Gianni makes impact in opener

Thursday, January 9

Honolulu, Hawaii

7 p.m.

Grand Canyon

0-1,0-0MPSF

Harvard

1-0,0-0EIVA

Harvard

Grand Canyon

Photo by: Courtney Metzger/Hawaii Media Source

1/9/2020 9:18:00 PM | Men's Volleyball

Box Score Photo Gallery

Lopes fall to Harvard in straight sets at Rainbow Warrior Classic

By: Cassidy Mace

HONOLULU — Grand Canyon redshirt freshman Camden Gianni came out strong in his first competition as a Lope, tallying 13 kills, three digs, two service aces and a block in the GCU men's volleyball's season-opening loss to Harvard on Thursday night.

Having sat out the 2019 season after suffering a cardiac arrest, the outside hitter proved himself in his first career start with pivotal plays during the Lopes' 25-18, 25-23, 25-23 loss to the Crimson to open the Rainbow Warrior Classic at Hawaii.

Several Lopes players showed their potential for the season in the first-ever meeting between GCU (0-1) and Harvard (1-0) with five underclassman starting for GCU.

Junior outside hitter David Kisiel recorded 10 kills, along with three blocks and three digs. Head coach Matt Werle's vote for the offseaon's most improved player, sophomore middle blocker Kyle Thompson, earned the Lopes' best hitting percentage of the night at .545 and finished the match with seven kills to tie his career high. Thompson's match was a significant bump from hitting .262 in 2019.

Sophomore setter Heath Hughes led the Lopes in assists (21), while sophomore outside hitter Christian Janke contributed a team-high 10 digs.

Gianni wasted no time on offense, scoring the first point of the match with a kill. A pair of kills, attack errors and an ace put Harvard up 6-1, forcing the Lopes into a timeout. Service errors from both teams, along with two Crimson kills, gave Harvard a 9-3 lead. Thompson broke the run with a kill, followed by another kill from Gianni. The Lopes got back within two when junior middle blocker Ian McLain's first kill of the night had GCU trailing 12-8. A 7-3 run gave Harvard a 19-11 lead, broken up by Kisiel. The Lopes retaliated with a 7-3 run, keeping it close at 22-18. The Crimson closed it out with a pair of kills and an attack error on the Lopes for a 25-18 win in the first set. Gianni finished the first set with five kills and two digs, hitting .333. McLain collected three kills on 1.000 hitting in the first set.

Harvard kept its momentum at the start of the second set with a 2-0 lead. The Lopes answered, trading points to close the gap to 7-6. After two more points from the Crimson, GCU went on a 5-3 run to take the lead. Gianni played an integral role, recording the kill to tie the match and a service ace to take the lead. A kill from the Crimson broke the streak, sending Harvard on a 10-4 run to go up 20-16. Gianni stepped up again to break the streak with a kill. The Lopes battled back to get within one, thanks to a kill from Kisiel to cut Harvard's lead to 23-21. After another kill from Kisiel gave the Lopes a fighting chance down 24-23, the Crimson took a time out and emerged with a kill to take the set 25-23.

In the third set, Harvard came out strong again with a 7-3 lead. Thompson kept the Lopes in the match with two kills, and Janke recorded one of his three service aces to bring the match to 7-5. Back-to-back kills from Kisiel kept the Lopes in the game at 10-7 after a 3-0 run by the Crimson. GCU answered with a 6-2 run to trail 12-11 before Harvard responded with an 8-3 run. GCU rallied to within one at 23-22 thanks to three kills from Kisiel, two by Janke, one from Thompson and a service ace by Gianni. After a kill from the Crimson, Thompson cut Harvard's lead to 24-23 with a kill but Harvard closed the set at 25-23 to sweep the match.

The Lopes return to action in the Raising Cane's Rainbow Warrior Classic on Friday against Emmanuel. The match begins at 7 p.m. (Phoenix time) at the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu.