NCAA tourney win quickly becomes next GCU goal

Tuesday, May 2

Fairfax, Va.

2 p.m.

Grand Canyon

Long Beach State

Photo by: Nathan Peters

5/1/2023 2:02:00 PM | Men's Volleyball, Paul Coro

PRACTICE GALLERY

Lopes make NCAA tournament debut against Long Beach State in Virginia

By: Paul Coro

NCAA tournament quarterfinal Tuesday, May 2 \| 2 p.m. (Phoenix time) \| EagleBank Arena \| Fairfax, Va.

	GRAND CANYON LOPES (22-7)	vs.	LONG BEACH STATE BEACH (20-4)

WATCH: ESPN+ \| STATS: View

FAIRFAX, Va. – When the Grand Canyon men's volleyball bus pulled up Sunday and Monday to George Mason's EagleBank Arena, the vibe for the scene of the Lopes' next match hit different once those blue NCAA logos and signs popped up at every turn.

GCU arrived at the upper echelon of its sport as one of six teams remaining in the NCAA tournament, but participation is not the destination this week.

As the Lopes took the practice court Monday amid GCU logos illuminating 22 arena screens and "God's Plan" playing to break the afternoon silence, the Lopes focused on their plan for their first NCAA tourney appearance. They aim to show that their sixth-ranked program is ready for more when they vie for a Final Four spot against fourth-ranked Long Beach State on Tuesday at 2 p.m. (Phoenix time) on ESPN+.

GCU men's volleyball holds a NCAA tournament practice at George Mason.

GCU men's volleyball holds a NCAA tournament practice at George Mason.

"It's a little surreal, even when we watched the game (in which Ohio State beat King on Sunday)," said GCU junior outside hitter Jackson Hickman, named to All-America second team on Monday. "Just walking in and seeing the court, the Taraflex (floor), with the blue and the NCAA logo. I was talking with (senior teammate) Cole (Udall) and when he saw the NCAA logo he said, 'This is legit, this is for real.' It's just been awesome."

This moment has been in the making for the eight years that GCU head coach Matt Werle has led the program and the five season that outside hitter Christian Janke has started.

GCU (22-7) and Long Beach State (20-4) have played six common opponents this season, with each going undefeated against five of them and winless against No. 1 UCLA. Tuesday's winner advances to play the Bruins in a Thursday semifinal.

There are times when the emotions of the special moments swell up on Werle and Janke, as the program cornerstone who is his final week of college volleyball. But the Lopes have an opposite persona of confidence on the court, where they are known for being as boisterous as they are bouncy.

GCU men's volleyball holds a NCAA tournament practice at George Mason.

"It's that chip on our shoulder that nobody thinks we are capable of the things we know we're capable of," said Janke, who received All-America status for a second consecutive season, this time as an honorable mention.

"That kind of elevates the energy a little bit. Playing super consistent and just going out there and playing is good against certain teams, but you need a push against some of the better ones. So I think that swagger lifts the energy a little bit."

The Lopes bring the nation's third-best hitting percentage at .348 against the Beach, a perennial men's volleyball power that ranks right behind GCU in hitting this season at .340 and also ranks second nationally for blocks per set (2.83).

Long Beach State, under 20-year coach Alan Knipe, is making consecutive NCAA tournament visits for the first time since winning back-to-back national championships in 2018 and 2019. Like GCU, it secured an at-large berth last week with a quality regular-season resume, featuring a March 17 victory at then-No. 1 Hawaii.

GCU men's volleyball holds a NCAA tournament practice at George Mason.

"We know they are a great blocking team," said Werle, who won three Division III national championships as a player at Juniata in Pennsylvania. "We know they are going to apply a lot of pressure. We think their pins are really strong. So we know that if we can handle their serves, which is something that is one of our strongsuits, and if our serve receive is good, we're going to keep their block a little unbalanced. We should be able to terminate.

"It's just a matter of handling the nerves early. If we can get through the first 10-15 points and just settle in, I think we're going to be in a good place."

Long Beach State, the regular season co-champion of the Big West, was on an eight-match winning streak before losing its last match, an April 21 conference tournament 3-0 defeat to UC Irvine.

"They're a great team," Beach senior 6-foot-9 middle blocker Shane Goldaway said of the Lopes. "Credit where credit's due. They run really good tempo. Our guys are in the gym training that pretty much every day. It'll be a good matchup."

GCU men's volleyball holds a NCAA tournament practice at George Mason.

Both teams are dealing with the same three-hour time change, but they also both arrived in the Washington, D.C., area on Saturday and feel acclimated after two days of practice in Fairfax. Lopes workouts have remained as loose and playful as the ones held at GCU this year during the program's winningest season.

It is a season that started with the national poll's coaches not believing the Lopes would be here in May, putting GCU at No. 11 in the preseason poll. But the Lopes made what could be the final seven-team field before hopes for expanding the 2024 tournament to 12 participants.

"We know what we're capable of," Janke said of questions about GCU's at-large merits. "We know we deserve to be here, so using that as motivation and we're going even harder because of it. If that's what they think, great, then we'll seen them tomorrow night and we'll figure it out. I think using it more so as motivation and knowing the confidence in here is really good and will take us through."