Regular season wraps up at home


Grand Canyon Lopes (9-5-2, 5-3-1 WAC)	vs.	New Mexico State Aggies (8-4-3, 5-2-2 WAC)	Sam Houston Bearkats (3-9-2, 2-6-1 WAC)
		Thursday, Oct. 27 7 p.m.	Saturday, Oct. 29 7 p.m.
Match Notes		Live Video Live Stats	Live Video Live Stats

The Grand Canyon women's soccer team takes a six-match unbeaten streak into the final weekend of the regular season with matches at home against New Mexico State and Sam Houston. Both matches will stream live on ESPN+.

THREE THINGS TO KNOW

GETTING HOT AT THE RIGHT TIME: The Lopes have played their best soccer heading into this week's final homestand and next week's WAC Tournament. GCU has won the last five matches and carries a six-match unbeaten streak that dates back to Oct. 7. In that span, the Lopes have outscored opponents 16-3 with four shutouts.
GOURLEY TIES RECORD: Junior forward Gianna Gourley's dominant season continued over the weekend with a game-winning assist against Utah Tech before scoring two goals in a 4-0 win over Southern Utah. The GCU team captain's 13 goals has tied a GCU single-season record shared by Marleen Schimmer (2021) and Vanessa Young (2005).
WAC TOURNAMENT SEEDING: All six seeds in the WAC Tournament are up for grabs in the final weekend of the regular season. The Lopes could grab the No. 3 seed with two wins and one loss by Utah Tech, which plays Seattle U and Utah Valley. California Baptist, Southern Utah and Stephen F. Austin are in contention for the No. 6 seed with just three points separating the three teams. Meanwhile, Seattle U and Utah Valley enter the final weekend tied for the regular-season title with 22 points. Seattle U, the host of the WAC Tournament, owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over Utah Valley with a 3-0 win on Oct. 8.

SCOUTING

New Mexico State has been impressive this year and can finish with a winning record for the first time since 2011 while making the WAC Tournament for the third straight season. The Aggies boast a 6-0-2 record at home but will hit the road for the final two matches at GCU on Thursday and at CBU on Saturday. Junior midfielder Loma McNeese has had a breakout season, leading the team with eight goals and 20 points, while Preseason All-WAC honoree Xitaly Hernandez leads the way with seven assists.

Sam Houston has struggled this season after making a WAC Tournament appearance in its first year in the conference last year. The Bearkats are an impressive 6-1 at home but have struggled away from Pritchett Field with a 2-9 record. As a team, Sam Houston has scored only nine goals, two of which came in WAC play. Graduate forward Kailey Pena leads the team with three goals and six points.

WHAT'S NEXT?

GCU will travel to Seattle U to defend its title at the WAC Tournament, starting on Wednesday. Seeding and matchups will be announced on Saturday following GCU's match against Sam Houston.

For more GCU women's soccer news, notes and numbers, click here to view the match notes.

Grand Canyon University Athletics

THREE THINGS TO KNOW

SCOUTING

WHAT'S NEXT?

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