Completed Event: Women's Soccer versus San Diego State on September 25, 2025 , Loss , 1, to, 2
W Soccer
vs San Diego State
L 1-2
Grand Canyon University Athletics
4 Lopes earn All-WAC honors
11/1/2022 12:00:00 PM | Women's Soccer
Gourley leads way with honors on All-WAC 1st team
Four Grand Canyon women's soccer players were honored on All-WAC teams for their play this season.
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Lopes junior forward Gianna Gourley highlighted the list on the All-WAC first team. Sophomore defender Reese Mendenhall and redshirt freshman midfielder Leah Pirro landed on the All-WAC second team and midfielder AJ Loera earned Freshman All-WAC honors.
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"Really happy for and proud of all of our soccer family members who were honored by the other WAC conference coaches with these prestigious postseason awards," GCU head coach Chris Cissell said. "I feel like we had several players in our soccer family who were very worthy of this recognition, but these four had phenomenal seasons. They will be the first to tell you that they owe all of their success and accolades to their soccer family members and that they will share this honor with their teammates."
Gourley had a season to remember, setting a new GCU single-season record and leading the conference in goals with 17 to go along with five assists. Those goals also tie her for the third most in the country this season. The GCU team captain led the WAC with 39 points and five multi-goal games, including a hat trick in the regular-season finale against Sam Houston.
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This is the second straight All-WAC first-team honor for Gourley, who has done nothing but score goals in those two seasons with 27 goals and 63 points. Both of those marks are near GCU career records.
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This season, Gourley scored a pair of second-half goals against Hawaii in the season opener and didn't look back. She has scored a point in eight of the final nine games and collected 11 of her 17 goals in WAC matches.
Mendenhall moved to the GCU back line for the first time this season and flourished in her new role. The GCU sophomore was part of a GCU defense that recorded seven shutouts this season with five of those coming in conference play.
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Mendenhall appeared in all 18 games this season and made 16 starts, logging over 1,300 minutes to help the Lopes average 1.0 goals allowed per match in WAC play. The Phoenix native scored her first goal in the final regular-season match against Sam Houston and finished with a .500 shot-on-goal percentage.
Pirro transferred to GCU in 2021 but was unable to play because of NCAA transfer rules. This season, the redshirt freshman made her debut and was a constant starter in the midfield.
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Pirro appeared in all 18 games with 17 starts and scored three goals to go along with three assists. She assisted on the first GCU goal of the season against Hawaii and scored the game-winning goal against New Mexico, the eventual Mountain West champion.
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In conference play, Pirro scored goals against California Baptist and Abilene Christian and had an assist in a 6-1 win over Tarleton. She finished fourth on the team with a .420 shot-on-goal percentage and second for shots taken with 50.
Loera was a starter from Day 1 for the Lopes in her first collegiate season. This is the fourth straight season that the Lopes have had a player earned All-Freshman honors.
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Loera was a consistent player in the midfield, making 15 appearances with 13 starts in her debut season. Her first collegiate goal was the game winner in a 3-0 shutout at UNLV on Aug. 25, and she assisted on the game-winning goal against Arizona in front of a record crowd at GCU Stadium.
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In conference play, Loera continued to be effective in sharing the ball. She collected an assist in three straight wins against Stephen F. Austin, Abilene Christian and Tarleton. The Thornton, Colorado, native finished with 18 shots and a .389 shot-on-goal percentage.
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No. 5 seed GCU will take on No. 4 seed Utah Tech in the first round of the WAC Tournament on Wednesday at 7 p.m. (Phoenix time) from Championship Field at Seattle U.
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Lopes junior forward Gianna Gourley highlighted the list on the All-WAC first team. Sophomore defender Reese Mendenhall and redshirt freshman midfielder Leah Pirro landed on the All-WAC second team and midfielder AJ Loera earned Freshman All-WAC honors.
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"Really happy for and proud of all of our soccer family members who were honored by the other WAC conference coaches with these prestigious postseason awards," GCU head coach Chris Cissell said. "I feel like we had several players in our soccer family who were very worthy of this recognition, but these four had phenomenal seasons. They will be the first to tell you that they owe all of their success and accolades to their soccer family members and that they will share this honor with their teammates."
Gianna Gourley – All-WAC first team
Gourley had a season to remember, setting a new GCU single-season record and leading the conference in goals with 17 to go along with five assists. Those goals also tie her for the third most in the country this season. The GCU team captain led the WAC with 39 points and five multi-goal games, including a hat trick in the regular-season finale against Sam Houston.Â
This is the second straight All-WAC first-team honor for Gourley, who has done nothing but score goals in those two seasons with 27 goals and 63 points. Both of those marks are near GCU career records.
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This season, Gourley scored a pair of second-half goals against Hawaii in the season opener and didn't look back. She has scored a point in eight of the final nine games and collected 11 of her 17 goals in WAC matches.
Reese Mendenhall – All-WAC second team
Mendenhall moved to the GCU back line for the first time this season and flourished in her new role. The GCU sophomore was part of a GCU defense that recorded seven shutouts this season with five of those coming in conference play.Â
Mendenhall appeared in all 18 games this season and made 16 starts, logging over 1,300 minutes to help the Lopes average 1.0 goals allowed per match in WAC play. The Phoenix native scored her first goal in the final regular-season match against Sam Houston and finished with a .500 shot-on-goal percentage.
Leah Pirro – All-WAC second team
Pirro transferred to GCU in 2021 but was unable to play because of NCAA transfer rules. This season, the redshirt freshman made her debut and was a constant starter in the midfield.Â
Pirro appeared in all 18 games with 17 starts and scored three goals to go along with three assists. She assisted on the first GCU goal of the season against Hawaii and scored the game-winning goal against New Mexico, the eventual Mountain West champion.
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In conference play, Pirro scored goals against California Baptist and Abilene Christian and had an assist in a 6-1 win over Tarleton. She finished fourth on the team with a .420 shot-on-goal percentage and second for shots taken with 50.
AJ Loera – Freshman All-WAC
Loera was a starter from Day 1 for the Lopes in her first collegiate season. This is the fourth straight season that the Lopes have had a player earned All-Freshman honors.Â
Loera was a consistent player in the midfield, making 15 appearances with 13 starts in her debut season. Her first collegiate goal was the game winner in a 3-0 shutout at UNLV on Aug. 25, and she assisted on the game-winning goal against Arizona in front of a record crowd at GCU Stadium.
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In conference play, Loera continued to be effective in sharing the ball. She collected an assist in three straight wins against Stephen F. Austin, Abilene Christian and Tarleton. The Thornton, Colorado, native finished with 18 shots and a .389 shot-on-goal percentage.
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No. 5 seed GCU will take on No. 4 seed Utah Tech in the first round of the WAC Tournament on Wednesday at 7 p.m. (Phoenix time) from Championship Field at Seattle U.
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