A preseason look at Great Plains Lutheran's football, volleyball and cross country teams

All three of the fall sports teams at Great Plains Lutheran High School definitely had their moments in 2023 and are looking for more of the same in 2024.

The Panthers' football team opens its season Friday by hosting Waverly-South Shore at 7 p.m. at Watertown Stadium.

GPL's volleyball team will open on Tuesday, Aug. 27 at Webster and the GPL cross country squads on Tuesday, Sept. 3 at Milbank.

Here's a look at each of the Panther squads:

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Volleyball

• Head Coach —Jacklyn Karli, second year.
• Assistants — Christa Kannas, Kelly Bergan and Emily Cantwell.
• 2023 Highlights — The Panthers went 16-13 overall and finished second in the Eastern Coteau Conference with a 5-1 record. The team lost All-ECC first team honoree Olivia Holmen, now playing at Dakota Wesleyan, and Grace Powers, now playing at Martin Luther College, to graduation.
• Top Returnees — Junior outside hitter Abby Kjenstad, an All-ECC first team selection (192 kills, 46 aces and 383 digs); senior outside hitter Esta Cameron (146 kills, 9 solo and 46 block assists and 281 digs); senior middle blocker Kaylee Carlson (149 kills and 16 solo and 64 block assists); senior setters Kaitlyn Rawerts (353 assists and 218 digs) and Madeline Prahl (362 assists and 234 digs); and senior opposite hitter Emma Dornbusch (71 digs and five solo and 48 block asssits).
• Newcomers/Others to Watch — Senior defensive specialist Myra Lentz is back this fall after missing last season with an ACL injury. Junior middle blocker Kate Holmen (14 solo and 66 block assists) is expected back at some point this fall after suffering an ACL injury in basketball last winter. Junior defensive specialist-libero Jolie Lien also is expected to see significant playing time.
• Season Outlook — GPL is returning four starters and eight letter winners from last season and will have strong leadership. "After having a successful season last fall, the girls have raised their goals and are looking forward to competing at a higher level of play," Karli said.
• Teams to Beat — The Panthers could make a bid to supplant defending champion Florence-Henry in the ECC and hope to be more competitive with fellow Region 2A schools Clark-Willow Lake, Deuel, Elkton-Lake Benton, Florence-Henry, Hamlin and Sioux Valley. Seven-time defending state champion Sioux Falls Christian, runner-up Rapid City Christian and perennial power Dakota Valley.
• Schedule — GPL has home matches scheduled for Sept. 3 (Hamlin), Sept. 5 (Tri-State), Sept. 10 (Milbank), Sept. 24 (Castlewood), Sept. 26 (Waverly-South Shore), Oct. 1 (Groton Area), Oct. 3 (Deuel), Oct. 10 (Langford Area) and Oct. 25 (Wilmot). The Region 2A tourney is scheduled for Nov. 5 & 7 with the top two teams advancing to SoDak 16 state-qualifying matches on Nov. 12. The state tourney is slated for Nov. 21-23 in Sioux Falls.

Football

• Head Coach — Aaron Schleusener, 14-50 in eight seasons with the Panthers.
• Assistants — Jason Bartels, Darin Mack, Keith Muhl, Rod Noeldner, Seth Koeppe, Pierce Holien, David Prohl and Myles York.
• 2023 Highlights — The Panthers keep improving. They went 4-5 last fall and made the state high school football playoffs for the first time since 2011. They lost a first-round Class 9AA game to Platte-Geddes, only the fourth playoff game in the 29-year history of the school.
• Top Returnees — Senior running back-defensive back Micah Holien (362 yards rushing and six touchdowns, 12 receptions for 222 yards and three TDs and 26 tackles), senior quarterback-defensive back Brody Scharlemann (743 yards passing and 10 TDs, 427 yards rushing and seven TDs and 25 tackles), senior fullback-linebacker Kowynn Muhl (182 yards rushing and 45 tackles including 3.5 quarterback sacks), Senior offensive-defensive lineman Austin Rubendall (20 tackles in only five games last season due to injury), semior wide receiver-defensive back Hayden Karli (two receptions for 82 yards and a TD and 19 tackles,), senior Greyson Liens (13 tackles including 2.5 quarterback sacks), junior tight end-defensive lineman Lucas Johnson (21 tackles) and junior center-defensive lineman William Krenz (11 tackles).

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• Others to Watch — Junior running back-defensive back Ryen Kjenstad, sophomore wide receiver-defensive back Logan Bergan and sophomore offensive-defensive lineman Aiden Cameron.
• Season Outlook — Schleusener said: "We bring back most of our backfield and some key linemen. I expect us to be fast and athletic at every position. The key will be to build depth right away with the good number of lowerclassmen that we have. We hope to continue to build on what the past teams have been able to accomplish."
• Teams to Beat — Defending champion Britton-Hecla and Waverly-South Shore should challenge for the ECC nine-man title. The league welcomes back Waubay-Summit and Wilmot, who return to nine-man football after playing Class 11B as the Dakota Hills co-op. Class 9AA should be a very competitive class with area rated teams Hamlin (No. 2) and Elkton-Lake Benton (No. 3) solid along with defending champion Parkston (No. 1) and Hanson (No. 4).
• Schedule — The Panthers also will have home games Sept. 13 against Hamlin, Sept. 27 against Britton-Hecla and Oct. 18 against Wilmot. They will play at Waubay-Summit on Aug. 30, Florence-Henry on Sept. 6, Elkton-Lake Benton on Sept. 20 and De Smet on Oct. 11. Class 9AA playoffs are scheduled for Oct. 24, Oct. 31 and Nov. 8 with the state championship set for Nov. 14 in the DakotaDome at Vermillion.

Cross Country

• Head Coach — Alex Mielke, second year.
• 2023 Highlights — The Panthers completed last fall without senior standout Halle Bauer, who was injured and is now running for South Dakota State University. GPL did qualify three runners for state and compiled four of the 15 fastest 5K times in school history. GPL's boys finished second in the Eastern Coteau Conference and narrowly missed qualifying as a team for the state Class A meet after a strong performance in Region 1A. GPL's girls took fourth in the ECC.
• Top Returnees — Boys: Senior Thad Kratz finished third in the ECC, ninth in Region 1A and 66th in the state meet; sophomore Sam Manian took fifth in the ECC, 14th in Region 1A and 86th in the state meet; junior Carter Hinners (29th in Region 1A), senior Isaiah Berg (36th in Region 1A), sophomore Sam Morris (42nd in Region 1A) and sophomore Titus Hofinga. Girls: Sophomore Chloe Berg took sixth in the ECC, 15th in Region 1A and 100th at state; senior Emma Neumann (37th in Region 1A) and senior Taylor Bendix (38th in Region 1A).

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• Others to Watch — Junior Katherine Prahl and seventh-grader Evelyn Prahl are newcomers to the girls' team that also includes Cassie Kanzenbach, Sophia Roberts and Sharon Zhang. Other boys' runners are Leo Schumacher, Seth Grams, Gavin Hinners, Treyden Keating, Will LaBerge, Asher Schaffer, Ezra Schaffer, Luke Schaeffer, Milo Schumacher, Jayden Holida-Budahl, Landon Czerwan, Marcus Kratz and Dom Clark.
• Season Outlook — Mielke said: "We are hopeful to break several more school records (top-15 5K times), win the ECC for boys and potentially send them to state as a team along with a few girls runners."
• Teams to Beat — Clark-Willow Lake and Deuel are the teams to beat in the ECC and will be tough in Region 1A along with Aberdeen Roncalli and Milbank.
• Schedule — The Panthers also have meets Sept. 5 at Redfield, Sept. 14 at Milbank, Sept. 19 at Aberdeen Roncalli, Sept. 23 at Deuel (Clear Lake), Oct. 3 at Sisseton and Oct. 7 (combined ECC and LCC meet at Clear Lake). The Region 1A meet is Oct. 17 at Webster and the state meet Oct. 26 at Rapid City.

Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly known as Twitter) @PO_Sports or email: rmerriam@thepublicopinion.com

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: A preseason look at Great Plains Lutheran's football, volleyball and cross country teams