San Luis Obispo, California – October 31, 2022 – Facing off against a much larger field this year with some of the top California club teams in the nation, the Grand Canyon University Women's Club Soccer team couldn't duplicate the success of last season's run and reach the championship match of the National Intramural & Recreational Sports Association Region VI Championships for a second straight year, instead splitting their two pool-play round matches, then dropping the play-in match this past weekend in San Luis Obispo, California. A 2-1 victory over UCLA in their Friday night opener was followed by a tough 1-0 loss to University of California-Davis Saturday, then a 3-0 play-in loss just hours later to the University of California-Santa Barbara officially eliminated the Lopes from competition and prematurely ended their fall season.
 
"I'm really proud of our girls for the way they competed," said Lopes' Head Coach Hannah Bolton. "Last year, we were new to the tournament, but this year, we proved to the tough California teams that we belonged."
 
Friday:  GCU 2, UCLA 1
 
Whether it was playoff jitters, great defense, or a combination of the two, the Lopes and Bruins neutralized each other's offenses throughout the first half in a scoreless tie. The Lopes were the first to break through early in the second – thanks to a goal by Lopes' freshman forward Mia Stemper. The Bruins came back to tie the score at 1-1 before GCU midfielder Evie Wouters scored with 20 minutes left, and that was all Lopes' sophomore goalkeeper Clarissa Harris (who played all 270 minutes of the tournament in goal for GCU) needed to help the Lopes get the tournament started off on the right foot.
 
Saturday:  UC-Davis 1, GCU 0
 
Once again, it was a scoreless first 45 minutes, but neither team's halftime adjustments made a difference on offense until the Aggies broke the tie with an acrobatic goal scored with 12 minutes left in the match. The Lopes had several chances to tie it down the stretch – including a breakaway opportunity that saw the shot carom off the crossbar – but the Lopes couldn't capitalize.
 
Saturday:  UC-Santa Barbara 3, GCU 0
 
Each team entered the matchup in similar fashion, having played a Saturday morning match without scoring a goal (UCSB tied San Diego State in their first match of the day, 0-0), but the formidable Gauchos ended their scoring drought in the first half and never looked back. UCSB extended a 1-0 halftime lead to two early in the second, then maintained the sticky defense before icing it with their third goal in the final minute when the Lopes were pressing forward to generate more offense.
 
"Our region is one of the most difficult in the nation, and it's encouraging to see how far the program has come during my time here," said Bolton. "One thing that certainly helped us here was all of our parents and families that came to the event and supported, and I want to give them a huge thank you."
 
The Lopes finish the fall season with a 5-3 overall mark.