RIVER FOREST, Ill. – The first week of Concordia University Chicago (CUC) is in the books. Check out how all our teams did and what's ahead this week.
 
Women's Soccer (1-2, 0-0)
The Cougars played three non-conference games this week.
 
Women's soccer opened the season on Tuesday, September 1, at home against University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.  Despite falling 4-0, Katelyn Wagner (Lagrange, Ky.) shined in net, securing a career-high 14 saves.
 
Then on Saturday, CUC hosted the DePauw University Tigers. Natalie Flores (Placentia, Calif.) led the Cougars' offense with three shots while Naomi Gonzales (Santa Rosa, Calif.) held it down in goal, recording eight saves. Unfortunately, the Cougars lost 1-0.
 
Concordia picked up their first victory of the season on Labor Day. Fantastic team play and offensive pressure allowed the Cougars to defeat the Buccaneers of Beloit College, 3-0. Erika Flores (Oxnard, Calif.), Stacey Maskery (Alfreton, England), and Izzy Fairless (Royal Oak, Mich.) each recorded a goal for the maroon and gold. This also marks the first win under new head coach, Patrick Elster.
 
This week, the Cougars play three more non-conference games. The squad will travel on Tuesday, September 8, to University of St. Francis in Joliet, Ill. for a 7:00 pm start time. Then on Thursday, September 10, CUC will take on Lake Forest College at 4:30 pm. Finally, the Cougars will return home on Sunday, September 13, and welcome Kalamazoo College to Concordia Stadium. Kickoff will be at noon.
 
Men's Soccer (1-1, 0-0)
CUC men's soccer kicked off the season with two non-conference games.
On Wednesday, September 2, the team welcomed Eureka College to River Forest. After strong defensive play, the Cougars secured a 1-0 victory. This marks the first win under new head coach Graham Brennan and the first time the Cougars opened the season with a win since 2021. In his collegiate debut, Sergio Barragan Jr. (Cicero, Ill.) scored the winning goal while veteran goalkeeper Nethan Gudiel (Chicago, Ill.) recorded three saves.
 
Then the Cougars hosted Hope College on Saturday, September 5. It was a tough battle, and the Dutchmen came out on top, 9-0. Gudiel and Chase Zizak (Muskegon, Mich.) split time in goal, combining for five saves.
 
This week the Cougars compete in two non-conference games. On Tuesday, September 8, CUC takes on Augustana College in Rock Island, Ill. at 7:00 pm. Then on Friday, September 11, Concordia welcomes Governors State University to River Forest for a 2:00 pm kickoff.
 
Women's Volleyball (3-2, 0-0)
The Cougars competed in five matches this week.
 
The season opened with a home match against North Central College on Tuesday, September 1. The Cougars never gave up, battling through intense tight sets, but ultimately fell 3-0. Indiah Day (Merrillville, Ind.) led the squad with five kills and three service aces, along with six digs. Debanhi Moreno (Dallas, Texas) made her collegiate debut and picked up five kills, one service ace, and three digs. Ava Quevedo (Colorado Springs, Colo.) recorded five blocks while Malainna Adler (Fenton, Mo.) tallied 14 assists and ten digs.
 
The Cougars then hosted the Concordia-Chicago Quad on September 4-5. On day one, the squad swept the day with two huge wins. First, CUC defeated Knox College, 3-1. Day led the Cougars' offense with 17 kills. Moreno followed with nine kills. Harmonie Cooper (Chicago, Ill.) impressed with eight kills, two service aces, and two blocks. Match two was a fierce five set battle that saw the Cougars come out on top, 3-2. Day once again led the squad with 16 kills while also picking up four digs and two blocks. Brynn Icenogle (Brentwood, Calif.) had an all-around game, recording eight kills, two blocks, and three digs.
 
On day two, the Cougars opened the day with a 3-0 sweep over Blackburn College. Neva Foster (Parker, Colo.) led CUC offensively with 11 kills. Rachel Livesay (Medinah, Ill.) left her mark on the court, registering eight kills, one service ace, one block, two assists, and six digs. Quevedo followed with seven kills, an assist, and two blocks. The final match ended in a 3-0 defeat to Buena Vista University. Day led the squad with six kills, seven digs, and a block.  Beatriz Goncalves (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) recorded eight assists.
 
The Cougars will recover and play one match this week. They host Eureka at 6:00 pm on Wednesday, September 9.
 
Cross Country
Both cross country teams began racing on Friday, September 4 at the Flyer Early Bird Invite, hosted by Lewis University in Romeoville, Ill.
 
The men's team finished sixth of eight teams. Gael Arroyo (Cicero, Ill.) paced the Cougars, finishing 34^th overall with a time of 22:12.9. Nathaniel Boksa (Norridge, Ill.) followed with a time of 22:57.5.  Julien Saltos (Chicago, Ill.), Elijah Klug (Springfield, Ill.), Dominic Carlson (Loves Park, Ill.) completed the top five finishers.
 
The women's team finished eighth of ten teams.  Danielle Giovenco (Hoffman Estates, Ill.) led the Cougars, finishing 39^th overall with a time of 18:41.2. Following Giovenco was Lydia Becker (Valparaiso, Ind.), who made her collegiate debut with a time of 19:55.2. Sarah Redhage (Lowden, Iowa), Breanna Walters (Poplar Grove, Ill.), and Lydia Anderson (Carpentersville, Ill.) rounded out the top five.
 
The Cougars will be back to compete in their next race on Saturday, September 19^th, when they travel to Warrenville, Ill. for the Gil Dodds Invite. The men's race will be at 10:00 am and the women's race will be at 10:45 am.
 
Women's Tennis (0-1, 0-0)
The women's tennis team kicked off its season on Friday, September 4. Lawrence University came to River Forest and defeated the Cougars, 7-0. At No. 2 doubles, Brianna Bentz (Whitehall, Mich.), who made her debut for the maroon and gold, paired up with Hannah Upole (Hinkley, Ohio). The duo proved to be a force to be reckoned with, narrowly falling 7-6. The duos of Amelia Engelman (McKinney, Texas) and Amirah Shakir (Dekalb, Ill.) and Sarah Gustafson (Merrill, Wis.) and Abigail Krueger (Brookfield, Ill.), who made her collegiate debut, both fell in their respective doubles matches, 6-2. Upole forced her singles match to a third set, but fell 1-6, 6-1, 5-10. Shakir, Krueger, Bentz, and Gustafson all secured points in their singles matches but fell to their opponents.
 
This week, the Cougars play two matches. CUC hosts Ripon College at 4:00 pm on Wednesday, September 9. Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference (NACC) play begins on Saturday, September 12, when the Falcons of Concordia University Wisconsin (CUW) comes to CUC Courts. The match will begin at 12:00 pm.
 
Men's Tennis (0-0, 0-0)
The men's tennis team begins competition on Sunday, September 13. The Cougars host Indiana University East at 12:00 pm.
 
Football (1-0, 0-0)
The Cougars faced University of Minnesota-Morris in the season opener and came out on top 52-19.
 
Colton Bosch (Coopersville, Mich.) led the Cougars offensively with 13completed passes for a total of 197 yards with one interception and a rushing touchdown. Joron Brown (St. Joseph, Mich). led on the ground with a combined 148 yards and two touchdowns. Korey Randle (East Moline, Ill.)  finished with one touchdown and led with 70 yards with his longest reception being 34 yards. Kadin Stroer (Warrenton, Mo.) led the defense with eight tackles and two defensive touchdowns including a pick-six and fumble recovery contributing to CUC offensively. On the defensive end, Tyrell Luther (Arcadia, Fla.) had a field day with two solo sacks and four tackles. Jeremiah Wilson (Channahon, Ill.) blocked a punt return for a 20-yard touchdown.
 
This week, the Cougars stay home and host Grinnell College at 1:00 pm on Saturday, September 12.
 
You can keep up with all things CUC Athletics on X @CUChicagoSports, watch all the action at cucougars.com/coverage, and view all photos from the seasons here.