Lopes return to Bay Area for Santa Clara Round Robin

SANTA CLARA ROUND ROBIN \| MAR. 17-19 \| SANTA CLARA SOFTBALL STADIUM \| Santa Clara, Calif.
GRAND CANYON LOPES 23-4 (0-0 WAC) Stats .pdf Link GAME NOTES	vs.	LONG BEACH STATE BEACH 7-16-1 (0-0 Big West) Stats .pdf Link GAME NOTES
HOW TO FOLLOW Live Stats Live Stats \| @GCUSoftball \| Tournament Schedule
Schedule vs. Long Beach State \| Friday, March 17 - 9:00 a.m.


GRAND CANYON LOPES 23-4 (0-0 WAC) Stats .pdf Link GAME NOTES	vs.	SANTA CLARA BRONCOS 6-14 (0-0 WCC) Stats .pdf Link GAME NOTES
HOW TO FOLLOW Live Stats Game 1, Game 2 \| @GCUSoftball
Schedule vs. Santa Clara \| Friday, March 17 - 4:30 p.m. \| Sunday, March 19 - 2:00 p.m.


GRAND CANYON LOPES 23-4 (0-0 WAC) Stats .pdf Link GAME NOTES	vs.	LEHIGH MOUNTAIN HAWKS 6-12 (0-0 Patriot League) Stats .pdf Link GAME NOTES
HOW TO FOLLOW Live Stats Live Stats \| @GCUSoftball
Schedule vs. Lehigh \| Saturday, March 17 - 11:30 a.m.


GRAND CANYON LOPES 23-4 (0-0 WAC) Stats .pdf Link GAME NOTES	vs.	NORTHWESTERN WILDCATS 6-12 (0-0 Big Ten) Stats .pdf Link GAME NOTES
HOW TO FOLLOW Live Stats Live Stats \| @GCUSoftball
Schedule vs. Northwestern \| Saturday, March 18 - 4:30 p.m.

The Grand Canyon softball team hits the road for the second of two tourneys in Northern California as they play in the Santa Clara Round Robin on Mar. 17-19. The Lopes will play Santa Clara, Northwestern, Lehigh and Long Beach State this weekend.

GCU will play in five contests over the weekend. The Lopes open the tourney on Friday, Mar. 17 against Long Beach State at 9 a.m. MST and close out the day against Santa Clara at 4:30. GCU returns to the field on Saturday, Mar.18 to meet Lehigh at 11:30, before meeting Big 10 foe Northwestern at 4:30. GCU will wrap up ball play on Sunday, Mar. 19 as they face Santa Clara for the final time at 2.

LEADING OFF

For the first time in the softball program's Division I history, GCU received Top 25 votes in the ESPN.COM/USA Softball national poll. The Lopes received two votes after improving to 23-4 last weekend.

With three triples vs. Lehigh on Saturday, GCU achieved an NCAA game-high after Camree Wartman, Jenna Coates and Sierra Smith all secured triples in the contest.

GCU picked up its first Power 5 Conference victory this season in its 11-1 rout over Pac 12 foe Stanford. This marked the first time since the 2014 season that GCU defeated a Pac 12 team, last against Oregon State. GCU has tallied five Power 5 wins since its Division I transition. With victories over Oregon State, Texas Tech, Penn State, Arkansas and Stanford.

Camree Wartman is having a great season. She is currently hitting .391 on the year. Last weekend in the Stanford Easton Classic, she hit .643 with 2 doubles, 2 triples and a home run finishing with a 1.286 slugging percentage. She is tied for first in the NCAA with 11 doubles thus far.
After earning her 13th win last weekend, Taylor Nowlin is tied with Alabama's Alexis Osorio and Arizona's Danielle O'Toole for third in the NCAA for most wins. On Saturday vs. Stanford, she allowed just five hits, with four strikeouts, with just one run through 6.0 innings tossed.
After improving to 23-4 after last weekend's three victories, the Lopes now sit in the 15th spot in the NCAA with a .852 win percentage.

Last time out

The GCU softball program went 3-2 in the Stanford Easton Classic picking up wins over Stanford, Lehigh and Cal Poly with losses to Cal Poly and UCONN. The Lopes defeated its first power five opponent this season with a 11-1 rout of the Cardinal Friday night. After splitting with Cal Poly, the Lopes came from behind to take Game 2 at 5-4 over the Mustangs. GCU shutout Lehigh in a 11-0 run-rule win, but fell to UCONN 2-1 in the tourney finale

Sizing up the Opponents

Scouting Long Beach State

Grand Canyon will meet with Long Beach State for the first time in program history.
The Beach are currently 7-16-1 on the season and recently suffered three losses Arizona, Oklahoma and Texas.
Sammi Gaveman leads the team with a .358 batting average (24-for-67). She has tallied 24 hits on the season.
In the circle, Christina Claremont (4-6) leads the team with a 3.87 ERA (38 ER/ 68.2 IP) . She has allowed 67 hits and tossed 45 strikeouts.
Head coach Kim Sowder enters her 11th season at the helm of the Long Beach State program.

Scouting Santa Clara

The Lopes last met Santa Clara during the 2015 season. GCU won both contests in a 9-3 outcome in Game 1 and a 6-2 victory in Game 2.
The Broncos are currently 6-14 on the season and recently went 2-3 at the Lobo Classic with a run-rule 13-3 victory over Stony Brook.
Junior Ellie Fisher leads the squad with a .333 batting average (23-for-69) with four RBI and a team-leading 12 runs scored.
In the circle, Vierra Micaela (3-5) owns a 3.23 ERA (20 ER/43.1 IP) with a team-leading 25 strikeouts.
Head coach Lisa Mize is in her ninth season at the helm of the Broncos softball program.

Scouting Lehigh

Grand Canyon will meet Lehigh for the second time this season after defeating the Mountain Hawks, 11-0 for the largest-margin of victory for the Lopes this season.
The Mountain Hawks are currently 6-12 on the season.
Ashley Quidolit Rabago leads the squad with a .343 batting average (12-for-35)
Christine Campbell leads in the circle with a 2.07 ERA (14 ER/47.1 IP) and a 4-3 record. She currently has 21 strikeouts on the season.
Head coach Fran Troyan is in his 22nd season with the Lehigh softball team. Troyan has led the Mountain Hawks to 19 Patriot League regular season titles, ten tournament crowns, and nine NCAA Tournament appearances.

Scouting Northwestern

Grand Canyon will face Northwestern for the first time in program history.
The Wildcats are currently 6-12 and recently went 3-2 at the Judi Garman Classic, including a 3-2 victory over the No. 23 California Bears. The Wildcats are 1-10 against ranked teams this season.
Sabrina Rabin leads the squad with a .359 batting average (23-for-64), including two doubles, four RBI and a team-high 14 runs. Kenzie Ellis follows with a .302 average (16-for-53) with two doubles, a homer and a team-leading 13 RBI.
In the circle, Ellis (2-5) owns a team-low 2.50 ERA (15 ER/42.0 IP) and a team-high 34 strikeouts.
Head coach Kate Drohan is in her 16th season at Northwestern's helm. She led the Wildcats to a pair of Big Ten Championships and back-to-back Women's College World Series semifinal appearances.

Up Next
The Lopes will return return home to host a midweek clash with No. 6 Washington on Wednesday, Mar. 22. First pitch is set for 3.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Jenna Coates

Taylor Nowlin

Shea Smith

Sierra Smith

Mariah Valencia

Camree Wartman

Grand Canyon University Athletics