Completed Event: Men's Soccer at #9 Stanford on August 20, 2026 , Loss , 1, to, 2
M Soccer
at #9 Stanford
L 1-2
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Sunday, August 23
Sacramento, CA
5 PM
Grand Canyon
at
Sacramento State
Photo by: John P. Lozano
No. 21 Lopes set for Sunday evening clash at Sacramento State
8/22/2026 11:05:00 AM | Men's Soccer
GCU coming off wire to wire finish at No. 9 Stanford
AT A GLANCE
- GCU heads into its second straight road contest in northern California and takes on Big West opponent Sacramento State Sunday evening.
- The Lopes hold a national ranking of 21 via the United Soccer Coaches poll. Along with that, GCU is also receiving votes in the College Soccer News preseason poll.Â
- The Lopes return eight players from last year's squad, including midfielders Jorge Lopez and Martin Luala. Both seniors were named to the Mountain West Preseason Watch List, while Luala was drafted No. 28 overall by San Diego FC in the 2026 MLS SuperDraft in December.Â
- Head Coach Jamie Davies begins his first season at the helm of the Lopes after spending his first two head coaching seasons at North Florida in 2024 and 2025. Those seasons saw UNF win the ASUN conference and tournament titles and earn back-to-back berths into the NCAA Tournament.
- Senior midfielder Sabri Hanni scored the Lopes' first goal of the 2026 campaign Thursday at No. 9 Stanford. Hanni, who totaled 11 points with three goals and five assists last season at UConn, was named to the MAC Hermann Midfielder Preseason Watchlist earlier this month.
- Tallying his first collegiate point Thursday, freshman Alhassan Alhassan recorded an assist to Hanni against the Cardinal. GCU totaled 16 shots in the season opener, with Alhassan tallying five.Â
- Thirteen countries are represented on the Lopes' 29 man roster. A pair of local products in Cruzeiro Cruz and Nerville Ntui also represent Arizona and hail from nearby Mesa, with both previously playing at Phoenix College.Â
- Among those international players includes fifth year goalkeeper Beltran Fernandez, who transferred in from Florida International. Fernandez went 1-1-1 a season ago and was named to the MW Preseason Watch List along with Lopez and Luala. Felix Oberwaditzer joins as a true freshman from Vaduz, Lichtenstein, and appeared in seven matches for the senior international squad during international competition.
LAST TIME OUT
- GCU went wire to wire with No. 9 Stanford Thursday evening in the season opener.Â
- After a 0-0 first half, both teams combined for three goals in a 26 minute span to open up the second half. The Cardinal prevailed, 2-1.Â
- Hanni scored his first goal as a Lope, while Alhassan tallied an assist.Â
- Nine Lopes made their collegiate debuts.
- The match was the third straight nationally ranked contest for the Lopes.Â
SCOUTING SACRAMENTO STATE
- The Hornets defeated fellow Mountain West opponent UC Davis, 3-1, Thursday evening in the season opener.Â
- The match saw 34 shots, 21 of which came from Sacramento State as they scored the opening three goals of the contest.Â
- Â Goalkeeper Lucas Bost totaled eight saves in net, ranking fourth most in the nation through one game.Â
- The Hornets finished 2-12-4 a season prior with Sunday's meeting being the fourth in program history against the Lopes. The two sides faced off last season in Phoenix as GCU prevailed 2-1.Â
WHAT'S NEXT?Â
- The Lopes return to Phoenix and play the first of five straight home matches Friday, August 28 vs. UC Riverside.Â
- Kick-off is set for 7 p.m. on MW+.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's SoccerFriday, August 21
Friday, August 21
Friday, August 21
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