GCU welcomes trio for invitational

PHOENIX -- The Grand Canyon softball team remains home for the third-straight weekend, as the Lopes (14-10) welcome the trio of Georgetown, Iowa and Minnesota to GCU Softball Stadium. This weekend's tournament is the second-to-last for the Lopes in non-conference play.

GCU vs Georgetown
Game Details	Friday, March 9 \| 5 p.m. (MST) \| Phoenix, Ariz. \| GCU Softball Stadium
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| GCU.tv \| WAC Digital Network
GCU Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Notes
Georgetown Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

GCU vs Georgetown
Game Details	Friday, March 9 \| 7 p.m. (MST) \| Phoenix, Ariz. \| GCU Softball Stadium
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| GCU.tv
GCU Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Notes
Georgetown Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

GCU vs Iowa
Game Details	Saturday, March 10 \| 1:30 p.m. (MST) \| Phoenix, Ariz. \| GCU Softball Stadium
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| GCU.tv \| WAC Digital Network
GCU Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Notes
Iowa Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

GCU vs Minnesota
Game Details	Saturday, March 10 \| 6:30 p.m. (MST) \| Phoenix, Ariz. \| GCU Softball Stadium
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| GCU.tv \| WAC Digital Network
GCU Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Notes
Minnesota Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

GCU vs Iowa
Game Details	Sunday, March 11 \| 11:30 a.m. (MST) \| Phoenix, Ariz. \| GCU Softball Stadium
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| GCU.tv
GCU Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Notes
Iowa Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

GCU vs Iowa
Game Details	Monday, March 12 \| 7 p.m. (MST) \| Phoenix, Ariz. \| GCU Softball Stadium
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| GCU.tv
GCU Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Notes
Iowa Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

NOTABLES

Grand Canyon begins its first season as a fully eligible Division I program in 2018, as the Lopes look to secure the first berth to an NCAA competition in GCU softball history. GCU claimed the regular-season WAC title last year and look to do the same this season.
The Lopes return 15 players from last year's conference champion squad, including seven position starters and one starting pitcher in sophomore Brianna Aguilar-Beaucage. Aguilar-Beaucage spent time over the summer competing with Team Canada at both the Canada Cup and the 2017 WBSC Junior Women's Softball World Championship. She looks to bea threat for the Lopes on the mound.
GCU also returns the pair of Shea and Sierra Smith, who led the Lopes in hitting with averages of .364 and .349, respectively. The duo will be a strong asset to GCU on both offense and defense this season, as Shea held a fielding percentage of .942 and Sierra was at .967 in 2017.
GCU opened the season with a 3-3 record in the brand new GCU Softball Stadium, as the Lopes welcomed 1,249 fans on opening day and a record-high 1,403 fans the next day vs. #1 Oklahoma. Sierra Smith hit a grand slam and the first home run inside the GCU Softball Stadium on Thursday night versus Montana, while Niki Gonzalez added her own yard ball on Sunday afternoon against Weber State.
GCU was picked to win the WAC title by the league's head coaches, announced by the conference last week. The quad of Aguilar-Beaucage, both Smith sisters and Hill received Preseason All-WAC nods as well. Grand Canyon had the most preseason all-WAC honorees of any of the six teams in the conference.
Third baseman Sierra Smith earned WAC Hitter of the Week after a monster weekend at the plate. The junior earned her first accolade of 2018 and second in her career after hitting .533 over five games, including three doubles, one triple and one home run to help GCU to a 3-2 showing. Five of her eight hits were good for extra bases, and each hit extended her six-gam streak. She tallied nine RBI on the weekend.

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Players Mentioned

Brianna Aguilar

Niki Gonzalez

Sierra Smith

Grand Canyon University Athletics