Lopes take 2 wins; Jess Drake moves to 4th in GCU career wins

Friday, February 27

Tucson, Ariz.

11:30 a.m.

Grand Canyon

Oregon

Photo by: Brayden Stenner

Lopes take 2 wins; Jess Drake moves to 4th in GCU career wins

2/27/2026 5:18:00 PM | Beach Volleyball

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GCU faces No. 19 Georgia State, rematch UTEP Saturday

By: Nathan Peters

TUCSON, Ariz. - GCU claimed its first sweep of the season Friday with a win over UTEP after a 4-1 morning win over Oregon at Bear Down Beach.

With two wins Friday, Jessica Drake moved into fourth place all-time in GCU career victories, passing legendary Teagan DeFalco and continuing to add to her historic tenure in purple as the Lopes capped a perfect day in Tucson.

Against Oregon, the Lopes won four of five flights, taking control early in the dual.

The first point came from junior Rhea Kohl and sophomore Mae Manthe, who earned a decisive 21-12, 21-10 victory.

Juniors Karynn Garrow and Becca Drake followed with a 21-17, 21-14 win to put GCU ahead 2-0.

Jessica Drake and Sarah Edler added a 21-17, 21-11 victory, while redshirt-sophomore Michael Wittren and sophomore Grace Goudy secured the team-clinching point with a 21-16, 21-11 result.

In the second set of that match, Wittren and Goudy trailed 9-5 before rallying to take control and closing it out 22-11.

GCU carried that momentum into a dominant performance against UTEP, sweeping all five flights.

The Lopes struck first with a straight-set win from Rhea Kohl and Mae Manthe, followed by a 21-7, 21-18 victory from Jessica Drake and Sarah Edler.

Estelle Haugen and Grace Goudy added another straight-set win, marking Haugen's first beach volleyball victory after transferring from Georgia, where she competed on the indoor side.

Karynn Garrow and Becca Drake secured another three-set win, 21-13, 16-21, 15-10, and Katie Keefe and Youna Coens completed the sweep with a 21-13, 18-21, 15-9 result.

The order of finish was 2, 4, 5, 1, 3.

The Lopes take on #19 Georgia State Saturday morning before another match against UTEP in the afternoon.