Saada's career-high 24 kills leads GCU in victory

Saturday, February 4

Irvine, CA

1 p.m.

Grand Canyon

5-5

Concordia Irvine

9-7

GCU

Concordia, Irvine

2/4/2017 1:28:00 PM | Men's Volleyball

Box Score

By: Josh Hauser

IRVINE, Calif. - Grand Canyon earned a split of its weekend trip in California by defeating Concordia-Irvine 3-1 on Saturday afternoon. The Lopes took the match by scores of 25-21, 25-18, 24-26 and 26-24. Shalev Saada and Cullen Mosher led GCU's offensive attack with 24 and 18 kills, respectively.

"After a disappointing effort last night, today was better," head coach Matt Werle said. "Cullen and Shalev attacked heavy today. Both terminated well and were agressors."

Saada's 24 kills were a career-high and the most for any GCU player since Gerard Lipscombe had 26 on March 18, 2016. He bested his previous career high of 19 set multiple times. Mosher also set a career-high, more than doubling his previous high in kills of eight.

"There are some important takeaways from this weekend," Werle said. "We are learning more and more each day and hope to time our 'peak' correctly for April."

Grand Canyon set the tone for the match with a solid first set. The Lopes out-hit the Eagles .364 to .159. Blocks were a huge key for GCU in the first, tallying 13 blocks in comparison to Concordia-Irvine's seven. Mosher and Saada posted nine and seven kills, respectively. Grand Canyon found itself down 12-10 but scored four of the next five points to force a CUI timeout and shift the momentum in the game.

The Lopes continued their roll into the second set where they jumped out to an early 7-1 lead. Though the teams essentially traded points for the remainder of the game, Grand Canyon's early lead gave them a cushion as they went on to win comfortably 25-18. The Lopes hit a scorching .542 in the second.

Concordia-Irvine turned the tide with a third-set victory. GCU trailed 20-16 before fighting all the way back to tie the score. The final points were back-and-forth, but after the set was tied at 24, the Eagles scored two consecutively to take the game.

GCU claimed the fourth and final set in thrilling 26-24 fashion. The Lopes scored four straight points in the middle of the game to take an 18-14 lead. However, CUI countered with seven straight points of its own. Concordia-Irvine had the game-point opportunity at 24-23, but Grand Canyon rattled off three points consecutively to seal the match. GCU's final three points came on an Eagles' service error, a kill by Saada and a block by Saada and Milstein.

Next, the Lopes resume MIVA play with a trip to Quincy, Ill. Grand Canyon and Quincy will meet up for matches on Friday and Saturday with both beginning at 6 p.m. MST from Pepsi Arena.