Grand Canyon beach volleyball hits the road for the first time in 2019 to take part in the Horned Frogs Challenge at TCU this weekend.
The No. 19 Lopes (1-2) compete in four matches on Friday and Saturday, taking on two ranked opponents. GCU kicks off the challenge at 10:30 a.m. Friday in Fort Worth, Texas.
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The first matchup of the weekend sets the Lopes against No. 17 Tulane. GCU looks to even the series against the Green Wave after falling in the only dual played between the two teams last season. Tulane is 2-3 to start 2019, picking up wins over Tampa and Houston Baptist and dropping meetings with three ranked opponents at the FSU Invitational.
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The Lopes play again Friday at 12:30 p.m. against Missouri State. GCU serves as the Bears' first opponent of 2019, marking the first time the two teams have faced off.
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GCU kicks off the second day of competition with a 10 a.m. matchup Saturday against the host school, TCU. The Horned Frogs went 2-2 in their opening weekend at Paradise at the Burrow, hosted by Florida Atlantic. The Lopes are undefeated against TCU, earning a pair of wins in 2015 and 2017.
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To finish off the weekend, the Lopes take on their highest-ranked opponent of the competition, No. 16 Georgia State. GCU and GSU face off for the second time in school history at 2 p.m. on Saturday. The Lopes won the previous meeting with the Panthers, who started this season 2-1 at the Stetson Spring Fling last weekend.
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For live updates from the Horned Frog Challenge, follow GCU beach volleyball on Twitter and Instagram, @GCU_Beach. Free live stats will also be provided
here.