Season ends at WAC Tournament

Saturday, November 23

Orem, Utah

7 p.m.

Grand Canyon

24-6,13-3WAC

New Mexico State

27-3,16-0WAC

Grand Canyon

New Mexico St.

11/23/2019 9:58:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

GCU finishes 2nd to repeat champ NMSU

By: Ally Schellhase

OREM, Utah – The Grand Canyon women's volleyball team's season ended Saturday night in the WAC Tournament finals after falling to New Mexico State 3-0 at Lockhart Arena.

The Lopes (24-6) fell 25-17, 25-23, 26-24 to the Aggies (27-3), who repeated as WAC Tournament champions with their 19th consecutive victory.

"It's always tough when the season comes to an end," GCU head coach Tim Nollan said. "It's tough for the seniors who won't be able to return with us. I am super proud of the way we competed tonight. We had a hard time controlling our errors and New Mexico State played well tonight. We battled. The second and third sets were two-point games. We had chances and opportunities and we put ourselves in position to have those opportunities."

Lopes freshman setter Klaire Mitchell led all players with 25 assists and was named to the All-WAC Tournament Team, along with GCU junior libero Teagan DeFalco. Senior outside hitter Melody Horton and DeFalco each accumulated a match-high 21 digs while junior opposite Sarah Hagge led GCU with eight kills and added three blocks.

GCU struggled to get momentum going in the first set after two consecutive Aggie aces put NMSU ahead by five at the media timeout. Lopes sophomore middle hitter Kaira Moss grabbed a pair of kills, but the Aggies took the first set after a GCU service error and a strong offensive effort.

The Lopes played their best set of the night in the second, hitting.357 as a team. GCU pulled off a three-point run with a kill from Hagge, an NMSU error and a block assist from Hagge and Moss to lead 14-10. The Aggies worked their way in front with a pair of kills and a GCU attacking error forced a Lopes timeout with NMSU leading 19-17. Two more kills from Hagge and sophomore middle blocker Annabelle Kubinski kept the Lopes in the game at 22-22. NMSU later challenged a call when GCU momentarily tied the set at 23-23 and the video review reversed the ruling, giving the Aggies a 24-22 lead instead. The Aggies took the second set with a kill on the next point to lead the match 2-0.

NMSU made an early four-point run in the third set that kept GCU having to play catch-up. The Lopes managed to decrease a 20-14 lead to 20-18, thanks in part to two Hagge kills, a block assist from Hagge and Moss and a Kubinski ace. After falling back into a 24-20 hole, GCU fought off four consecutive match points with a Moss kill and Kubinski playing parts in two block assists before getting a kill that tied the set at 24-24. The Aggies regrouped and ended the championship match with two kills to earn a NCAA tournament berth.

"I am extremely proud of the team's grit and determination to continue to battle," Nollan said. "It didn't go our way tonight. We will go and enjoy the holidays and reflect on the year that we had. 24-6 is an incredible year by any standard. The road back here to the WAC championship begins in January."