Lopes head to Seattle for first conference road trip

Friday, April 8

Seattle, Wash.

6:30 p.m.

Grand Canyon

Seattle U

4/7/2016 9:51:00 AM | Softball

By: Imani Suber

GCU vs. Seattle U.
April 8-9 || Seattle, Wash. || Logan Field

Live stats |

WAC Digital Network - Seattle U Video | @GCUSoftball

PHOENIX - The GCU softball team heads to Seattle, Wash. for its first conference road trip and will meet Seattle U. at Logan Field on Friday and Saturday. The Lopes look to bounce back from their 1-2 performance on opening weekend and come back home with their first series victory of the conference season.

For the series, Game 1 will be featured on the WAC Digital Network at 4 p.m. MST. The remaining games will be featured on the Seattle U. live video stream. Live stats will be available for the entire series.

A Glance Back
The Lopes went 1-2 against UMKC last weekend at Stapleton-Pierson Stadium, falling to 26-12 and 1-2 in WAC play. Although, GCU dropped the final two games of the series, the Lopes continued to hit on all cylinders as they out-hit the 'Roos, combining for 28 hits and 16 runs. The Lopes finished the series hitting .297 with two doubles, a triple and five home runs.

At the plate for the Lopes, Camree Wartman went 6-for-10 with two doubles and two runs scored in the series. The junior leads all WAC batters with a .415 batting average on the season. Wartman went 4-for-4 with two doubles and a run scored in Game 2 against the 'Roos. Sierra Smith finished the series 5-for-10 with a triple, homer, three RBI and three runs scored. The freshman ranks fifth in the conference with a .567 slugging percentage. Smith went 1-for-3 with a homer and two RBI in the series finale on Sunday.

In the circle, Taylor Nowlin (13-3) picked up the Lopes lone win, yielding two ER in 7.0 innings with six strikeouts in GCU's 4-2 victory over UMKC. On the weekend, the junior allowed seven ER in 11.2 innings tossed with 10 strikeouts. Nowlin leads all WAC pitchers with a 2.23 ERA, .191 opponent average, 113.0 innings pitched, 108 strikeouts and 13 wins.

Sizing Up the Opponent

The Redhawks (14-22, 0-3 WAC) are 3-4 in the last seven games, losing three straight games to New Mexico State. Seattle U is batting .259 as team, ranking third in the WAC. Seattle U also ranks second in WAC for team fielding (.955 fielding percentage) and fourth for team pitching (4.20 ERA).

Leading Seattle U at the plate, Paige Bouska is hitting .367 (47-for-128), ranking fifth in hits and eighth in batting average in the conference. The junior adds five doubles, two triples, nine RBI and a team-leading 20 runs on the season. Also producing in the batter's box, Isabella Geronimo is batting .275 (30-for-109) with team-high 20 RBI, ranking tied for ninth in the WAC. The senior also ranks third in the conference with 11 doubles on the year.

In the circle for the Redhawks, Andie Larkins (8-9) owns a team-best 3.92 ERA (56 ER in 100.0 IP), ranking eighth in the WAC. The freshman's 100.0 innings tossed ranks second in the conference, only behind Grand Canyon's Taylor Nowlin (113.0 IP). The freshman earned Feb. 22-28 Pitcher-of-the-Week honors after going 2-1 with a 1.33 ERA and nine strikeouts.

Facing Seattle U

Since 2014, Grand Canyon is 4-2 in six games against Seattle U. On the road, the Lopes are 2-1 at the Redhawks. Outscoring the Redhawks 36-19 in the previous two seasons, the Lopes look to extend the all-time record this weekend in Seattle.

In 2015, the Lopes hosted Seattle and took the series, 2-1. They outscored the Redhawks 24-11. In Game 1 and 3 victories, the Lopes run-ruled the Redhawks by the scores of 11-3 (6 innings) and 9-1 (5 innings). In Game 1, Taylor Nowlin earned the victory in 5.0 innings of relief. She yielded two earned runs with six strikeouts. Kayla Henry and Haley Walker added the offensive attack and combined for five hits, one RBI and four runs scored. In Game 3, Kailey Regester earned the win, tossing 3.0 scoreless innings with one strikeout. Walker went 3-for-4 with a double, two RBI and a run scored. Bianca Boling was 2-for-3 with three RBI.

WAC-tastic Antelopes
10237

Although the Lopes finished opening weekend of WAC play 1-2, GCU continues to command the leader boards in the Western Athletic Conference in hits (381), doubles (74), hits per game (10.03), runs scored (248), sacrifice bunts (29) and in RBI (225). The Lopes remain a top the conference in batting average (.354). In the circle, GCU leads the conference in both batters struck out (178), opposing batting average (.255), strikeouts per game (5.11) and wins (26).

Individually, GCU's Shea Smith, Sierra Smith, Taylor Nowlin, Camree Wartman and Nicole Newbury are among the current slate of category leaders in the conference to date. Camree Wartman took the lead in WAC batting average (.415). She continues to lead the WAC with 15 doubles, runs scored (40), runs per game (1.05) and hits (54). Newbury continues to lead the category with .13 strikeouts per game through 130 at bats. Sierra Smith is now tied for first with four triples on the season. In the slugging percentage categories four Lopes sit in the top 10 (Camree Wartman, Shea Smith, Sierra Smith, Madelyn Dowdle), while three are among the top 10 in batting average (Shea Smith, Camree Wartman and Nicole Newbury). Shea Smith also leads the WAC with the longest hit streak for her 14-game stint (Feb. 12 to Feb. 26) achieved earlier this season. Wartman, Smith and Newbury continue to occupy the top three spots in hits category.

In the circle, Nowlin currently leads the WAC in seven different categories. She continues to dominate the strikeout category (108) with a comfortable 26-strikeout lead. She also leads in opposing batting average (.191), ERA (2.23), wins (13) and is tied for first with three saves. Nowlin also has a WAC leading 113.0 innings pitched and also leads in appearances (27). Bailey Bergman is now No. 7 in ERA (3.79), while Kailey Regester is tied for fourth with seven wins.

WAC Pitching	OP/BA	ERA	WAC Team Batting	Avg.	Hits
GCU	.255	3.24	GCU	.354	381
CSU Bakersfield	.279	3.67	NMST	.346	343
NMST	.281	3.17	Seattle U	.259	237
UMKC	.292	4.53	Utah Valley	.255	187
Seattle U	.306	4.20	UMKC	.253	180
Utah Valley	.330	5.95	CSU Bakersfield	.245	196

WAC Player of the Week
The Lopes have garnered five WAC Player-of-the-Week accolades this season. Throughout March GCU had four consecutive weeks with either a conference hitter- or pitcher-of-the-week honor, most recently Brittany Medina, who was rewarded for her performance in Week 7 of play. On the pitching end, Taylor Nowlin has been awarded twice and Bailey Bergman earned her first-career in Week 4. On the hitting side, Shea Smith earned her first hitter-of-the-week award for her performance in the Easton Tournament in Fullerton, Calif.

First-Inning Fire
The Lopes have made runs rain in the first inning this season. With a combined .412 batting average in the opening frame which includes 73 runs and 84 hits and an solid slugging percentage of .642, GCU has seen its best productivity early in contests. In the first inning, the Lopes have outscored opponents 74-30. GCU is 19-5 in scoring in the opening frame and is 17-3 after leading in the first. In the hits category, the Lopes have out-hit opponents 22-6. On the year, GCU has also run-ruled nine opponents.

Through 38 games this season, the Lopes have outscored their opponents 248 to 152. GCU's largest margin of victory was 18 runs, with one 10-run victory, one nine-run win and seven victories by eight runs. The Lopes have also amassed seven shutouts.

Offensive Confidence
The Lopes offense has been on fire since Day 1. GCU sits among the nation's elite in batting average, doubles, doubles per game, win percentage, runs scored and slugging percentage.

The Lopes' bats have become an offensive juggernaut with top-25 positions in slugging percentage (.519), scoring (6.63) and moved into the fifth spot in batting average (.354) among their Division I counterparts. GCU continues to lead the country in hits (381), occupy the second spot with 74 doubles and are fourth with 1.95 doubles per game. At 26-12, GCU is currently among the Top 50 in win percentage (.684) and currently occupy the No. 44 spot nationwide.

RBI on Watch
The Lopes fell to No. 51 in the Ratings Percentage Index released Monday, April 4 by the NCAA. Although the Lopes lost their first conference series, GCU has secured 26 victories to date. This season, they've had the best RPI rankings by far in program history. GCU debuted at No.45 on opening week of the RPI standings. In Week 7, the Lopes rose three places to No. 43 after sweeping Loyola Marymount. Their quality opponents have been a significant factor in how it matches up on the national scale. GCU has faced four ranked opponents this season and a total of six from the power five conferences.

Batting Bliss

Shea Smith and Camree Wartman have been in batter's bliss this season. With batting averages of .415 and .395 these Lopes continue to wow at the plate. These offensive juggernauts have landed among the country's top tier talent in their respective categories. Wartman (54) and Smith's (51) hits totals land in the top 15 nationwide. Wartman now leads the team with a .415 batting average while Smith is just behind with a .395 average. Wartman maintains the team lead with 15 doubles. In the team's series against UMKC, Wartman hit .600 (6-of-10) with three runs scored and two doubles in Week 8. She posted a .800 slugging percentage and a .636 on-base percentage including a perfect showing in Game 2 of the series where she went 4-for-4.

Shea Smith continues to prove reliable in tough situations. Although the Lopes fell in back-to-back contests, Smith was instrumental the team's comeback efforts on both nights. She highlighted her weekend with a three-run home run in Game 3 that tied the game at 5-5 and in Game 2 she blasted a ball through the right side for a two-out single that plated two Lopes and put GCU within two in the team's comeback attempt in Saturdays contest.

Young Guns
The freshmen Lopes have been phenomenal at the plate this year. In the WAC series opener against UMKC, the freshmen accounted for three of the five home runs and recorded one two-run homer and one three-run homer. On the year, they have been responsible for 56 percent of the team's 30 home runs to date. With 17 home runs between the young talent, they have amassed nine home runs with one or more on base, with six three-run home runs, four two-run homers and two grand slams. On the season, the freshmen have combined for 108 runs from 163 hits with 116 RBI and 24 doubles with three with slugging percentages above .500. Shea Smith, Sierra Smith and Taylor Kaye account for all seven triples on the team. Both Sierra Smith and Madelyn Dowdle lead the squad with five homers a piece.

Both Shea Smith and Dowdle have been perfect at the plate in multiple contests. Dowdle was perfect in two contests against DePaul (3-of-3) and UNLV (4-of-4) and became the first Lope this season to produce two perfect outings during the same weekend during the Easton Tourney in Fullerton, Calif. Smith also had a perfect day at the plate against Arkansas while in Fullerton. She was perfect from the field in the team's victory over UNLV (4-of-4) for the second time this season. She collected her first perfect outing in Week 1 against UMBC (2-of-2).

Nowlin Keeps Rollin'
Taylor Nowlin has been in a class of her own. Nowlin is now 13-3 and has continued to shut down opponents in the circle. In the WAC opener, Nowlin collected her 13th win and held UMKC to two runs from seven hits through 7.0 innings tossed. She struck out six. On the year, she has put in work through 113.0 innings pitched with a 2.23 ERA from 36 earned runs. She has held her opponents to a .191 batting average and now has 108 strikeouts on the season.

Nowlin Becomes GCU All-Time Strikeout Leader
Junior Taylor Nowlin has now surpassed the GCU all-time strikeout record. Nowlin achieved the feat against Saint Francis, Wednesday, March 2 when she tossed nine strikeouts on the day to claim the record, previously held by Stephanie Pesqueira. The junior has now amassed 278 career strikeouts with 108 strikeouts on the season thus far.

Lope to Watch: Nicole Newbury

Senior infielder Nicole Newbury has started all 38 games, hitting .369 (48-for-130) with seven doubles, a homer, 20 RBI and 29 runs scored. In her last six games, Newbury has a home run, three RBI and four runs scored. In the series finale against the 'Roos, Newbury went 2-for-5 with a solo homer. In the WAC, the senior ranks third in hits (48), fifth in runs (29) and sixth in batting average (.369). She continues to lead the WAC with 0.19 strikeouts on the season.