Grand Canyon University Athletics
Photo by: Jayden Todd
Look who's No. 1: Lopes top national poll
2/26/2024 7:00:00 PM | Men's Volleyball, Paul Coro
Men's volleyball becomes 1st GCU program to reach top ranking
There is not much time for Grand Canyon men's volleyball to revel in being No. 1 in the nation when the Lopes are preoccupied with remaining No. 1.
But with the Lopes becoming GCU's first nationally top-ranked team in its 11-year Division I era, the No. 1 status was the next validation of a program climbing toward its ultimate goal of winning a national championship.
After going 4-0 with only one lost set the past two weekends at No. 6 BYU and against No. 10 USC, the Lopes' 13-0 record earned enough votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association/National Volleyball Association poll to jump Long Beach State for the top spot.
"I'm extremely proud of our program and where we've come," GCU ninth-year head coach Matt Werle said. "Every year, it seems like we've gotten better and better and better. The experience that we gained last year has only allowed us to be more comfortable and confident in these situations of having a bigger target on our back. I think our guys are handling it really well."
Coming off its first NCAA tournament appearance last year, GCU has won 39 of 43 sets this season by combining the third-best hitting percentage in the nation (.360) with the fifth-lowest opponent hitting percentage in the nation (.186).
In preseason polls, the Lopes were picked to finish third in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation behind UCLA and Stanford and were ranked No. 7 nationally. The Lopes moved to No. 2 quickly but remained there last week despite then-No. 1 Long Beach State suffering its first loss and GCU becoming the first team since 2002 to notch consecutive sweep victories at BYU.
This week's poll awarded the Lopes 13 of 23 first-place votes with the other 10 going to Long Beach State (13-1). GCU, the nation's only undefeated team, edged Long Beach State in total voting points 450 to 444. Hawaii and defending national champion UCLA follow at Nos. 3 and 4, respectively.
"When I first came here, it was always the goal to do something that GCU's never done before," Lopes junior setter Nicholas Slight said. "Ever since we've stepped foot on campus, it's been like, 'This is what we can do.' We always say at the start of every year that being No. 1 is our goal and so is a national championship, but it's one of those years where it's like a real thing."
"We've always known that if we do what we need to do, this is sustainable."
That will be immediately tested this weekend with matches against No. 8 Stanford at 6 p.m. Friday and noon Sunday at Global Credit Union Arena. The Cardinal won the teams' past three meetings.
"As proud as I am of this, we want to be No. 1 in the end," Werle said. "This has some weight to it for sure for our program to be here. Anybody externally that's not in our program and not at our university never thought we could ever accomplish something like this.
"Our guys thrive on the doubters. They thrive on the guys behind the scenes on a computer running their mouths, saying, 'GCU has no business being there.' They continue to prove these guys wrong. That's the type of athlete I like to recruit."
Christian Janke, the program's first All-America second-teamer, closed his career last season, but the Lopes have more point-scoring options than ever. The talent has been brought out in the play of Slight, who ranks second in the nation with 10.7 assists per set.
"Nic Slight definitely is starting to get to his potential as a setter," Werle said. "His distribution has been remarkable. He's got a ton of weapons to work with across the board, which makes us so lethal at the net with our offense."
The most recognized Lopes star is senior outside hitter Camden Gianni, who played for the USA Volleyball Collegiate National Team last summer. Gianni ranks second in the nation with .65 aces per set and 15th for 4.4 points per set.
"He's the guy who everyone keys on because of his success and his USA experience," Werle said. "He's such a distraction out there. Whether he's playing well or not, it just makes everyone else better."
Gianni, senior middle blocker Rico Wardlow and senior Jackson Hickman have been steady assets to an attack that got richer with the improved play of sophomore middle blocker Cameron Thorne and junior outside hitter Karter Rogers.
Despite being a shorter middle blocker at 6 feet 4, Thorne's athleticism and intuition have resulted in 1.3 blocks per set, which ranks third nationally. Werle thinks Thorne's two-match production against USC was worthy of National Player of the Week with 20 kills, 10 blocks and seven digs in two wins.
After having 30 kills last season, Rogers has stepped up with three 10-kill performances, including a memorable one that included six blocks in the second sweep at BYU.
Like Rogers, junior libero Cooper Herndon has played into a larger role after being a service substitute last season. He already has 70 digs this season.
"Cooper Herndon really has handled his business against tough serves and he's not affected by it," Werle said.
Slight said the progression comes from a team that holds each other accountable. The players who preceded them at GCU set the tone of the program, and they are carrying it forward, locking into every phase from weight-room work to serve-and-receive mornings to carrying this No. 1 banner.
"We could be 1, 2, 10, 20 or not ranked, it doesn't matter," Slight said. "We're going to go out and try to win as many games as we can. It just helps the fan base more when you have a nice ranking next to your name."
And that has built a following. GCU ranks fifth nationally in attendance this season at 1,203 fans per game. The most recent home match was limited to 1,021 fans at Antelope Gymnasium, but both matches are back at the arena this weekend.
"We're so appreciative of the Havocs," Werle said. "The Arizona community has really come out full force to support us, which is really, really special to see. I'm most proud of how these guys act and the support they've gained just by being who they are."
But with the Lopes becoming GCU's first nationally top-ranked team in its 11-year Division I era, the No. 1 status was the next validation of a program climbing toward its ultimate goal of winning a national championship.
After going 4-0 with only one lost set the past two weekends at No. 6 BYU and against No. 10 USC, the Lopes' 13-0 record earned enough votes in the American Volleyball Coaches Association/National Volleyball Association poll to jump Long Beach State for the top spot.
"I'm extremely proud of our program and where we've come," GCU ninth-year head coach Matt Werle said. "Every year, it seems like we've gotten better and better and better. The experience that we gained last year has only allowed us to be more comfortable and confident in these situations of having a bigger target on our back. I think our guys are handling it really well."Coming off its first NCAA tournament appearance last year, GCU has won 39 of 43 sets this season by combining the third-best hitting percentage in the nation (.360) with the fifth-lowest opponent hitting percentage in the nation (.186).
In preseason polls, the Lopes were picked to finish third in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation behind UCLA and Stanford and were ranked No. 7 nationally. The Lopes moved to No. 2 quickly but remained there last week despite then-No. 1 Long Beach State suffering its first loss and GCU becoming the first team since 2002 to notch consecutive sweep victories at BYU.
This week's poll awarded the Lopes 13 of 23 first-place votes with the other 10 going to Long Beach State (13-1). GCU, the nation's only undefeated team, edged Long Beach State in total voting points 450 to 444. Hawaii and defending national champion UCLA follow at Nos. 3 and 4, respectively.
"When I first came here, it was always the goal to do something that GCU's never done before," Lopes junior setter Nicholas Slight said. "Ever since we've stepped foot on campus, it's been like, 'This is what we can do.' We always say at the start of every year that being No. 1 is our goal and so is a national championship, but it's one of those years where it's like a real thing.""We've always known that if we do what we need to do, this is sustainable."
That will be immediately tested this weekend with matches against No. 8 Stanford at 6 p.m. Friday and noon Sunday at Global Credit Union Arena. The Cardinal won the teams' past three meetings.
"As proud as I am of this, we want to be No. 1 in the end," Werle said. "This has some weight to it for sure for our program to be here. Anybody externally that's not in our program and not at our university never thought we could ever accomplish something like this.
"Our guys thrive on the doubters. They thrive on the guys behind the scenes on a computer running their mouths, saying, 'GCU has no business being there.' They continue to prove these guys wrong. That's the type of athlete I like to recruit."
Christian Janke, the program's first All-America second-teamer, closed his career last season, but the Lopes have more point-scoring options than ever. The talent has been brought out in the play of Slight, who ranks second in the nation with 10.7 assists per set.
"Nic Slight definitely is starting to get to his potential as a setter," Werle said. "His distribution has been remarkable. He's got a ton of weapons to work with across the board, which makes us so lethal at the net with our offense."
The most recognized Lopes star is senior outside hitter Camden Gianni, who played for the USA Volleyball Collegiate National Team last summer. Gianni ranks second in the nation with .65 aces per set and 15th for 4.4 points per set."He's the guy who everyone keys on because of his success and his USA experience," Werle said. "He's such a distraction out there. Whether he's playing well or not, it just makes everyone else better."
Gianni, senior middle blocker Rico Wardlow and senior Jackson Hickman have been steady assets to an attack that got richer with the improved play of sophomore middle blocker Cameron Thorne and junior outside hitter Karter Rogers.
Despite being a shorter middle blocker at 6 feet 4, Thorne's athleticism and intuition have resulted in 1.3 blocks per set, which ranks third nationally. Werle thinks Thorne's two-match production against USC was worthy of National Player of the Week with 20 kills, 10 blocks and seven digs in two wins.
After having 30 kills last season, Rogers has stepped up with three 10-kill performances, including a memorable one that included six blocks in the second sweep at BYU.
Like Rogers, junior libero Cooper Herndon has played into a larger role after being a service substitute last season. He already has 70 digs this season."Cooper Herndon really has handled his business against tough serves and he's not affected by it," Werle said.
Slight said the progression comes from a team that holds each other accountable. The players who preceded them at GCU set the tone of the program, and they are carrying it forward, locking into every phase from weight-room work to serve-and-receive mornings to carrying this No. 1 banner.
"We could be 1, 2, 10, 20 or not ranked, it doesn't matter," Slight said. "We're going to go out and try to win as many games as we can. It just helps the fan base more when you have a nice ranking next to your name."
And that has built a following. GCU ranks fifth nationally in attendance this season at 1,203 fans per game. The most recent home match was limited to 1,021 fans at Antelope Gymnasium, but both matches are back at the arena this weekend.
"We're so appreciative of the Havocs," Werle said. "The Arizona community has really come out full force to support us, which is really, really special to see. I'm most proud of how these guys act and the support they've gained just by being who they are."
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