Grand Canyon University Athletics
Photo by: Mathew McGraw
Historic season shows promise for future
5/21/2021 10:17:00 AM | Men's Volleyball
GCU breaks records during stellar 2021 season
The Grand Canyon men's volleyball team made history in 2021, earning its highest rankings in program history and picking up its first win over a No. 1 team. The Lopes finished the season 9-11, having played 13 of their 20 matches against top-15 opponents.
"I am proud of the work these young men put in throughout the spring," GCU head coach Matt Werle said. "They competed hard in every match. The maturation in the locker room was phenomenal. They conducted themselves off the court in a manner they should be proud of, built relationships with other programs and they continue to gain respect across the nation.
"Our record may not highlight how great of a program we are, but if you were able to see our guys play, they put on a show. Every starter, but one, has at least two years of eligibility left. That is something we are all very excited about."
GCU earned its highest preseason, final and overall rankings during the season. The Lopes were placed at No. 10 in the NVA/AVCA Preseason Coaches' Poll and stayed in the top 10 all season for the first time in program history. The Lopes earned their highest ranking in history at No. 6 on March 1 after a historic win over No. 1 BYU. GCU closed out the season at No. 9 in the final coaches' poll, improving on the previous program best of No. 11 from last season.
The Lopes kicked off an already challenging schedule with four straight matches on the road. The team's first win came in a 3-0 sweep over No. 12 Concordia, hitting .406 as a team and recording nine digs to beat the Eagles. In back-to-back matches at No. 1 BYU, GCU pushed the Cougars to four and five sets but were unable to pick up a win on the road.
GCU secured the program's first-ever win over a top-ranked team on Feb. 25 as the Lopes took down BYU in the home opener. The Lopes outblocked the Cougars 13-3 to record a 25-22, 45-43, 25-10 sweep over the nation's leader. The match was historic in more ways than one. GCU and BYU battled to a 45-43 second set, the highest-scoring set in NCAA history. Men's volleyball became the second sport at GCU to top a Division I top-ranked team, with softball having upset No. 1 Florida State in 2019.
The Lopes picked up another home sweep over USC on March 17, setting a new program record with 12 aces in the three-set match. Freshman outside hitter Camden Gianni tied the individual record with seven aces in the match.
GCU notched its second road win in a 3-1 match vs. Stanford, who recently announced the continuation of its men's volleyball program after anticipated cuts to 11 sports at the school.
Facing five straight matches against top-10 opponents, the Lopes had a dry spell with three matches at No. 5 Pepperdine and back-to-back home losses to No. 6 UCLA.
The Lopes finished the regular season on a four-match winning streak, taking down USC twice on the road on April 9-10 before winning back-to-back sweeps over Concordia at home.
GCU secured its first-ever Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament win on April 22, beating No. 5 seed USC 3-1 to advance to the semifinals. Gianni tied his career high with 24 kills, hitting .697 with just one error and recording four service aces.
Three Lopes were recognized by the MPSF leading up to the tournament as Gianni was named MPSF Freshman of the Year for the second season. Gianni also was named to the All-MPSF first team and MPSF All-Freshman team as sophomores Christian Janke, an outside hitter, and Hugo Fischer, an opposite, were named All-MPSF honorable mentions.
The awards kept coming for Gianni, who was named an NVA/AVCA All-American honorable mention for the second time, making him the first student-athlete in program history to earn All-American honors twice.
The GCU coaching staff also was recognized for its excellence with assistant coach Keith Smith being selected for an AVCA Thirty Under 30 Award.
"On another note, we only had one athlete recognized as an All-American and I truly believe that shows that we aren't dependent upon one guy's success, rather the entirety of our team," Werle said. "This team grew close and they are starting to learn how to celebrate one another and play for the right reasons. I feel very fortunate to be on this ride with them. Together, I know we will accomplish greatness."
"I am proud of the work these young men put in throughout the spring," GCU head coach Matt Werle said. "They competed hard in every match. The maturation in the locker room was phenomenal. They conducted themselves off the court in a manner they should be proud of, built relationships with other programs and they continue to gain respect across the nation.
"Our record may not highlight how great of a program we are, but if you were able to see our guys play, they put on a show. Every starter, but one, has at least two years of eligibility left. That is something we are all very excited about."
GCU earned its highest preseason, final and overall rankings during the season. The Lopes were placed at No. 10 in the NVA/AVCA Preseason Coaches' Poll and stayed in the top 10 all season for the first time in program history. The Lopes earned their highest ranking in history at No. 6 on March 1 after a historic win over No. 1 BYU. GCU closed out the season at No. 9 in the final coaches' poll, improving on the previous program best of No. 11 from last season.
The Lopes kicked off an already challenging schedule with four straight matches on the road. The team's first win came in a 3-0 sweep over No. 12 Concordia, hitting .406 as a team and recording nine digs to beat the Eagles. In back-to-back matches at No. 1 BYU, GCU pushed the Cougars to four and five sets but were unable to pick up a win on the road.
GCU secured the program's first-ever win over a top-ranked team on Feb. 25 as the Lopes took down BYU in the home opener. The Lopes outblocked the Cougars 13-3 to record a 25-22, 45-43, 25-10 sweep over the nation's leader. The match was historic in more ways than one. GCU and BYU battled to a 45-43 second set, the highest-scoring set in NCAA history. Men's volleyball became the second sport at GCU to top a Division I top-ranked team, with softball having upset No. 1 Florida State in 2019.
The Lopes picked up another home sweep over USC on March 17, setting a new program record with 12 aces in the three-set match. Freshman outside hitter Camden Gianni tied the individual record with seven aces in the match.
GCU notched its second road win in a 3-1 match vs. Stanford, who recently announced the continuation of its men's volleyball program after anticipated cuts to 11 sports at the school.
Facing five straight matches against top-10 opponents, the Lopes had a dry spell with three matches at No. 5 Pepperdine and back-to-back home losses to No. 6 UCLA.
The Lopes finished the regular season on a four-match winning streak, taking down USC twice on the road on April 9-10 before winning back-to-back sweeps over Concordia at home.
GCU secured its first-ever Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Tournament win on April 22, beating No. 5 seed USC 3-1 to advance to the semifinals. Gianni tied his career high with 24 kills, hitting .697 with just one error and recording four service aces.
Three Lopes were recognized by the MPSF leading up to the tournament as Gianni was named MPSF Freshman of the Year for the second season. Gianni also was named to the All-MPSF first team and MPSF All-Freshman team as sophomores Christian Janke, an outside hitter, and Hugo Fischer, an opposite, were named All-MPSF honorable mentions.
The awards kept coming for Gianni, who was named an NVA/AVCA All-American honorable mention for the second time, making him the first student-athlete in program history to earn All-American honors twice.
The GCU coaching staff also was recognized for its excellence with assistant coach Keith Smith being selected for an AVCA Thirty Under 30 Award.
"On another note, we only had one athlete recognized as an All-American and I truly believe that shows that we aren't dependent upon one guy's success, rather the entirety of our team," Werle said. "This team grew close and they are starting to learn how to celebrate one another and play for the right reasons. I feel very fortunate to be on this ride with them. Together, I know we will accomplish greatness."
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