Williams' 20 kills power Lopes to sweep of Arkansas State

Saturday, August 29

College Station, Texas

2 p.m. (MST)

Grand Canyon

1-2,0-0Mountain West

Arkansas State

0-2,0-0Sun Belt

Team	1	2	3	Final F
Grand Canyon	25	25	25	3
Arkansas St.	19	15	23	0

Photo by: Nathan Peters

Williams' 20 kills power Lopes to sweep of Arkansas State

8/29/2026 5:52:00 PM | Volleyball

Box Score

GCU looks towards home opener, Lope-a-Palooza

By: Nathan Peters

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Grand Canyon volleyball closed its opening weekend in College Station, Texas, with its first win of the season Saturday, sweeping 2025 NCAA Tournament team Arkansas State 25-19, 25-15, 25-23 at Reed Arena.

Fifth-year opposite hitter Starr Williams delivered one of the best three-set performances in GCU's Division I era, recording 20 kills on .421 hitting. Her 20 kills rank second in program D-I history for a three-set match.

Williams committed just four errors on 38 swings and accounted for more than 40% of the Lopes' 47 kills as GCU (1-2) hit .356 as a team. The Lopes improved offensively throughout the match, hitting .343 in the first set, .314 in the second and .412 in the third.

"It was great to see Starr just take over today," GCU head coach Kendra Potts said. "She has it in her to take over any match. Her offensive numbers are what stand out, however, she was very strong with her block, serve receive and her serve, which made it overall such an impressive day."

GCU established control early against an Arkansas State program that reached the NCAA Tournament last season.

The Lopes broke a 1-1 tie in the opening set with three consecutive points and eventually stretched their advantage to 10-4. Arkansas State cut the lead to 14-13, but GCU never allowed the Red Wolves to pull even.

Williams helped the Lopes create separation down the stretch. She recorded four kills over GCU's final six points, including kills for 23-18, 24-18 and the set-clinching point in the 25-19 victory.

GCU was even more commanding in the second set.

After Arkansas State pulled even at 5-5, the Lopes scored five straight points for a 10-5 lead. GCU later used another extended run to turn a 10-6 advantage into 15-6, with senior outside hitter Katie Schulz providing three kills during that stretch.

The Lopes never let the Red Wolves back within six points and closed out the 25-15 win. Williams added six kills in the set, while sophomore middle blocker Aubrey Bellus finished it off with her fifth kill of the match.

Williams was the centerpiece of an efficient GCU offense, but she had plenty of help. Schulz finished with eight kills, Bellus added five on .400 hitting and sophomore Ana Jaramazovic recorded four kills without an error on seven attacks for a .571 hitting percentage.

Setters Bella Nunez and Taylor Kubacak combined for 38 assists. Nunez recorded 21 assists and 10 digs for a double-double, while Kubacak added 17 assists and six digs.

Senior libero Bella Anderson led the defensive effort with 12 digs and gave GCU another weapon from the service line with three of the Lopes' six aces.

"There was real-time growth from yesterday to today," Potts said. "We didn't have to wait to get back in the gym on Monday to make adjustments and fix things. We learned a lot from playing some of the best teams in the country on day one. I was really impressed with our consistency with serve receive, and we also made major strides in our defense behind the block."

Arkansas State made its strongest push of the afternoon in the third set, which featured six ties and three lead changes.

The Red Wolves led 15-14 before Williams put down another kill to even the score. GCU moved back in front at 16-15 on a Jaramazovic kill and again at 17-16 behind Williams.

After Arkansas State tied the set at 17-17, Williams struck again to give GCU the lead for good. The Lopes extended the advantage to 20-17 and later went ahead 23-21 on another Jaramazovic kill.

Arkansas State stayed alive to pull within 24-23, but Jaramazovic ended the match with her fourth kill, sealing the 25-23 victory and GCU's first sweep of the season.

The Lopes finished with a 47-38 advantage in kills and outhit Arkansas State .356 to .212 while also holding a 51-42 edge in digs.

"This weekend has only made us more excited to get back in the gym and prepare for the upcoming weekend," Potts said.

The Lopes will host at Global Credit Union Arena Froday-Sunday with Lousoiana-Monroe, San Francisco, Temple in attendance.