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

10/4/2025 11:08:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score

Freshman forward dazzles with 2nd straight brace, goal count now at 10

By: Nick Macdonald

Beginning Western Athletic Conference play against an unbeaten Utah Valley team who was receiving votes in the United Soccer Coaches Poll Saturday night, it was a familiar name who electrified the home crowd to its feet in an eventual 3-1 win at GCU Stadium.

Junior Diouf.

The freshman forward from Senegal, who scored two goals against UTRGV 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 who allowed only one goal in seven matches entering tonight's matchup.

Boasting one of the best defenses in the nation, Utah Valley (6-1-1) entered with 20 goals scored to one goal allowed behind goalkeeper Kolby Session's .975 save percentage, a number that was second best in the entire country.

Early game play saw just three shots combined between both squads through 25 minutes, before the Wolverine's 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 early 1-0 lead.

A spot they have been in 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 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 equalizer.

The goal was the first of the season for Lopez, who has earned All-WAC Freshman 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 was filled with a pair of Diouf goals, the defense stepped up in the second half to thwart away 11 Utah Valley shot attempts. Ibarra had 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 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, who 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.

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

GCU hits the road for two straight in California, the first beginning Thursday night at San Diego State and ending Sunday at California Baptist.