14 Bethany winter and spring student-athletes earn academic all-conference awards
Tuesday, June 09, 2009

ST. PAUL – The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) released its winter and spring sports academic all-conference lists from the 2008-09 school year on Tuesday. The individual athletes selected must meet the following criteria to be eligible for the award:

1. Post a 3.50 or better semester grade point average based on a 4.0 scale.
2. Compete in the sport in which he or she is nominated in the season that corresponds with the selection.

Bethany Lutheran had 14 academic all-conference honorees, with three athletes from each baseball, softball, men’s tennis, and women’s basketball. Two women’s tennis players received honors.

Baseball led all winter and spring sports with 43 honorees amongst participating schools. Women’s track and field had 41 award winners, while men’s track and field came in third with 39. Softball rounded out the UMAC’s top four with 32 selections. A grand total of 254 individuals earned academic all-conference awards.

As far as team academic all-conference awards go, Martin Luther College and Northwestern College each claimed the best grade point averages (GPA) in three of the eight winter and spring sports. UMAC-sponsored sports that occur in the winter and spring and their top academic teams are listed below.

Sport, School, Team GPA
Baseball, College of St. Scholastica, 3.587
Softball, Northwestern College, 3.597
Men’s Tennis, Martin Luther College, 2.972
Women’s Tennis, Northwestern College, 3.194
Men’s Track & Field, University of Minn., Morris, 3.397
Women’s Track & Field, Martin Luther College, 2.976
Men’s Basketball, Martin Luther College, 2.646
Women’s Basketball, Northwestern College, 3.507

Bethany Lutheran College

Name, Sport, Yr
Steve Hoostal, Baseball, Jr
Michael Greibrok, Baseball, Jr
Devin Kaasa, Baseball, Sr
Abagail Popp, Softball, So
Brittany Schlomer, Softball, Jr
Susan Hegstrom, Softball, Jr
Paul Webber, Men’s Tennis, So
Mike Lukasek, Men’s Tennis, Sr
Ben Wiechmann, Men’s Tennis, Sr
Caitlyn Felthous, Women’s Tennis, Jr
Madara Matveja, Women’s Tennis, So
Eva Voss, Women’s Basketball, Sr
Molly Erdman, Women’s Basketball, Jr
Megan Lecy, Women’s Basketball, So

Six seniors help men’s tennis program turn the corner
Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Joseph Baer

Mankato, Minn.—An improved Bethany men’s tennis team finished the 2009 season with a 4-9 record (4-5 UMAC). The guys finished third in both the conference regular season and postseason tournament.

Senior Michael Lukasek (Sparta, Wis./Luther) played number one for the Vikings and always faced the top competition. Lukasek finished the year 4-11 and Coach Adolph Harstad noted his victory against rival North Central University’s number one as a season highlight. Paul Webber (Scottsdale, Ariz./Michigan Lutheran Seminary) finished the season with a 5-9 record and played number two for Bethany. Webber and Lukasek also combined for a 4-10 record in doubles matches.

Bethany’s depth played a big role in their improvement from a year ago. Freshman David Blumer (Lakewood, Colo./Green Mountain) and senior Jeff Huber (Clearwater, Minn./West Lutheran) played in the three and four spots respectively for the Vikings. Blumer finished with an 8-6 record and Huber ended the year at 7-8. The two combined for an 8-7 record in doubles matches and were both named to the UMAC All-Conference First Team. The deep team also featured David Buchs (Rochester, Minn./Homeschool), who faced off in 11 singles matches for Bethany and Christopher McClure (Delafield, Wis./Waukesha Christian Academy) who ended the season 6-4 in singles matches.

When asked about next year’s team, Coach Harstad expressed the need to replace his six seniors. He said, “With the loss of our seniors, we will be re-building next year. We have a solid freshman in Blumer returning and are looking to bring in two transfers, freshmen recruits, and a pair of players that will be back from injury.” Harstad also felt the team met expectations, “It looks like Bethany has turned the corner on its tennis program.”

Men's tennis finishes third in UMAC Tournament
Sunday, May 03, 2009

Elizabeth Kopacek

Minneapolis, Minn.—The Bethany Lutheran men’s tennis team finished third in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference Tennis Tournament on Saturday at the Baseline Tennis Center.

Bethany scored 10 points on the first day of the tournament after Mike Lukasek (No. 1 singles, Sparta, Wis./Luther), Paul Webber (No. 2, Scottsdale, Ariz./Michigan Lutheran Seminary), David Blumer (No. 3, Lakewood, Colo./Green Mountain) and Jeff Huber (No. 4, Clearwater, Minn./West Lutheran) each won a quarterfinal match but lost in the semifinals. Chris McClure (Delafield, Wis./Waukesha Christian Academy) was the sole Bethany player to move on to the championship match.

McClure played on Saturday and finished second at No. 6 singles, losing 6-3, 7-5 to Brian Lindberg of St. Scholastica in the championship match.

Bethany brought their season to a close with the third place finish in both regular season and postseason play. The Vikings posted a 4-6 record in the UMAC and finished 4-9 overall.

2009 Men's tennis season preview
Thursday, February 05, 2009

Melissa Young

The Bethany men’s tennis team enters the 2009 season with high hopes after winning only one match in 2008. The team will have balance this season, returning six veterans and welcoming four new faces to the court.

Eighteen-year head coach Adie Harstad and his squad will look for its first year players, David Blumer (Lakewood, Colo./Green Mountain), David Buchs (Rochester, Minn./Homeschool), Paul Korabrandi (Hyderabad, India/The Astrid Rowe Memorial), and Andrew Yarger (Mankato, Minn./Mankato East), to contribute in a big way this season. The team will seek experience and leadership from four seniors, Jeff Huber (Clearwater, Minn./West Lutheran), Trevor Londgren (Charlevoix, Mich./Homeschool), Mike Lukasek (Sparta, Wis./Onalaska Luther) and Ben Wiechmann (Plymouth, Minn./West Lutheran). Also retuning are sophomores Paul Webber (Scottsdale, Ariz./Michigan Lutheran Seminary) and Peter Londgren (Charlevoix, Mich./Charlevoix). The Vikings graduated Ryan Latterman following the 2008 season, which leaves the number one singles spot open for Lukasek, who played number two last season in singles.

The team will find a fuller schedule this season which should allow for much more competition than in the past.

The Vikings are optimistic that their experience at the top and young talent throughout the roster will carry them through the UMAC season to a solid place in the conference tournament at the conclusion of the season.

This season begins on Saturday, February 7th, against Buena Vista in Storm Lake, Iowa, at 1 p.m. The team opens UMAC play on the road on Friday, March 20th, against St. Scholastica at 7 p.m.