I love athletics. Coaching basketball and being involved in athletics have always been a passion of mine. I enjoy watching our students prepare and compete on the court/field/track and play with a passion that is unmatched. Concordia is such a unique place because students have the opportunity to play and excel in multiple sports because of our small size. This is one of the reasons I think we are able to be so competitive when we compete against many schools that have a larger population then we do.
That brings me to my beloved Class of 2004. I believe the Class of ‘04 may have been the best athletic class in CLHS history. These are all my opinions and a may be a little biased, but let me recap what our class was able to accomplish:
In our fall season, our cross country teams were very successful advancing deep into the tournament. Our girls team placed 9th and Alissa McKaig placed first and was crowned state champion. Our girls golf team finished 2nd in Sectionals that season. Our football team anchored a regional team as juniors and defeated Bishop Dwenger our senior season for the first time since 1966 on a field goal from kicker Josh Macke. The volleyball team, filled with seniors, dominated the season on their way to State Runner-up finish at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Boys tennis brought home an SAC championship. The girl’s soccer advanced to Regionals for the first time ever. The boys soccer team had a 2 year window of success that had some of the highest winning percentages and a Sectional championship.
The winter seasons were just as successful. Legendary coach Dave Miller took the lead and guided the girls basketball team to a sectional runner-up. The boys basketball team also had a 2 year stretch of dominance led by 10 seniors going 36-9, a SAC championship, and a SAC holiday tournament championship. The boys and girls swim and dive teams continued their success. The girls finished second in the SAC. The boys team finished first in the SAC and Sean Gibson (current CLHS swim coach and teacher) completed a 4-year run at state where he finished 11th, 5th, 2nd, and 3rd in the 100m backstroke. The gymnastics team finished 2nd in the SAC and just missed advancing to regionals. The wrestling team was young but saw individual success from seniors Nathan Wick, Mark Messmann, and Braden Turner.
Finally, our spring season. The boys golf team was competitive and led by seniors Scott Thieme and Sean Bullman. The girls tennis team had a lot of success from the class of ‘04 and were competitive against many of the tough teams in the area. The baseball and softball teams did not have many seniors on those teams, but the seniors did play huge roles in their success. The baseball and softball teams both won SAC championships in 2004. The boys track and field team had great success in 2004. Led by many great seniors, this group just missed advancing to Regionals by one place. Finally, capping off the athletic 2004 class was our girls track and field team. This team was balanced with sprinters and distance runners that brought home a state runner-up finish. I can’t imagine that has been done by many other parochial or schools our size. Many of those girls have been inducted into the CLHS Athletic Hall of Fame because of this fantastic accomplishment!
The class of ‘04 will always be dear to my heart. Not only were we dominating on the court, but in the stands as well! The support for our fellow classmates was unmatched! Painting our chests for football games, the costumes for home basketball games, or just the C-A-D-E-T-S cheer with our amazing cheerleaders, the class of ‘04 brought it.
I can’t wait to see what debate this blog brings, but I hope the class of 2004 shares in the same great memories as I do!
Go Cadets!!
Phil Brackmann,
Dean of Student Success
Graduate from Class of 2004