Completed Event: Softball versus UNLV on April 26, 2026 , Win , 4, to, 2
Softball
vs UNLV
W 4-2
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
NCAA tourney pits GCU vs. Lousville in Lincoln
5/10/2026 4:30:00 PM | Softball, Paul Coro
25th-ranked Lopes seeded No. 3 in Nebraksa's Lincoln Regional
No. 25 Grand Canyon's NCAA Tournament will be in the only regional with three top-25 teams with the Mountain West champions being matched with No. 24 Louisville for a Friday opener at national No. 4 seed Nebraska's regional.
In the double-elimination Lincoln Regional, GCU (52-8) will start Friday at 1 p.m. (Phoenix time) on ESPNU against No. 24 Louisville (44-12). The Lopes and the Cardinals are ranked No. 27 and No. 29, respectively, in the NCAA's Rating Percentage Index.
Louisville, whose ACC Tournament ended with a 6-5 quarterfinal loss to Stanford, ranks 11th nationally in runs per game (7.6) and batting average (.351) and is No. 5 in stolen bases (127). The Cardinals feature three .400-plus hitters who were named to the All-ACC first team — sophomore Madison Pickens (10th in the nation with .470 batting average) and seniors Chelsea Mack (.445) and Bri Despines (.410).
Nebraska (46-6), the region's top seed with the nation's sixth-best ERA (1.95), will play Summit League Tournament champion South Dakota (20-34-1) in the regional's other first-round matchup at 2,530-seat Bowlin Stadium.
GCU automatically earned its fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament berth with its dramatic claim of the Mountain West Championship title on Saturday, when the MW regular-season champions beat host Nevada twice with a 3-0 shutout and an 11-10, nine-inning win that was the largest comeback in program history from a 9-0 deficit.
The Lopes's 52-win total set a program record and is tied for the most victories in the nation with Texas Tech. They entered the week ranked 25th in the nation by the ESPN/USA Softball Poll and finished the weekend at No. 27 in RPI, the NCAA's Rating Percentage Index.
The 52-8 season is a continuation of the massive program turnaround the Lopes underwent since fifth-year head coach Shanon Hays took the helm. In his tenure, GCU holds the fourth-best winning percentage in the nation (.802, 235-58) behind only Oklahoma, UCLA and Florida State. The Lopes were able to do it in a season that lost MW Preseason Player of the Year Savannah Kirk to knee surgery before the opener. They won the final three games of MW Championship after losing starting shortstop Mackenzie Nolan to injury.
The Lopes won the Mountain West regular-season championship in their first season as a conference member with four All-MW first-team honorees:sophomore first baseman Jada Cooper, sophomore pitcher Natalie Fritz, graduate left fielder Trinity Martin and senior center fielder Sydney McCray, who also was the MW Defensive Player of the Year.
GCU won the MW Championship with sophomore pitcher Oakley Vickers being named the Most Valuable Player for her 1.09 ERA and tournament-record 23 strikeouts in 19 1/3 innings. Vickers was joined on the All-MW Championship Team by Martin, junior catcher Tinley Lucas and freshman right fielder Addison Shifflett. As part of GCU's tournament-record 10 home runs, Shiflett set MW Championship records for home runs (four) and RBIs (13).
In the double-elimination Lincoln Regional, GCU (52-8) will start Friday at 1 p.m. (Phoenix time) on ESPNU against No. 24 Louisville (44-12). The Lopes and the Cardinals are ranked No. 27 and No. 29, respectively, in the NCAA's Rating Percentage Index.
Louisville, whose ACC Tournament ended with a 6-5 quarterfinal loss to Stanford, ranks 11th nationally in runs per game (7.6) and batting average (.351) and is No. 5 in stolen bases (127). The Cardinals feature three .400-plus hitters who were named to the All-ACC first team — sophomore Madison Pickens (10th in the nation with .470 batting average) and seniors Chelsea Mack (.445) and Bri Despines (.410).
Nebraska (46-6), the region's top seed with the nation's sixth-best ERA (1.95), will play Summit League Tournament champion South Dakota (20-34-1) in the regional's other first-round matchup at 2,530-seat Bowlin Stadium.
GCU automatically earned its fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament berth with its dramatic claim of the Mountain West Championship title on Saturday, when the MW regular-season champions beat host Nevada twice with a 3-0 shutout and an 11-10, nine-inning win that was the largest comeback in program history from a 9-0 deficit.
The Lopes's 52-win total set a program record and is tied for the most victories in the nation with Texas Tech. They entered the week ranked 25th in the nation by the ESPN/USA Softball Poll and finished the weekend at No. 27 in RPI, the NCAA's Rating Percentage Index.
The 52-8 season is a continuation of the massive program turnaround the Lopes underwent since fifth-year head coach Shanon Hays took the helm. In his tenure, GCU holds the fourth-best winning percentage in the nation (.802, 235-58) behind only Oklahoma, UCLA and Florida State. The Lopes were able to do it in a season that lost MW Preseason Player of the Year Savannah Kirk to knee surgery before the opener. They won the final three games of MW Championship after losing starting shortstop Mackenzie Nolan to injury.
The Lopes won the Mountain West regular-season championship in their first season as a conference member with four All-MW first-team honorees:sophomore first baseman Jada Cooper, sophomore pitcher Natalie Fritz, graduate left fielder Trinity Martin and senior center fielder Sydney McCray, who also was the MW Defensive Player of the Year.
GCU won the MW Championship with sophomore pitcher Oakley Vickers being named the Most Valuable Player for her 1.09 ERA and tournament-record 23 strikeouts in 19 1/3 innings. Vickers was joined on the All-MW Championship Team by Martin, junior catcher Tinley Lucas and freshman right fielder Addison Shifflett. As part of GCU's tournament-record 10 home runs, Shiflett set MW Championship records for home runs (four) and RBIs (13).
Players Mentioned
IF
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
C
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
IF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
LHP
/ SoftballGCU #baseball goes crazy watching #softball win a title 🏆
Sunday, May 10
GCU Softball wins MW Championship - Postgame with Sydney McCray
Sunday, May 10
GCU Softball wins MW Championship - Postgame with Oakley Vickers
Sunday, May 10
GCU Softball wins MW Championship - Postgame with Ellie Pond
Sunday, May 10