Lopes open MPSF play at home

Thursday, February 8

Phoenix, Ariz.

6 P.M.

Grand Canyon

Pepperdine

Photo by: Slaven Gujic

2/7/2018 11:29:00 AM | Men's Volleyball

GCU matches up against No. 11 Pepperdine and No. 2 UCLA

By: Alex Nash


Grand Canyon Lopes (10-2, 0-0 MPSF)	vs	Pepperdine Waves (4-2, 0-0 (MPSF)	UCLA Bruins (11-1, 0-0 (MPSF)
		Thurs, Feb. 8 at 6 p.m. MST	Sat, Feb. 10 at 6 p.m. MST
		Watch Live Stats	Watch Live Stats

PHOENIX – The No. 10 ranked GCU men's volleyball team (10-2) opens Mountain Pacific Sports Federation play this week against two nationally-ranked opponents. The Lopes will host No. 11 Pepperdine (4-2) on Thursday, Feb. 8 before taking on No. 2 UCLA on Saturday, Feb. 10 with both matches set to start at 6 p.m. (MST).

GCU stayed at its No. 10 ranking in this week's AVCA poll while Thursday opponent Pepperdine moved up one spot and UCLA stayed put. This will be the second time this year Antelope Gym has played host to a ranked team with the last being then-No. 6 UCI on Jan. 20. The matches will be the Lopes debut in the MPSF.

The Lopes increased their win streak to four this past weekend with hard fought road wins against Lindenwood and McKendree. GCU had to battle back from set deficits in both matches but came away with wins behind strong outings from Cullen Mosher and others. Mosher led the Lopes with 27 kills on the weekend and a .346 hitting percentage while adding 20 digs and six blocks. Mosher also posted his first double-double of the year with a 12 kill and 12 dig performance against Lindenwood.

Several Lopes are still on leaderboards in the MPSF rankings following week five. Ashton King ranks fifth in the conference in hitting percentage posting a .402 mark to go along with 58 kills. Puna Kaniho is third in the conference in assists with 321 and his 9.73 assists per set match has helped GCU to a team hitting percentage of .312 which ranks tenth in the NCAA. Sky Engleman and his 80 digs are second most in the conference to go along with his 1.86 digs per set which ranks seventh.

As a team GCU is second in the conference standings as conference play begins and only trail Saturday's opponent, UCLA. The Lopes rank second in digs in addition to ranking third in opponent hitting percentage, hitting percentage and blocks within the MPSF.

The two home matches mark the beginning of a four game home stand which continues next week as BYU and Stanford come to Phoenix. The BYU match will be GCU's only match in GCU Arena.

SCOUTING REPORT

Pepperdine (4-2) | MPSF | Thursday, 6 p.m.
The Waves come into Thursday's matchup riding a three match win streak with their last coming against Princeton on Feb. 3. The match against GCU will also be their conference opener after being selected to finish third in the MPSF Preseason Coaches Poll, GCU was voted to finish sixth. Offensively Pepperdine is led by Colby Harriman and his 65 kills as well as Alex Harthaller and his 58 kills and team-leading 12 aces. On defense, Weston Barnes leads in digs with 54 and they have five players with double-digit blocks this season. This will be the second meeting between the two sides with the first coming in 2010 when the Waves swept the Lopes.

UCLA (11-2) | MPSF| Saturday, 6 p.m.
The Bruins come to Phoenix boasting a No. 2 national ranking and one loss coming on the road against Hawai'i. They have faced six ranked opponents this year and have a 5-1 record to show for it. UCLA is currently on a four game win streak that features 3-1 wins over Hawai'i and UCI. They lead the MPSF in every offensive category and are led by Christian Hessenauer and his 122 kills with a .307 hitting percentage. Their setter Micah Ma'a leads the conference with 433 assists and posts a 10.56 assists per set mark. On defense, the Bruins have five players with double-digit blocks with Daenan Gyimah leading the way with 46. This will be the second meeting between the Lopes and Bruins with the last coming in 2010 resulting in 0-3 loss for GCU.