Diouf scores twice again as Lopes defeat Utah Valley 3-1

Saturday, October 4

Phoenix, Ariz.

7 p.m.

Grand Canyon

7-2-1, 1-0-0

Utah Valley

6-1-1, 0-1-0

Utah Valley

Grand Canyon

Diouf scores twice again as Lopes defeat Utah Valley 3-1

10/4/2025 11:08:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

GCU freshman forward dazzles with 2nd straight brace, moves goal count to 10

By: Nick Macdonald

Beginning WAC play against an unbeaten Utah Valley team that was receiving top-25 votes, it was a familiar Grand Canyon name who brought the home crowd to its feet during the Lopes' 3-1 win at GCU Stadium.

Junior Diouf.

The freshman forward from Senegal, who scored two goals against UT Rio Grande Valley earlier in the week, repeated that stat line with his second straight brace to help guide the Lopes to its seventh win of the season and earn a crucial three points in conference play against a team that had allowed only one goal in seven matches entering Saturday.

Boasting one of the best defenses in the nation, Utah Valley (6-1-1) had outscored opponents 20-1 behind goalkeeper Kolby Session's .975 save percentage, which ranked second in the country.

"I was really pleased with the guys tonight," said head coach George Kiefer. "Utah Valley is a great team and they are really good at moving the ball, but we felt that we could get behind them going into transition in the back, and our guys did a really good job of that."

Early-game play saw just three shots between both squads through 25 minutes. The Wolverines struck first via Noah Pogue. A cross sent from the left-corner flag into the box was deflected back toward Pogue, who kicked it past Lopes goalie Daniel Ibarra for the 1-0 lead.

It is a spot the Lopes have been before, including a 2-1 win over Jacksonville and 3-1 win over Cleveland State. GCU (7-2-1) never panicked and statistically increased its offensive prowess.

The first electrifying moment of the evening came off the foot of junior midfielder Jorge Lopez, who entered the match as a sub after the goal and appeared for the first time in a match since Sept. 14 at CSU Fullerton. After a foul was given just outside the upper-right corner of the box, Lopez stood over the ball and delivered a strike over the Utah Valley wall and into the back of the net for the 39th-minute equalizer.

"Everyone sees the guys on the field, but its behind the scenes that I am really thankful for," Kiefer said. "Dr. Itamar, Dr. Shaarawy, Kyle Patrick our athletic trainer, the amount of work these guys have done to help get our guys back, and then for Jorge [Lopez] to rope a goal. It's a team of people that contributed to the win tonight. As much as it is on the field, it is the support staff off the field had a huge impact on tonight. Ben [Assane], Jack [Kiefer], Jorge, that's countless hours of their hard work to make sure our guys are healthy."

The goal was the first of the season for Lopez, who has earned WAC All-Freshman Team and All-WAC Second Team honors throughout his career.

A 1-1 match at the half, the Lopes second-half aggressiveness picked up with three shots from Diouf and a near miss from graduate Ben Assane through the first 20 minutes.

While the match included a pair of Diouf goals, the GCU defense stepped up in the second half to thwart away 11 Utah Valley shots. Ibarra made two saves in a 10-second span plus a blocked shot and a team save from the back line, finding any which way to keep Utah Valley at one goal.

GCU has yet to allow more than one goal in a match this season, and entered with seven goals allowed through nine games, the fewest through the first nine games in the program's D-I era and fewest since the 2011 season.

The crowd was witness to another dazzling goal from Diouf in the 67th minute, aided by two long passes from the Lopes defense. Ibarra sent a long ball to sophomore Diego Sanchez, who gave Diouf a pass in the middle of the pitch for a 25-yard dribble-and-go breakaway. Diouf flicked a shot with his right foot over Sessions just inside the left post for the eventual game-winner, his third of the season.

The match ended with an exclamation point from Diouf in the 84th minute, when he found a loose ball from a UVU defender and took it in stride, using his footwork to divert traffic and find the back left corner of the net.

"People see the goals, but it's his work off the ball and his work defensively" Kiefer said. "Everyone sees the goals, but that's the stuff I like, and if we can get guys off him as he draws three to four guys, it can open up a lot for our offense. It's a work in progress, but the kid can score goals."

Diouf's goal count is now at 10, which ranks third in the nation among Division I players. His 23 points are tied for third in the country.

GCU hits the road for two straight matches in California, the first coming Thursday night at San Diego State before a Sunday match at California Baptist.