A second chance.

After being in the same position nearly two years ago but were forced to forfeit due to travel conficts, the Grand Canyon University Men's Club Volleyball team clinched the No. 1 spot in the Mountain West Volleyball Conference after winning the MWVC Conference Championship Tournament in Orem, Utah.

"It was a big win for the program - especially with everything that happened two years ago," said Lopes' Head Coach Brendan Quinn. "No matter what the score was, we improved upon ourselves, played more fundamentally sound, and our clutch factor really showed in our knack for closing games out when we had to."

On Day 1, the Lopes steamrolled through their competition, beating Utah State University's "B" team and Montana State University in pool play. Moving into the challenge matches, the Lopes defeated Ricks College in their third match, dropping their only set of the day. In their final challenge match, the Lopes swept the University of Colorado, securing their spot in the Gold Bracket.

"We try to think of these two-day tournaments as one long race," said Lopes' junior outside hitter Hunter Egeland. "After Day 1, whether we lost every set or one set, we still hadn't won the race, and nothing from the first day matters if you lose in the first round of eliminations."

The Lopes picked up where they left off from the day before, making quick work of their first two opponents, Air Force and Ricks College's "B" team, overwhelming both opponents in two-set victories.

The Lopes' semifinal matchup against Utah State University went into extra points in the third set before GCU won, 16-14, solidifying their spot in the championship match.

"Ricks is always a tough team to play, and after beating them the first day, we knew they were our toughest competition at the tournament," said Egeland. "The way we finished our Utah State game instilled the confidence and grit that we needed to finish out the race and go get the gold."

The championship game was a rematch with Ricks College. Despite the Lopes losing the first set, 25-20, GCU turned the tide to win the championship with 27-25 and 15-13 set victories.

The Lopes' Ezekiel Greene, Samuel Tipton, Hunter Egeland, and Nikolas Zeiner were all named to the MWVC All-Conference team.

"I think Zeke, Niko, Hunter, and Sam portrayed everything I want people to know our program for," said Quinn. "They cheered each other on, played great volleyball, and executed the little things well from start to finish."

Zeiner was named the tournament MVP.

"Niko deserved MVP more than anybody at that tournament," said Egeland. "The kid gives our hitters every opportunity we need to be successful, and he's one of the best decision-makers I've ever played with."

Next on the schedule for the Lopes is the University of Arizona Tournament in Tucson on March 25 and 26. The Lopes first match will start at 5 PM.