GCU hosts Lopes Up Classic

The Grand Canyon softball team is home for another five-team tournament this weekend, as the Lopes (7-7) welcome Utah, South Dakota, Iowa State and Northern Colorado for the three-day Lopes Up Classic at GCU Softball Stadium.

GCU faces Utah and South Dakota on Friday, South Dakota and Iowa State on Saturday and closes the tournament with Northern Colorado on Sunday. Admission to all GCU softball games is free.

Senior Shea Smith is coming off a hot weekend at the plate, as the shortstop was named the WAC Hitter of the Week after a 7-for-12 performance. Smith is on a nine-game hitting streak and tallied her first triple of the season last weekend.

Sophomore right-hander Ryan Denhart had a historical performance for the Lopes, as the pitcher tallied 14 strikeouts in an 8-2 victory over North Dakota to set a GCU Division I record and a career high.

GCU has played three of the four teams traveling to Phoenix this weekend. The Lopes beat Utah and South Dakota last season and won all three games against Northern Colorado in 2017. Saturday will mark GCU's first-ever meeting with Iowa State.

GCU vs Utah
Game Details	Friday, March 1 \| 4:30 p.m. (MST) \| Phoenix, Ariz. \| GCU Softball Stadium
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| GCU.tv
GCU Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Notes
Utah Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

GCU vs South Dakota
Game Details	Friday, March 1 \| 6:30 p.m. (MST) \| Phoenix, Ariz. \| GCU Softball Stadium
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| GCU.tv
GCU Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Notes
South Dakota Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

GCU vs South Dakota
Game Details	Saturday, March 2 \| 4:30 p.m. (MST) \| Phoenix, Ariz. \| GCU Softball Stadium
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| GCU.tv
GCU Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Notes
South Dakota Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

GCU vs Iowa State
Game Details	Saturday, March 2 \| 6:30 p.m. (MST) \| Phoenix, Ariz. \| GCU Softball Stadium
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| GCU.tv
GCU Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Notes
Iowa State Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

GCU vs Northern Colorado
Game Details	Sunday, March 3 \| 12:30 p.m. (MST) \| Phoenix, Ariz. \| GCU Softball Stadium
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| GCU.tv
GCU Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule \| Notes
Northern Colorado Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

2019 NOTABLES

Shea Smith won WAC Hitter of the Week honors after going 7 for 12 at the plate with a hit in all four games in the GCU Purple Classic.
Sierra Smith became the first GCU player to hit a home run in a season opener since Kelsey Barak in 2015.
Savannah Tourville became the first freshman to homer in her GCU debut since Barak in 2012.
Ryan Denhart struck out 14 batters against North Dakota to set a new GCU Division I record.
GCU's game vs. No. 4 Oklahoma drew the second-most fans in program history with 1,312 in attendance.
GCU finished second at the WAC Tournament, falling to host New Mexico State in the final.

The Lopes ended the season with the No. 12 batting average in the country at .316, led by Sierra Smith's .392 mark. GCU turned the fifth-most double plays per game in Division I in 2018 with 0.58 per game.
The Lopes won 30 games or more for the third consecutive season in 2018 with 31 wins, and won 20 home games for the second consecutive year.
Sierra Smith ranked 20th and 24th in the country in hits and triples, respectively, in 2018. The infielder slapped 76 hits and five triples in her junior season.
Brianna Aguilar ranked first in the WAC in walks allowed per seven innings in 2018 with just 1.70 walks per seven.
The Lopes added two transfers from the ACC and Big 10 in Lilly Bishop (North Carolina State) and Denhart (Maryland). Bishop made 42 starts for the Wolfpack, including 34 behind the plate, and recorded 22 hits and five home runs. Last season, Denhart recorded the most strikeouts for a Maryland freshman since 2006.
GCU head coach Ann Pierson is 45 wins away from 500 career wins. The GCU skipper has seven 30-plus win seasons and two 40-plus win seasons.
The WAC expanded in 2019 with the addition of California Baptist. The Lopes are 5-7 against the Lancers all-time, but have won the past three meetings between the two schools.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Brianna Aguilar

Lilly Bishop

Ryan Denhart

Shea Smith

Sierra Smith

Savannah Tourville

Grand Canyon University Athletics