Comeback attempt falls short in 5-set loss

Friday, March 24

Phoenix, Ariz.

6 p.m.

Grand Canyon

20-2,5-2MPSF

Concordia

7-12,1-4MPSF

CUI

Grand Canyon

Photo by: Zach Campbell

3/24/2023 9:04:00 PM | Men's Volleyball

Box Score

Lopes' home winning streak ends at 15 matches

By: Jerob Moon

The Grand Canyon men's volleyball team suffered its first home loss of the season, falling 3-2 to Concordia-Irvine at GCU Arena on Friday night.

The Lopes (20-2, 5-2 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) fell behind 2-0 and battled back to tie the match but lost the decisive fifth set. The offenses were nearly identical with Concordia (7-12, 1-4 MPSF) outhitting GCU .396 to .395 and ending the match on a 4-0 run.

The Lopes were led by stellar performances from junior outside hitter Camden Gianni, who recorded 12 of his team-high 20 kills in the second set, and double-digit kills from middle blocker Rico Wardlow and outside hitters Christian Janke and Jackson Hickman. GCU sophomore setter Nicholas Slight also finished with 56 assists.

Concordia jumped out to an early 2-0 lead by building a big lead in the first set along with a late run in the second. The Golden Eagles hit .550 in the first set, led 10-5 and outlasted a late GCU run that brought it within one point at 24-23. In the second set, Concordia trailed 22-21 but went on a late 5-1 run to close out the set.
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The Lopes began their comeback attempt with a third-set win in extra points, 27-25. GCU never trailed in the set and withstood a 6-2 Concordia run that tied the set at 23-23. Gianni ended the set collecting four kills in the final six rallies to cap off his 12-kill set.

With momentum on their side, the Lopes took the fourth set 25-12. GCU had just two attacking errors in 25 attempts while taking advantage of the Golden Eagles' match-low .091 hitting percentage. Up 13-9, the Lopes took control of the set with a 7-0 run capped off by back-to-back kills from Hickman.

GCU's comeback attempt came up short in the fifth set, as Concordia rallied to win 15-9. It was a back-and-forth set with the Lopes holding a 6-5 advantage before the Golden Eagles took over and won 11 of the final 13 points to shut the door. The Lopes finished with just five kills on 13 attempts in the set while Concordia hit .714 with just one error.

The Lopes and Golden Eagles will meet again Saturday in GCU Arena at 6 p.m.