GRAND CANYON UNIVERSITY

Aug

September 2010

Oct

Thu, Sep. 02, 2010

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Did You Know...

Gaby Ngoundjo

Gaby Ngoundjo, a 6-foot-8 junior forward on the Grand Canyon University men’s basketball team, has an amazing 7-foot-5-inch wingspan. The Cameroon native played the past two seasons at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte, and was the No. 1-rated prep out of Little Rock, Ark. as a senior.

Antelope Gymnasium

Antelope Gymnasium opened in 1994 and hosts all of Grand Canyon University’s NCAA contests in men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s volleyball, wrestling and dozens of amateur tournaments, concerts and other year-round events.

Russ Pennell

Grand Canyon University head men’s basketball coach Russ Pennell guided the University of Arizona to a 21-14 record and Sweet 16 appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 2008-09, while serving as interim head coach.

Petar Draksin

Grand Canyon University head men’s soccer coach Petar Draksin has been actively involved with the Arizona Sahuaros, the premier men’s team in the state, leading them to a MPSL championship in 2003 and a runner-up finish in 2004. In 2008, the Sahuaros went to the Final Four and finished second in the nation.

Trent Bruns

GCU libero Trent Bruns was the first Antelope men’s volleyball player to earn weekly honors in the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association when he was honored as Defensive Player of the Week, Feb. 1, 2010.

Soccer Field

The Grand Canyon University Soccer Field is the home of both the men’s and women’s soccer programs, as well as the lacrosse team.

Jessica McKay

Jessica McKay was the first women’s golfer to qualify for the NCAA Championships. She finished 26th in 2008. She was joined by Georgina Dunn in 2010, who tied for 34th place in Mesa, Arizona.

Men’s Golf Program

GCU men’s golf program has qualified for four straight NCAA Division II National Championships (2006-2009) and was national runner-up in 2000. Twenty-two players have earned either NAIA or NCAA All-American honors.

Phil Cullen

Grand Canyon University University assistant men’s basketball coach Phil Cullen made seven consecutive three-pointers in a first-round NCAA Tournament game against Indiana in 2002, tying a tournament record on the way to a 25-point performance. The 6-foot-9 Cullen played collegiately at the University of Utah.

Petar Draksin 3

Men's soccer coach Petar Draksin was the co-coach at Apollo High School in Phoenix from 1985-1994, during which time Apollo made the postseason every year, advanced to the Final Four five straight years (1989-92) and won the 5A state championship in 1993.

Director of Athletics

Grand Canyon University Director of Athletics B. Keith Baker pitched on the school's first three NAIA National Championship baseball teams (1980-82). He also holds the distinction of throwing the program's most recent no-hitter against Nebraska Wesleyan University on March 11, 1982.

Anthony Boone

Grand Canyon University assistant men’s basketball coach Anthony Boone is one of only two Ole Miss student-athletes to have his number retired. The first was quarterback Archie Manning, a New Orleans Saints great and father of NFL quarterbacks Peyton and Eli Manning.

Rosalyn Nelson

GCU guard Rosalyn Nelson is the program’s all-time leader in both assists and steals. She became the steals leader during her sophomore season.

Cory Cole

During his playing days at Oklahoma Christian University, women’s basketball assistant coach Cory Cole became the school’s all-time leader in scoring and rebounding.

Geordie Hackett

Grand Canyon University head athletic trainer Geordie Hackett played for three years on the Springfield College men’s soccer team. He remains competitive by racing mountain bikes. He finished 11th out of 50 racers in the state of Arizona for his age group and race category in 2008 and 2009.

Student Recreation Center

Grand Canyon University’s new student recreation center will be a 55,000-square-ft facility featuring three basketball courts and practice facilities for wrestling, basketball and volleyball. The facility will feature men’s and women’s locker rooms, athletic training facilities and a student fitness center.

Matt Brase

Grand Canyon University men’s basketball graduate assistant Matt Brase is the grandson of legendary former University of Arizona head coach Lute Olson. He played for his grandfather as a walk-on at the U of A in 2003-04 and 2004-05, and spent the 2008-09 season as an assistant coach there under Russ Pennell, now GCU’s head coach.

Brazell Stadium

Brazell Stadium is the home of the Grand Canyon University baseball team and is named after legendary coach Dave Brazell, the founder and developer of the program and the head coach for one of the program’s NAIA national titles.

NAIA Championships

Along with four NAIA championships, the Grand Canyon University baseball program has graduated 13 players to the major leagues, most notably Angels’ great Tim Salmon and Yankees’ World Series star Chad Curtis.

Petar Draksin 2

Since 1982, GCU head men’s soccer coach Petar Draksin has coached boys and girls age groups in the Arizona Youth Soccer Association. He served as president of AYSA in 2007-08. His teams have captured more than 30 state championships and five regional crowns, and four have advanced to the Final Four.

B. Keith Baker

Athletic Director Keith Baker guided the GCU men’s golf team to three straight NCAA Division II tournaments from 2006-08. The team finished 10th in the country in 2007 after winning the PacWest Conference championship and placing second at the NCAA West Regional. In 2008 Ryan Sperry won the NCAA West Region individual title.

Stapleton-Pierson Stadium

Stapleton-Pierson Stadium is the home of the Grand Canyon University softball program. It is named for then-athletic director John Pierson and head baseball coach Dave Stapleton in honor of their efforts and determination in building the facility.

Grand Canyon University

Grand Canyon University provides an exciting campus lifestyle that includes a Student Union, Latte Dah Café, movie nights, a recreational pool, a wide variety of sports, a fully equipped exercise facility and strong spiritual life that includes chapel, The Gathering (a contemporary evening chapel), community ministries and mission trips.

Mark Nelson

In the summer of 2002, Grand Canyon University assistant men’s basketball coach Mark Nelson was selected as a coach for the U.S. Junior National Team, which included future NBA stars Carmelo Anthony, Chris Bosh and Deron Williams. He was the junior-college coach of Tony Allen, who also went on to the NBA.

Steve Schaffer

In only three years of existence, two under current head coach Steve Schaffer, the Grand Canyon University swimming program has reached national rankings for both men’s and women’s programs.

Women’s Basketball Program

GCU’s women’s basketball program has had three 1,000-point scorers and two are current players. Guards Samantha Murphy and Rosalyn Nelson rank No. 1 and No. 3 on the all-time list.

National Championship Teams

GCU’s Antelope Gym boasts four banners recognizing nine national championship teams: Men’s Basketball NAIA National Champs (1975, 1978, 1988), Baseball NAIA National Champs (1980-82, 1986), Men’s Soccer NCAA Division II National Champs (1996) and Women’s Tennis NAIA National Champs (1981).

Kris Naber

With 236 wins, GCU women’s volleyball coach Kris Naber is the winningest coach in school history. Naber, then Kris Belcher, is also one of the program’s all-time leaders in assists and digs.

Erica Ehlo

Women’s volleyball standout Erica Ehlo is the daughter of former NBA standout Craig Ehlo.

R.C. LaHaye

Grand Canyon University head wrestling coach R.C. LaHaye was a three-time NCAA Division II All-American and team captain for Western State College of Colorado. He was one of the finest wrestlers to ever pass through the storied Payson High School program, finishing with a 130-9 record and winning three state championships.