Completed Event: Women's Volleyball versus UT Rio Grande Valley on August 30, 2025 , Win , 3, to, 0
W Volleyball
vs UT Rio Grande Valley
W 3-0
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Thursday, September 23
St. George, Utah
5 p.m.
Grand Canyon
at
Dixie State
WAC play begins with 2 matches in Utah
9/22/2021 9:30:00 AM | Women's Volleyball
GCU trip includes conference tests at Dixie State, Utah Valley
 |
 |
|||
| Grand Canyon Lopes (8-1, 0-0 WAC) |
at | Dixie State Trailblazers (1-7, 0-0 WAC) |
||
Thursday, Sept. 23 5 p.m. |
||||
| Game notes | Live stats Live Video |
The Lopes hit the road for their opening week of WAC play as they head to St. George, Utah, for a Thursday night match against Dixie State, which picked up its first win over the weekend. The trip concludes at Utah Valley on Saturday.
THREE THINGS TO KNOW
- BEST RECORD IN THE WAC: GCU has the best overall record of any WAC team, including the West and Southwest divisions.
- SERVICE ACES: Graduate student Teagan DeFalco, a libero, leads the conference in aces per set and is 32nd in the NCAA with a 0.52 average.
- ON THE ROAD: After a week off, the Lopes hit the road this week to take on both WAC schools out of Utah in Dixie State and Utah Valley. GCU has not played a home match since Sept. 5.
SCOUTING
DIXIE STATE enters the first week of WAC play with a 1-7 record after losing seven road matches and picking up its first win on Saturday against Southern Utah.The Lopes will be the second team the Trailblazers have hosted this season, as they spent the first two weekends at Boise State and BYU. Dixie State has played a few big-name teams in No. 13 BYU, Michigan State and Long Beach State. The Trailblazers lost in five sets twice this season. They have been swept three times and managed to take one set in two matches. Their lone win this season came in Saturday's four-set season opener.
Junior outside hitter Whittnee Nihipali has played in all eight matches for Dixie State and is hitting .210 with a team-best 69 kills and 2.38 per set. Fellow outside hitter Hannah Howard is second for kills and kills per set. The freshman has totaled 68 kills and a 2.34 kills per set average.
Sophomore setter Taela Laufiso has the best assists per set average with 7.67 but has only appeared in two matches for the Trailblazers. Freshman Lauren Mena has played in all but one match for Dixie State and has a 5.48 assist per set average. Defensively, middle blocker Kate Hardy has a team-best 26 blocks, five of which were solo blocks, and is averaging 0.84 per set. On the back line, libero Mykenna Nelson, a sophomore out of Phoenix, has a team-best 153 digs and is averaging 4.94 per set. She also has a reception percentage of .965 with 171 attempts and six errors.
The Trailblazers hosted Southern Utah in its home opener on Saturday with a 3-1 win after falling in five sets on Friday at Southern Utah. Dixie State's defense was the bright spot in its win on Saturday night with 13 blocks and 84 digs. Outside hitter Bridgett Talia accounted for eight of the Thunderbirds 13 blocks while Kate Hardy added five.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Lopes head to Orem, Utah, on Saturday to face reigning WAC champion Utah Valley on Saturday at noon.
Players Mentioned
L
/ Women's VolleyballKendra Potts Post Match Press Conference | GCU vs NAU 9.7.25
Monday, September 08
“You don’t know what it’s like.” | The Lope-a-Palooza Experience
Saturday, August 30
Bella Nunez & Sophia Parlanti Press Conference | GCU vs LIU | August 29, 2025
Saturday, August 30
Kendra Potts Press Conference | GCU vs LIU | August 29, 2025
Saturday, August 30