Grand Canyon University Athletics
Thursday, April 17
Stanford, Calif.
6 p.m.
Grand Canyon
16-9,5-6MPSF
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Stanford
11-13,4-7MPSF
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Grand Canyon
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Photo by: Nathan Peters
Lopes rally past No. 11 Stanford 5-set road battle
4/17/2025 9:30:00 PM | Men's Volleyball
Oldani, Moser and Zediker lead GCU in gritty win
STANFORD, Calif. – Grand Canyon men's volleyball rallied for a dramatic five-set victory over Stanford on Thursday night at Maples Pavilion, claiming a 3–2 (25–22, 20–25, 15–25, 25–18, 16–14) match in Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) play. The win moved the Lopes to 16–9 overall.
The Lopes opened strong, capturing the first set behind a 5–0 mid-frame run sparked by outside hitters Cole Ottmar, Trent Moser and opposite Jarrett Anderson. However, Stanford responded with control in sets two and three, including a dominant third frame where they hit .444 and held GCU to just six kills.
Down 2–1, GCU turned to several key contributors off the bench to shift momentum.
Lopes coach Bryan Dell'Amico praised the impact of freshmen Kyle Zediker, Connor Oldani, and Matthew "Tort" Thornton. "We just really felt that the energy started to become a little frantic," Dell'Amico said. "Kyle, Connor and Tort are just… steady. They manage their emotions really well. We just decided it was time to make the switch."
The move paid off. GCU hit a blistering .545 in the fourth set, cruising to a 25–18 win as Oldani delivered seven kills on 12 swings with one error.
"Connor obviously, seven [kills] on 12, was awesome. He just made good choices," Dell'Amico said. "It wasn't like he was overaggressive—he just made the right play every time."
In a tension-filled fifth set, GCU led 13-8 before Stanford found life going on a run to lead. A Stanford error led to 14 all before Moser delivered back-to-back aces to give the Lopes the match.
Moser finished with 17 kills.
"Trent did that for us all year long," Dell'Amico added. "He's just the piece on the chessboard you can never take off... When things are struggling, he's a solid voice on the court."
Anderson added nine kills and four blocks, while Jaxon Herr tallied 25 assists and Zediker tallied 20.
Freshman middle blocker Braedon Marquardt closed with eight assisted blocks.
The Lopes finished with 50 kills, 12 blocks, and 28 digs in a gutsy team effort. The victory marked GCU's third five-set win of the season.
The Lopes will play No. 11 Stanford again Friday at 6 p.m. in Maple Pavilion.
The Lopes opened strong, capturing the first set behind a 5–0 mid-frame run sparked by outside hitters Cole Ottmar, Trent Moser and opposite Jarrett Anderson. However, Stanford responded with control in sets two and three, including a dominant third frame where they hit .444 and held GCU to just six kills.
Down 2–1, GCU turned to several key contributors off the bench to shift momentum.
Lopes coach Bryan Dell'Amico praised the impact of freshmen Kyle Zediker, Connor Oldani, and Matthew "Tort" Thornton. "We just really felt that the energy started to become a little frantic," Dell'Amico said. "Kyle, Connor and Tort are just… steady. They manage their emotions really well. We just decided it was time to make the switch."
The move paid off. GCU hit a blistering .545 in the fourth set, cruising to a 25–18 win as Oldani delivered seven kills on 12 swings with one error.
"Connor obviously, seven [kills] on 12, was awesome. He just made good choices," Dell'Amico said. "It wasn't like he was overaggressive—he just made the right play every time."
In a tension-filled fifth set, GCU led 13-8 before Stanford found life going on a run to lead. A Stanford error led to 14 all before Moser delivered back-to-back aces to give the Lopes the match.
Moser finished with 17 kills.
"Trent did that for us all year long," Dell'Amico added. "He's just the piece on the chessboard you can never take off... When things are struggling, he's a solid voice on the court."
Anderson added nine kills and four blocks, while Jaxon Herr tallied 25 assists and Zediker tallied 20.
Freshman middle blocker Braedon Marquardt closed with eight assisted blocks.
The Lopes finished with 50 kills, 12 blocks, and 28 digs in a gutsy team effort. The victory marked GCU's third five-set win of the season.
The Lopes will play No. 11 Stanford again Friday at 6 p.m. in Maple Pavilion.
Team Stats
GCU
Stan
Kills
50
50
Errors
19
18
Attempts
107
106
Hitting %
.290
.302
Points
70.5
68.0
Assists
49
48
Aces
8
9
Blocks
12.5
9
Game Leaders
Kills
17
Aces
3
Blocks
3
Kills
9
Aces
1
Blocks
4
Kills
8
Aces
0
Blocks
0
Kills
7
Aces
0
Blocks
2
Players Mentioned
Opp
/ Men's Volleyball
S
/ Men's Volleyball
MB/OPP
/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's VolleyballOH
/ Men's Volleyball
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