Lopes stay hot, sweep again

Friday, March 9

Phoenix, Ariz.

6 P.M.

Grand Canyon

14-6, 2-4

Mount Olive

11-7, 7-2

Team	1	2	3	Final F
Mount Olive	21	22	18	0
Grand Canyon	25	25	25	3

3/9/2018 8:34:00 PM | Men's Volleyball

Box Score

GCU only needed three sets to extend their winning streak against Mount Olive

By: Alex Nash

PHOENIX – For the second time in as many nights the Lopes left the court with a sweep, defeating Mount Olive on Friday night. Set scores were 25-21, 25-22 and 25-18. The win moves GCU to 14-6 on the year while the Trojans fall to 11-7.

The Lopes led the Trojans in all categories on the night. GCU tallied 37 kills, 33 assists, 22 digs, six blocks and seven aces while hitting at a .373 mark. The Trojans were held to one ace, and a .263 hitting percentage which included a .048 third set.

"I am pleased with our effort tonight." Said head coach Matt Werle following the match. "It's nice to have Cody Williams back on track offensively. Our middles were great again tonight on the offensive side of the ball."

Williams was all over the court tonight, recording five kills with a .714 hitting percentage, two blocks and five digs. Caleb Blazer and Will Schwob led in the kill's category with eight and each hit over .300. Shalev Saada shined from the service line tonight with four aces, tying his career high. Puna Kaniho notched 30 assists and teamed up with Ashton King to lead the Lopes in blocks with three.

GCU jumped out to leads early and often throughout the match and set that tone early going up 4-1 thanks to kills by Schwob. The Lopes held the lead despite a Trojan comeback effort that had the set within two, 18-16. Schwob, Mosher and Blazer each notched kills to widen the margin and ultimately win the set, 25-21.

The second set mirrored the first as the Lopes went up 4-1 following a Scwhob kill. Mount Olive fought back to close the gap but a triple block from Williams, King and Kaniho put a halt to their momentum and the Lopes held steady on their way to a 25-22 set win.

Set number three saw the Lopes trailing for the first time in the match with Mount Olive up 7-10. GCU would not stay down, using a 4-0 run powered by Trevor Weary, Williams and back-to-back Saada aces to retake the lead. The two sides battled, each trying to pull away until the Lopes held a 17-16 lead. GCU would succeed in pulling away, recording six of the final seven points which included two Trojan errors that put an end to the match.

Werle has been happy with his team's performance of late but knows there is still work to be done; "We have done a much better job executing the scouting reports lately, but the guys need to still read the game and see plays develop. Our blocking struggled tonight and that will be our main focus tomorrow."

Looking ahead

After playing two matches today, the Trojans will follow suit with two more tomorrow taking on Ottawa (Ariz.) and GCU. The Lopes look to extend their win streak to four with the second tilt against the Trojans scheduled to start at 6 p.m. (MST).