Upcoming Event: Softball versus Pima CC on September 30, 2025 at 6 p.m.
Softball
6 p.m.
vs Pima CC
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Saturday, May 17
Tucson, Ariz.
3:30 p.m.
Grand Canyon
47-7
9
vs
4
(4) Santa Clara
32-22
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Santa Clara
0
1
1
0
1
0
1
4
6
3
Grand Canyon
0
0
0
3
5
1
X
9
11
0
Photo by: Bryce Wheeler
3-homer inning keeps GCU alive at Tucson Regional
5/17/2025 6:00:00 PM | Softball, Paul Coro
Lopes notch nation-high 21st comeback win vs. Santa Clara, play host Arizona
TUCSON, Ariz. – Trailing 2-0 in the fourth inning, Grand Canyon needed a charge in a must-win Tucson Regional game.
The Lopes electrified Hillenbrand Stadium with a three-homer fourth inning that wiped out a Santa Clara lead on the way to No. 24 GCU;s 9-4 Saturday victory that eliminated the WCC champion. At 7:50 p.,m. Saturday, GCU (47-7) plays another Tucson Regional elimination game – thie time on ESPN – against No. 13 Arizona (46-12), the regional's top seed and host that lost 10-8 to Ole Miss earlier Saturday.
The Saturday nightcap winner will advance to the Tucson Regional championship round on Sunday, when it would need to defeat Ole Miss in 4:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. games at Hillenbrand.
G
CU took the national lead for comeback wins this season when it rallied to victory for the 21st time. The Lopes used a string of three home runs over four batters in the fourth and seven consecutive hits in the fifth to wipe out the Broncos' lead.
The Lopes produced one hit over the first three innings, but it was an important one for GCU history.
Lopes sophomore second baseman Savannah Kirk led off the bottom of the first with a single chopped over the third baseman for her 95th hit of the season, breaking Ashley Trierweiler's single-season GCU hits record from last season.
But the Lopes fell into a 2-0 hole when graduate left fielder Mia Weckel lost a second-inning fly ball in the sun, leading to a run, and freshman starter Oakley Vickers surrendered a wind-blown, third-inning home run for a 2-0 Santa Clara lead.
GCU graduate right fielder Makaiya Gomez sparked the turnaround by lifting an opposite-field home run to the left-field bleachers for her 10th homer of the season to start the fourth inning. Three pitches later, Lopes junior first baseman Emily Gonzalez locked the score at 2-2 by rocketing a home run for her third consecutive postseason game.
Gonzalez's team-high 12th home run of the season nearly cleared Hillenbrand's left-field bleachers, hitting the "W" on the top row's signage backing to help get GCU on the path to a "W."
The Lopes stayed flexed an out later when freshman third baseman Willa Ford gave GCU a 3-2 advantage with a towering shot to left-center field, marking her fifth round-tripper of the season.
As Lopes junior right-hander Taryn Batterton was on her way to limiting Santa Clara to two runs over 3 2/3 relief innings, GCU's offense cushioned her lead for her 18th victory of the season.
The Lopes delivered seven consecutive hits in the fifth inning before the Broncos recorded the first out. After Santa Clara had tied the score at 3-3 in the top of the fifth, GCU went for five runs in the bottom half after sophomore shortstop Mackenzie Nolan opened the inning with her first triple of the season.
Nolan, who is 6 for 11 in her past five games, ripped a shot over the right field and then scored the go-ahead run when Kirk singled to center field. Kirk went 49 for 49 on stolen bases to start a string of singles that also included Weckel, Gomez, Gonzalez, freshman designated player Jada Cooper and Ford.
GCU stretched the lead to 9-3 in the bottom of the sixth inning, when Kirk drew a walk and stole second, making her 50 for 50 on stolen bases, putting her one shy of the WAC record set in 2022 by former Lopes player Gianna Nicoletti.
Ford, Gomez, Gonzalez and Kirk each delivered two-hit games to help the Lopes win an NCAA regional game for the third consecutive season.
"That's a great softball team, and we were going to have to throw the kitchen sink at them," Santa Clara head coach Gina Carbanotto said of GCU, which did not have a postgame press conference because of the 35-minute gap between games.
"I'm giving a good amount of credit to a great softball team. Grand Canyon is a pheonmenal softball team."
The Lopes electrified Hillenbrand Stadium with a three-homer fourth inning that wiped out a Santa Clara lead on the way to No. 24 GCU;s 9-4 Saturday victory that eliminated the WCC champion. At 7:50 p.,m. Saturday, GCU (47-7) plays another Tucson Regional elimination game – thie time on ESPN – against No. 13 Arizona (46-12), the regional's top seed and host that lost 10-8 to Ole Miss earlier Saturday.
The Saturday nightcap winner will advance to the Tucson Regional championship round on Sunday, when it would need to defeat Ole Miss in 4:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. games at Hillenbrand.
G
CU took the national lead for comeback wins this season when it rallied to victory for the 21st time. The Lopes used a string of three home runs over four batters in the fourth and seven consecutive hits in the fifth to wipe out the Broncos' lead.The Lopes produced one hit over the first three innings, but it was an important one for GCU history.
Lopes sophomore second baseman Savannah Kirk led off the bottom of the first with a single chopped over the third baseman for her 95th hit of the season, breaking Ashley Trierweiler's single-season GCU hits record from last season.
But the Lopes fell into a 2-0 hole when graduate left fielder Mia Weckel lost a second-inning fly ball in the sun, leading to a run, and freshman starter Oakley Vickers surrendered a wind-blown, third-inning home run for a 2-0 Santa Clara lead.
GCU graduate right fielder Makaiya Gomez sparked the turnaround by lifting an opposite-field home run to the left-field bleachers for her 10th homer of the season to start the fourth inning. Three pitches later, Lopes junior first baseman Emily Gonzalez locked the score at 2-2 by rocketing a home run for her third consecutive postseason game.Gonzalez's team-high 12th home run of the season nearly cleared Hillenbrand's left-field bleachers, hitting the "W" on the top row's signage backing to help get GCU on the path to a "W."
The Lopes stayed flexed an out later when freshman third baseman Willa Ford gave GCU a 3-2 advantage with a towering shot to left-center field, marking her fifth round-tripper of the season.
As Lopes junior right-hander Taryn Batterton was on her way to limiting Santa Clara to two runs over 3 2/3 relief innings, GCU's offense cushioned her lead for her 18th victory of the season.The Lopes delivered seven consecutive hits in the fifth inning before the Broncos recorded the first out. After Santa Clara had tied the score at 3-3 in the top of the fifth, GCU went for five runs in the bottom half after sophomore shortstop Mackenzie Nolan opened the inning with her first triple of the season.
Nolan, who is 6 for 11 in her past five games, ripped a shot over the right field and then scored the go-ahead run when Kirk singled to center field. Kirk went 49 for 49 on stolen bases to start a string of singles that also included Weckel, Gomez, Gonzalez, freshman designated player Jada Cooper and Ford.
GCU stretched the lead to 9-3 in the bottom of the sixth inning, when Kirk drew a walk and stole second, making her 50 for 50 on stolen bases, putting her one shy of the WAC record set in 2022 by former Lopes player Gianna Nicoletti.
Ford, Gomez, Gonzalez and Kirk each delivered two-hit games to help the Lopes win an NCAA regional game for the third consecutive season.
"That's a great softball team, and we were going to have to throw the kitchen sink at them," Santa Clara head coach Gina Carbanotto said of GCU, which did not have a postgame press conference because of the 35-minute gap between games.
"I'm giving a good amount of credit to a great softball team. Grand Canyon is a pheonmenal softball team."
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Batterton, Taryn (18-1)
L: FERGUSON, Cari (8-11)
Batting:
2B: RUBIO, Rebecca 1 ; CLEMENTS, Taryn 1
HR: BRYSON, Lauren 1
RBI: CURRAN, Cairah 1 ; ALLEY, Hope 1 ; BALMEDIANO, Robynn 1 ; BRYSON, Lauren 1
SF: CURRAN, Cairah 1 ; ALLEY, Hope 1
Base Running:
RUNS: CLEMENTS, Taryn 1 ; MERLINO, Elle 1 ; BRYSON, Lauren 1 ; CHARPENTIER, Abigail 1
HBP: CHARPENTIER, Abigail 1
Batting:
3B: Nolan, Mackenzie 1
HR: Gomez, Makaiya 1 ; Gonzalez, Emily 1 ; Ford, Willa 1
RBI: Kirk, Savannah 1 ; Gomez, Makaiya 3 ; Gonzalez, Emily 2 ; Cooper, Jada 1 ; Ford, Willa 2
SH: Weckel, Mia 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Kirk, Savannah 2 ; Weckel, Mia 1 ; Gomez, Makaiya 2 ; Gonzalez, Emily 1 ; Selfors, Macie 1 ; Ford, Willa 1 ; Nolan, Mackenzie 1
SB: Kirk, Savannah 3
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
3
R
2
H
2
RBI
1
rf/lf
AB
4
R
2
H
2
RBI
3
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
3b/1b
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
2
Players Mentioned
RHP
/ Softball
IF
/ SoftballUTIL
/ SoftballOF
/ SoftballUTIL
/ SoftballINF
/ Softball
IF
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OF
/ Softball
LHP
/ Softball
OF
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