Lopes earn 1st NCAA tournament bid

For the first time in program history, the Grand Canyon men's volleyball is dancing into the NCAA tournament.

The Lopes (22-7) — in the midst of their best season in program history — earned one of two at-large bids into the seven-team field and will face Long Beach State in the opening rounds on May 2. Long Beach State and GCU were ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, in the NCAA Ratings Percentage Index.

For Lopes head coach Matt Werle, this has been a goal of taking GCU to the Big Dance since he took over the program in 2016.

"I'm just so proud of this group," Werle said. "This group is arguably my first recruiting class, and they've built this culture into something to be so proud of. I feel like we achieved this with good character and achieved it with grit and against a lot of doubters. I'm just excited for the team and excited for the guys."

The Lopes put together a season to remember with 10 wins against ranked opponents and program records with 22 overall wins and 16 home wins. Despite a slow finish to the regular season, GCU defeated Pepperdine in the first round of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championship to seal the selection.

With the NCAA contemplating an expansion to 12 team in the national tournament, making their first appearance inside a smaller field feels that much sweeter to the Lopes.

"I think there's some peace to it since there might be some expansion to future championships," Werle said. "So, to be able to get in while there are limited teams of only seven, this is huge for us. There are so many pieces to it. I'm excited for the guys. It's all about the guys."

The Lopes will have a week to prep for their first NCAA tournament match, shown on ESPN3. Their opponnent, Long Beach State (20-4), earned a share of the Big West regular-season title with Hawaii to help earn its 13th appearance in the NCAA tournament. The winner of the May 2 match at 2 p.m. (Phoenix time) will advance to a semifinal against No. 1 UCLA on May 4.

"I think it's a really good balanced team and very well coached," Werle added. "We actually scrimmaged them this fall in Las Vegas so that's two years running we've faced in them. I think it's a really good matchup. I think the one thing they have a huge advantage in is that they've been there before. Our guys have not so I think that's going to be a little intimidating, a little scary. But it's going to give our guys the excitement and the ability to play loose and free and go against all odds."

Grand Canyon University Athletics

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