GCU's season ends in first round

Wednesday, November 8

Las Vegas, Nev.

8:00 p.m.

Grand Canyon

7-11-1

UNLV

11-9-0

Grand Canyon

UNLV

Photo by: Sam Wasson/WAC

11/8/2017 11:29:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

No. 7 Lopes fall to No. 2 UNLV in closest match of tournament's first round

By: Josh Hauser

LAS VEGAS - Grand Canyon's season came to a close with a hard-fought 2-1 loss at the hands of No. 2-seeded UNLV on the Rebels' home pitch in the first round of the WAC Tournament on Wednesday night. The Lopes well outplayed their No. 7-seed billing, but were left searching for the second equalizer after tying the score at 1-1 early in the second half.

"I thought our boys really played well," head coach Schellas Hyndman said. "They fought all the way down to the last second. It's tough to go on the road. I thought this was one of our best performances from the beginning to the end -- a good game. I hate to end the season the way it's ended, but I'm really proud of the boys."

UNLV got on the board first on a goal from WAC Offensive Player of the Year, Danny Musovski.

The 1-0 deficit didn't hinder the GCU attack as the Lopes drew a foul in the box, setting up a successful penalty kick try for Niki Jackson. The equalizer ended up being Jackson's 41st and final goal in a GCU uniform, a mark that ranks third in program history.

Moments later, it was Josh Drack's stiffest competition in the WAC Freshman of the Year race, UNLV's Marco Gonzalez, that scored the game-winner off of a free kick. Gonzalez bent the ball to the right of GCU's wall and into the right corner of the net. The Rebels' 59th minute goal put a cap on the match's scoring.

It was the final action for six GCU seniors (Jordan Slack, Charlie Keating, Amer Sasivarevic, Niki Jackson, Khadim Seye and Aidan McGlothan).

"We talked about how quickly this time goes by," Hyndman said of the seniors. "They're the first men's soccer team to make it into the WAC Tournament. These have been wonderful memories. I thought that the seniors really put everything they could forward and we're proud of them. It's a shame that we didn't get the result we so desperately wanted."

Some of the game's action revealed the bright future of GCU soccer, with Marco Afonso and Josh Drack delivering pinpoint free kicks into the box and Musa Morris Demos firing an accurate shot on goal in the 43rd minute.

"We're sad about losing the seniors, but we also see some bright players here," Hyndman said. "Musa really came on about midway through the year after recovering from his injury. This has been a really good year for our young players to understand the college game, the travel that's involved and the level of competition. I see good things coming in the future for our young players."

A pair of seniors-to-be in Damian German and Evan Waldrep showed much of what can be expected in 2018. German was the one making things happen in the attacking third, while Waldrep controlled the midfield during his time on the pitch.

"In the start of the game with Evan in, you could see how much we really controlled the midfield," Hyndman said. "It really made a difference on how well everybody else was playing. I thought that Evan was an inspiration to the team coming back from injury. It was good to see Niki score. Damian had an outstanding game. I could just go through the whole list. I thought it was an even match all the way down to the end."

Redshirt freshman Jeremy Pollard made a pair of highlight-worthy saves to keep GCU within arm's reach. The Lopes' keeper ended the evening with six saves.

Grand Canyon's last gasp came in the final 60 seconds when a ball appeared to strike the arm of a UNLV defender during a GCU attack in the box. Despite a protest from the GCU sideline, the official waved play on and the Rebels cleared.

The WAC Tournament continues play on Friday and Sunday, with all of the higher-seeded teams advancing. An NCAA automatic bid will be hashed out between No. 1 Air Force, No. 2 UNLV, No. 3 Seattle U and No. 4 San José State. GCU and UNLV played, by far, the tightest match of the first round of the tournament despite featuring teams with the largest disparity in seeding.

The Lopes wrap up the season at 7-11-1 and gain valuable postseason experience as the program looks to continue its rise next season.