Young team. Proud accomplishment.

Making their first trip to the National Intramural Recreational Sports Association National Championships for the first time in four years, the Grand Canyon University Club Women's Basketball team really showed they belonged, reaching the quarterfinal round this past Saturday in Wichita, Kansas.

"NIRSA was a great experience for our team," said Lopes' Head Coach Kyle Speed. "The girls played hard and were so close to making the final four. We just ran out of time."

Defensively, GCU gave teams fits all weekend with their nonstop pressure, but their offense took a little while to come around. The Lopes started the day losing their first game in pool play, 35-26, to Northeastern University, but responded in their final pool play matchup with a nail-biting win over University of Louisville, 28-27 to reach the first round of bracket play.

GCU's offense kicked into gear against Mississippi State, outlasting the Bulldogs, 45-39, to reach the quarterfinal round. Unfortunately, the Lopes didn't have much left in the tank after that, losing their fourth and final game of the day to University of California-Davis, 36-29, and finishing the tournament with a 2-2 record.

Speed was hoping the trip to Kansas would give a program that sported four upperclassmen all year long a feel for a national stage but came away with much more than that.  

"Finishing top 8 in the country is a great accomplishment," said Speed. "Overall, though, it was great for our team to get the experience. We were young this year, and all the girls are looking forward to next season. "