Completed Event: Softball at Colorado State on May 2, 2026 , Win , 11, to, 2 , (5 inn.)
Softball
at Colorado State
W 11-2
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Sunday, March 4
Phoenix, Ariz.
11:00 AM
Grand Canyon
12-10
12
vs
3
South Dakota
6-15
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Runs R | Hits H | Errors E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Dakota | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 4 |
| Grand Canyon | 4 | 5 | 3 | 0 | X | 12 | 8 | 1 |
Golden Gonzalez: Lopes claim tournament finale
3/4/2018 1:38:00 PM | Softball
Senior tallies grand slam, six RBI
PHOENIX, Ariz. – A grand slam in the bottom of the first and a two-out 2 RBI double in the second secured six RBI for senior Niki Gonzalez and the game for the Grand Canyon softball team, as the Lopes (12-10) claimed the tournament finale and rematch against South Dakota (6-15), 12-3, in five innings of play on Sunday afternoon.
"This was a great way to end the weekend," head coach Ann Pierson said. "I'm proud of the kids and their approach to this game after getting beat on Friday. South Dakota is a very strong hitting team and we were ready to battle.
"Alexa Coons did a great job setting the tone in the first inning and shutting them down. Her only lapse was in the fourth and we need all of the pitchers to maintain their focus and edge even with a big lead.
"Our offense got right to work with Loriann (Olson) getting on base with a hard hit. Niki (Gonzalez) came up big with the grand slam and we kept the momentum going throughout the game."
Gonzalez was 2-3 on the day with two runs, six RBI a home run and a double. The yard ball was her fourth of the season.
Junior Sierra Smith was 2-3 as well with two runs, four RBI, a home run and a double. Sophomore Jordon Keeton finished the day 1-1 with two runs, a double and a walk, while the pair of senior Bianca Boling and junior Taylor Kaye were 1-2.
Freshman pitcher Alexa Coons earned the win in today's game with three strikeouts. The victory is her sixth of the season.
"Sierra's home run was the final nail and she hit the ball well all weekend," Pierson said. "We had a great attack plan at the plate. I challenged a few of the kids and they stepped up big today. We talked about cleaning up the little mistakes that came back to bite us big this weekend.
"We want to play at the next level and we need to make some tweaks to do that. The kids have raised the bar and I'm excited to see what we look like when we're playing to our capabilities."
The two-out grand slam from Gonzalez quickly put GCU up, 4-0, at the end of the first frame for a hot start from the plate.
Loriann Olson reached on an error in the second, but the Lopes brought Kaye home for the score on the play for the 5-0 lead.
GCU added another run with a one-out RBI double from Sierra Smith to give the Lopes a 6-0 lead in the bottom of the second. However, the Lopes weren't done in that frame as a two-out 2 RBI double from Gonzalez increased the GCU lead to 8-0.
Junior Madelyn Dowdle reached on an error to send Gonzalez home to put the Lopes ahead by nine at the end of the second frame.
A three-run home run for Sierra Smith in the bottom of the third put GCU ahead, 12-0. The homer was Sierra's third of the season.
South Dakota tacked on a trio of runs in the top of the fourth frame, but the Lopes defense shut it down in the top of the fifth to end the game.
The Lopes close out the Lopes Up Classic on Tuesday when they face Valparaiso in a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. (MT).
"This was a great way to end the weekend," head coach Ann Pierson said. "I'm proud of the kids and their approach to this game after getting beat on Friday. South Dakota is a very strong hitting team and we were ready to battle.
"Alexa Coons did a great job setting the tone in the first inning and shutting them down. Her only lapse was in the fourth and we need all of the pitchers to maintain their focus and edge even with a big lead.
"Our offense got right to work with Loriann (Olson) getting on base with a hard hit. Niki (Gonzalez) came up big with the grand slam and we kept the momentum going throughout the game."
Gonzalez was 2-3 on the day with two runs, six RBI a home run and a double. The yard ball was her fourth of the season.
Junior Sierra Smith was 2-3 as well with two runs, four RBI, a home run and a double. Sophomore Jordon Keeton finished the day 1-1 with two runs, a double and a walk, while the pair of senior Bianca Boling and junior Taylor Kaye were 1-2.
Freshman pitcher Alexa Coons earned the win in today's game with three strikeouts. The victory is her sixth of the season.
"Sierra's home run was the final nail and she hit the ball well all weekend," Pierson said. "We had a great attack plan at the plate. I challenged a few of the kids and they stepped up big today. We talked about cleaning up the little mistakes that came back to bite us big this weekend.
"We want to play at the next level and we need to make some tweaks to do that. The kids have raised the bar and I'm excited to see what we look like when we're playing to our capabilities."
The two-out grand slam from Gonzalez quickly put GCU up, 4-0, at the end of the first frame for a hot start from the plate.
Loriann Olson reached on an error in the second, but the Lopes brought Kaye home for the score on the play for the 5-0 lead.
GCU added another run with a one-out RBI double from Sierra Smith to give the Lopes a 6-0 lead in the bottom of the second. However, the Lopes weren't done in that frame as a two-out 2 RBI double from Gonzalez increased the GCU lead to 8-0.
Junior Madelyn Dowdle reached on an error to send Gonzalez home to put the Lopes ahead by nine at the end of the second frame.
A three-run home run for Sierra Smith in the bottom of the third put GCU ahead, 12-0. The homer was Sierra's third of the season.
South Dakota tacked on a trio of runs in the top of the fourth frame, but the Lopes defense shut it down in the top of the fifth to end the game.
The Lopes close out the Lopes Up Classic on Tuesday when they face Valparaiso in a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. (MT).
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Coons, Lexy (6-1)
L: Gill Woodward (0-1)
Batting:
3B: Jessica Rogers 1
RBI: Jessica Rogers 2 ; Lauren Wobken 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Erica Limon 1 ; Lauren Eamiguel 1 ; Jessica Rogers 1
HBP: Jessica Rogers 1
Batting:
2B: Smith, Sierra 1 ; Keeton, Jordon 1 ; Gonzalez, Niki 1
HR: Smith, Sierra 1 ; Gonzalez, Niki 1
RBI: Smith, Sierra 4 ; Gonzalez, Niki 6
Base Running:
RUNS: Olson, Loriann 2 ; Smith, Shea 2 ; Smith, Sierra 2 ; Gomez, Laynee 1 ; Keeton, Jordon 2 ; Gonzalez, Niki 2 ; Kaye, Taylor 1
SB: Kaye, Taylor 1
HBP: Keeton, Jordon 1 ; Hill, Kendsey 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
4
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
6
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
1
R
2
H
1
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
1B
/ Softball
P
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballC
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballUTL
/ Softball
2B/OF
/ SoftballUTL
/ SoftballTuesday, June 09
Thursday, May 21
Monday, May 18
Sunday, May 17