.
Emily Palkert (MH, Jr., 5-11, Excelsior, Minn.) pounded out 28 kills for an average of 4.67 per set in Concordia’s wins over Augustana College and #15 Wayne State this weekend. Not only was she the kills leader, she also had the highest hitting average on the squad, terminating over half of her sets on her way to a .476 average (28-8-42). She had team highs in kills both nights. Palkert also had a strong showing at the front line of the Golden Bear defense with an average 1.00 blocks per set. She had 16 kills and four blocks to help her team in a tight match with Wayne State. Palkert is the team’s leading hitter this season and is third in the NSIC with 322 kills (3.83/s).
