Lopes set for WAC Championship

PHONEIX – The Grand Canyon men's golf team are set to close out the season at the Western Athletic Conference Championship. The Lopes will travel to Blaine, Wash. to compete in an eight-team field at Loomis Trail Golf Club.

Before heading into the WAC Championships, here is a look at GCU by the numbers this season:

	The Lopes finished in second place in two tournaments this season. The first second-place finish came at the Herb Wimberly Invite, located in Las Cruces, N.M. hosted by New Mexico State on Oct. 19-20. With three players finishing in the top-25, including Alex Kline placing tied for fifth, the Lopes finished 19-over as a team. The second runner-up finish occurred on April 11-12 at the OGIO UC Santa Barbara Invitational, located in Santa Barbara, California. Leading the Lopes on the course, Brett Wilson finished in seventh place at even-par for the tournament.
	Led by three-year Head Coach Mark Mueller, the Lopes will play in three rounds at the WAC Championships over a three day span, April 30 – May 2 in Blaine, Wash. at the Loomis Trail Golf Club. Designed by Graham Cookie, the course is the only course in Washington state to be featured on The Golfer Magazine's Top 100 Resorts in the World. The Lopes face a challenge this weekend as an extensive canal and lake system brings water into play on all 18 holes, resulting in Loomis Trail to have one of the highest slope ratings in the state.
	At the OGIO UC Santa Barbara Invitational, the Lopes finished in second place with four players placing in the top-15. In GCU's last tournament, Wilson led the squad with a seventh place finish, followed by Kline in a tie for eighth place after shooting an over-1. Right behind the two leaders, Billy Comeaux finished tied for 12th with a 3-over and Jake Byrum placed tied for 15th at 4-over. It was the only tournament, the Lopes had more than two players place in the top-15.
	Grand Canyon has finished in the top-six in five tournaments this season. In just the third tournament of the season, the Lopes finished in fourth place at the Cowboy Southern Dunes on Oct. 3-4. The Lopes continued their hot streak after placing in two second-place finishes and two six-places finishes in a row at the Folino Invitational on Feb. 15-16 and Sacramento State Invitational on Mar. 7-8. During the course of the season, the Lopes also had five players finishing in the top-10. Wilson and Kline led the Lopes with two top-10 finishes each on the season while Andres Caballero finished tied for eighth during the Herb Wimberly Invite.
	The Lopes competed in 10 tournaments this season, including three contests in the state of Arizona. Grand Canyon finished with three top-5 finishes with and six top-10 finishes. Coming off their second runner-up finish, the Lopes will look to finish the season off with a WAC Championship title.

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Players Mentioned

Jake Byrum

Andres Caballero

Billy Comeaux

Alex Kline

Brett Wilson

Grand Canyon University Athletics