Most dominant win of DI era continues uptick

Saturday, October 29

Phoenix, Ariz.

3 p.m.

Grand Canyon

12-9,6-4WAC

Sam Houston

6-20,3-9WAC

Sam Houston

Grand Canyon

10/29/2022 6:03:00 PM | Volleyball, Paul Coro

Box Score Photo Gallery

GCU holds Sam Houston to 39 points in match while hitting WAC-best .447

By: Paul Coro

If WAC volleyball needed indicators that Grand Canyon is back to contender form, they came in a flurry Saturday with the way the Lopes dismantled Sam Houston at GCU Arena.

The Lopes' dominant 25-13, 25-11, 25-15 victory was quicker than the sunset and included the following bright spots:

GCU's best hitting (.447) in its Division I era and easily the highest clip of any WAC team this season.
The Lopes' fewest points allowed (39) in a match during its Division I era.
GCU's first consecutive sweeps of the season.

The Lopes (12-9, 6-4 WAC) pulled within a half-game of fourth-place UT Arlington with four conference matches remaining before the eight-team WAC Tournament.

After a full week off since sweeping New Mexico State, GCU emerged sharply with the least attack errors (six) of its Division I era that started in 2013.

"In the big picture, we wanted to work on some things this week and then we were fortunate enough to have opportunities in this match to try those things and it showed," Lopes head coach Tim Nollan said. "We managed some balls early that we needed to offensively. And then when we had some great green-light opportunities, we had some kids take big monster rips. It's always fun when they can do both and look and feel like they're under control the whole time."

GCU nearly played a perfect first set with no attack errors and only one passing error. The Lopes hit .667 in the set to take a 9-8 lead to a 25-13 finish on a kill by freshman outside hitter Tatum Parrott, who led the team with 12 kills in her first four-match streak of double-digit kill totals.

"I've just been putting in the work in practice and working my butt off to try to get to that starting spot," Parrott said. "I'm finally there, so it's increased my confidence in my play. I can just go out and do my thing and have fun with my team."

The Phoenix native from Greenway High School hit .632 for the match with junior outside hitter Ashley Lifgren, who had 10 kills and nine digs, coming in at .529.

"Bro, we're just going out and banging balls right now. This is so fun," Parrott told a teammate during the match.

The 16-5 close to the first set carried over to a 16-6 start to the second set, when Parrott served on a 6-0 Lopes run.

Senior setter Klaire Mitchell was strategically cunning, delivering 14 assists in the set with back-to-back gems coming when she dived laterally to get up one assist and backpedaled backward on the next one.

GCU stayed in system for half the match, and graduate libero Megan Taflinger was at an astounding 70% on her passes after just moving to the position less than two weeks ago.

"If you're going to give Klaire Mitchell that many good balls to work with, she's going to make you pay," Nollan said of his two-time WAC Setter of the Year. "Every collegiate setter is good on a perfect pass. The question is: what is your range? Klaire is able to extend out and clean up sloppy plays we have and put us back in rhythm at a super-elite level."

Sam Houston is the defending WAC champion but dropped its eighth consecutive match Saturday without offering any more resistance in the third set. That enabled Nollan to go deeper into his bench, relieving Mitchell with junior setter Ava Mason and getting more kills (five) from freshman outside hitter Anaelena Ramirez than she previously had on the season (three).

"We've been working her really hard in practice, just setting up some situations where she gets extra touches," Nollan said of his 6-foot-2 pin from El Paso, Texas. "She came out and went 5 for 8 and scored her first collegiate points. I'm super stoked for those numbers. To have her come out and be so physical was really fun to see."

GCU can at least tie UT Arlington in the standings in the coming week, when it goes to Southern Utah and Utah Tech. The Lopes finish the regular season at home against last-place Seattle U and first-place Utah Valley on Nov. 10 and 12, respectively.
"We're starting to play some of our best volleyball, and it's the right time of year to do that," Nollan said. "We're becoming the healthiest we've been. It allows people to play freer."