Women’s Soccer Reaches Elite 8

EAGLE ATHLETICS WRAP-UP Elite 8: Women’s Soccer Team Has Historic Season

By RACHEL MOORE The Central Methodist women’s soccer program has battled through one of the most challenging – and successful -- athletic seasons in program history, finishing the year 20-4-1 and etching the names of these young women into the CMU history books.

Despite multiple stoppages and restarts in an extended season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Central cruised to its second straight regularseason conference championship last November.

The season culminated with a magical postseason run in the spring. Beginning with the Heart of America Athletic Conference tournament in early April, CMU earned the No. 1 overall seed, picking up victories over Grand View and Benedictine and punching their ticket to the title match versus rival Missouri Valley College.

In a thrilling championship match, both sides remained scoreless through the first 85 minutes. With less than four minutes remaining, senior defender Sara Cobollo sent a cross into the box, finding fellow senior Anika Kallash for the gamewinning header to the back of the net. CMU won its second straight conference tournament title and its third in the last four seasons with the 1-0 victory over the Vikings.

CMU continued its postseason run with two wins in the NAIA National Championship Opening Round, first a 2-0 win over College of Idaho and then a 2-0 shutout victory over Indiana Wesleyan to advance to the Final Site in Foley, Ala.

In the game of the year, Central squared off against No. 9 John Brown (Ark.) at the Final Site first round on April 27. The teams remained even at 1-1 through regulation and two overtime periods. The game was then decided on penalty kicks. CMU went on to win the shoot-out 4-2, advancing to its first national quarterfinals appearance in program history.

“If you really look at it, this is the best season we’ve ever had,” said coach Dan Schmidlin. “We’d never made it to a quarterfinal game. And that John Brown game – we went down in 2019 on penalty kicks – so it was fitting to win it that way this time around.”

Schmidlin, whose team suffered several injuries at key points during the season, said the Eagles’ Elite Eight run was very special, even with a loss to No. 1 seed William Carey to end the year.

“I’m so proud of this group for handling everything thrown at them this season,” he said.

In addition to the quarterfinal appearance marking the deepest postseason run of any CMU women’s soccer team, Schmidlin noted another first – freshman Sandra Jakobsen, from Denmark, earned a spot on the NAIA all-tournament team.

“Sandra’s contributions this year have been a pleasant surprise,” he said. “We knew she was going to be big time.”

Schmidlin also complemented defensive player of the year Laura Riesenbeck, from Germany, and of course top scorer, senior Anika Kallash.

All-American awards had not been announced by the time Talon went to press, but Schmidlin said he was hopeful that four Eagles would receive the accolades.

Right, Brenden Shelton First CMU wrestler to qualify for the NAIA Men’s Wrestling National Championships

Men’s Wrestling Notches First Dual Win

Central Methodist men’s wrestling recorded several notable achievements this past winter. The Eagles earned their first ever NAIA win in program history with a 28-11 dual win against Oklahoma Wesleyan on Jan. 25. During the Heart Championships, sophomore Brenden Shelton posted a 4-1 record, en route to a third-place finish in the 285-pound weight class. With the top-3 finish, Shelton became the first wrestler in program history to qualify for the

NAIA Men’s Wrestling National Championships. He finished the year with a 16-4 record.

Track And Field Makes Great Strides As Winter Programs Wrap Up

Director of Track & Field and Cross Country Kenny Anderson made an indelible mark on the program in his first season at the helm, as he was named the Heart Women’s Indoor Track & Field Coach of the Year. The Eagles concluded the Heart indoor championships in third place on the men’s side while the women placed second.

The Eagles had numerous athletes earn all-conference honors, highlighted by freshman Kailey Johnson. She won the 60m hurdles, placed second in the 60m dash, second in the 200, fourth in the long jump, and was the lead off in the 4x400m relay team that placed second. For her efforts, she was named the women’s co-athlete of the meet. Senior thrower Taylor Bottomley was tabbed as the Heart Indoor Male Athlete of the Meet. He secured first-place victories in both the weight throw and shot put. He set a new school record and PR in the weight throw at 19.03 meters, ranking No. 3 in the country and earning a trip to the national meet. He also claimed victory in the shot put with a final toss of 16.81 meters, well over a full meter over national qualification standard.

The Eagles qualified seven athletes for the indoor national championships in Yankton, S.D. Following up an impressive semifinal heat, the 4x400m relay team of Mohammed Nyaoga, Jacob Fritz, Curtis Johns, and Nehemiah Colyer ran a final time of 3:19.08, good enough for fourth place and all-America honors. The four are only the second relay team in the last 20 years to earn all-America honors for the Eagles.

Women’s Wrestling Hosts First Conference Tournament

In its second season, the Central Methodist women’s program earned two dual wins, over Waldorf and conference foe William Penn. The Eagles also hosted the inaugural Heart of America Athletic Conference Women’s Wrestling Championships on Feb. 20 inside Puckett Fieldhouse. Sophomore Giovanna Loza earned a third-place finish in the 123-pound weight class, posting a 1-1 record in the bracket and becoming the first Eagle in program history to land on the podium at a conference championship event. As a team, Central finished in sixth place.

three Basketball players All-conference

CMU men’s basketball finished the 2020-21 campaign 11-13, with an 8-11 mark in conference action. Three members of the Eagles earned all-conference honors, including Johnathan Brown, Fode Camara, and Chandler Bevans. Brown, a midseason transfer, was a welcome addition to the CMU lineup, appearing in 10 games and averaging a team-leading 13.4 points per game. Camara, a senior forward from Queens, N.Y., finished third on the team in scoring, averaging 11.6 points per game. He also led the Eagles and was third in the Heart in rebounding with 9.4 rebounds per game. Bevans rounded out the honorable mention honors for CMU, as the junior transfer from Kahoka, Mo. finished the year with 305 points, averaging 12.7 points per game.

Women’s Basketball Finishes Strong

The Central Methodist women’s basketball program overcame a slow start to finish the year in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament. Central concluded 2020-21 with a 13-6 record, including an 8-2 mark over the final 10 games in January and February. The Eagles garnered three all-conference honorees, including Leah Johnson, Leianya Massenat, and Daryna Bachkarova. Massenat was the Heart Freshman of the Year and an NAIA Honorable Mention All-American selection. She is just the second freshman in the history of the program to earn All-American honors, averaging 19.7 points per game and shooting 38.1-percent from the field.

Central Methodist University’s men’s soccer team has been on an incredible three-year run, highlighted by some overpowering wins and an impressive 40-game NAIA win streak.

Focused for an entire year on winning their third consecutive NAIA national championship, the Eagles were denied the chance for a threepeat, shell-shocked in the national semifinals by none other than eventual champ Missouri Valley College.

After falling behind 3-0, the Eagles fell 4-2 at the NAIA championship site in Columbus, Ga., and finished the year 22-2. They were in the unfamiliar position of being spectators for the national title game.

“We have had an incredible year,” said Coach Alex Nichols. “But it did hurt. These guys worked so hard, and they fell just a little short. Still a pretty special accomplishment when you consider we had basically a brand new team with 15 freshmen.”

Central won its second consecutive Heart tournament championship and third regular season conference title, and began the pandemic’s “spring season” with three victories over three NCAA Division I teams-- Creighton, University of Missouri Kansas City, and Western Illinois. Central also won a double overtime thriller over No. 2 Oklahoma Wesleyan in Bartlesville back on March 20.

CMU then cruised in the Heart tournament, highlighted by wins over Mount Mercy, William Penn, and rival Missouri Valley College in the championship match. The Eagles clinched a spot in the NAIA opening round as the No. 1 seed in the Santa Barbara bracket in Santa Barbara, Calif. Central posted a 2-0 win over UC Merced and a 3-1 victory over Corban to punch their ticket to the final site on May 6.

After edging Cumberlands, 1-0, CMU fell to Missouri Valley College.

“It’s hard to beat a talented team three times,” said Nichols.

The Eagles landed four NAIA All-Americans, including Tom Irion, Stefano Camerlengo, Marcos German, and Carlos Scheckermann. In addition, Camerlengo was named to the alltournament team for his efforts in goal.

CMU Cheer team wins NCA National Championship

The CMU cheer team made history this spring, becoming NCA National Champions for the first time. Led by head coach Terin Fuemmeler, the team captured the championship in the Advanced Small Coed NAIA division at the NCA Collegiate Cheer and Dance National Championships in Daytona Beach, Fla. The Eagles tallied a preliminary score of 89.8167 before concluding the two-day event with a final score of 91.1333. Their final marks received no deductions, propelling them to a first-place finish and a national title in their division.

Men’s Soccer Falls Short of Three-PeaT

From left, Tom Irion, Alessandro Salvadego, Mark Csongradi, and Clayton Duarte

Cassandra Contreras with CMU golf coach, Stephen Main, ’19

Freshman Contreras Shines for CMU Golf Program

The CMU golf program is back – and turning heads with impressive performances.

After a four-year hiatus, the Central Methodist men’s and women’s golf programs have made an impression in the Heart of America Conference. And no golfer impressed more than freshman Cassandra Contreras from Goodyear, Ariz. Contreras was the first women’s golfer in history to earn Heart Player of the Year honors.

“She is not only an impressive golfer, but an impressive young lady,” said first-year coach Stephen Main, ’19. “She excels academically, and she is just a wonderful person to be around.”

Contreras was a conference champion, earned all-conference honors, and qualified for the NAIA national tournament, which was beginning as the Talon went to press. She saved her best for last in the regular season, winning the conference tournament on the final day.

She won the three-round tournament with a score of 243, after entering the final 18 holes in fourth place. She trailed the leader by four strokes, but shot one over par to become the women’s individual medalist.

Contreras also won the individual title in March at the Evangel Spring Invitational and a fall tournament at Culver Stockton.

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