Senior weekend welcomes Trailblazers


Grand Canyon Lopes (33-10, 16-2 WAC)	vs.	Dixie State Trailblazers (16-28, 6-11 WAC)
		Friday-Saturday, April 29-30 Friday: 4:30 and 7 p.m. (Phoenix time) Saturday: 1 p.m. (Phoenix time)
Game notes		Live video Live stats

Grand Canyon hosts Dixie State in its final homestand of the season. GCU has clinched at least a share of the WAC West Division title and needs to win one game in their final six regular-season games to claim the title outright.

THREE THINGS TO KNOW

NCAA TOP 20: The Lopes come in at fifth in the nation for team batting average and first in the WAC with a .336. They are also eighth in scoring, averaging 6.7 runs per game. With a .526 slugging percentage, they rank 19th. GCU is third in the nation in stolen bases (112) and second in steals per game (2.6). Senior left fielder Gianna Nicoletti is first in the nation in stolen bases per game with 1.0 and is second in steals with 43. She is also ninth in the nation in runs scored per game with 1.2 and 29th for hits with 58. Sophomore shortstop Katelyn Dunckel is 19th in runs scored per game with 1.1.
ONE WIN: GCU has clinched a share of the WAC West Division title, but one more win makes it the outright regular-season WAC West Division champion.
FIVE SENIORS: The Lopes will honor all five of their seniors on Saturday before their final game at GCU Softball Stadium. Three of the seniors — Nicoletti, Savannah Tourville and Ryan Denhart — have played for GCU the last four seasons and truly made their mark in the GCU record book. New to the Lopes this season, graduate transfers Denae Chatman and Stephanie Reed will also be honored.

SCOUTING

Dixie State comes into the Lopes senior weekend with a 16-28 record and a 6-11 conference record. Most recently, the Trailblazers dropped a close one to BYU 8-6 in St. George, Utah.

Dixie State and GCU met at the end of March, when the Lopes swept the Trailblazers. Game 1 went into extra innings, but games 2 and 3 were run-rule wins in six and five innings. respectively.

The Trailblazers have won two series in WAC play, against New Mexico State and Utah Valley. They have been swept only by the Lopes and Seattle U. They managed to take a game from California Baptist and Utah Valley.

As a team, Dixie State is hitting .313 with 363 hits, 59 doubles, 36 home runs and four triples. They have drawn 120 walks and struck out 213 times. In the circle, the five-person staff is posting a 5.48 ERA with 11 complete games, three shutouts and three saves. The staff has allowed 399 hits, 261 runs, 211 earned runs and struck out 202 batters.

A familiar name to the Lopes is Ryan Denhart's younger sister, Tyler. The Trailblazers ace has logged 80 innings with a record of 6-8. Denhart has made 14 starts and appeared in 19 games. She is posting a 4.73 ERA with seven complete games. Batters are hitting a team-low .321 against her with 28 extra-base hits. Katie Dolinski is the Trailblazers' second in line with 67 2/3 innings and an ERA of 4.45. Dolinski has a 4-5 record in 23 games and 11 starts.

Freshman infielder Carly Eldredge is the top hitter with a .381 average and 39 starts in their 44 games this season. She has totaled 45 hits, including four doubles with 15 RBIs. Shea Clements leads Dixie State in most offensive categories with 47 hits, nine home runs and 33 RBIs. She also has a team-best .591 slugging percentage.

LAST TIME OUT
GCU swept New Mexico State at home to clinch a share of the WAC West Division title and help head coach Shanon Hays earn his 500th career win.

WHAT'S NEXT?
The Lopes head to Riverside, California, to take on CBU in their final WAC series on May 6-7 before heading to the WAC Tournament.

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Players Mentioned

Denae Chatman

Ryan Denhart

Katelyn Dunckel

Gianna Nicoletti

Stephanie Reed

Savannah Tourville

Grand Canyon University Athletics