Thursday, October 15
USAFA
6:00 pm MT
Air Force Academy
6-12,2-5Mountain West
1
vs
3
Grand Canyon
9-9,3-4Mountain West
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Canyon | 25 | 16 | 25 | 27 | 3 |
| Air Force | 22 | 25 | 22 | 25 | 1 |
Photo by: Jonathan Suni
10/15/2026 9:45:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
USAF ACADEMY, Colo. -- The Air Force volleyball team dropped a four-set contest to Grand Canyon this evening (Oct. 15) in the series opener at the Academy's Cadet East Gym. In a back-and-forth match that included 44 ties and 19 lead changes, the Falcons fell 22-25, 25-16, 22-25, 25-27 to the visiting Antelopes and moved to 2-5 in Mountain West play.
Backed by double-digit tallies from junior Alysa Walker (18), sophomore Sonia Donkeng Okpara (career high 12) and senior Annamaria Ramo (10), the Falcons out-killed the Lopes by a 62-58 margin, while out-hitting the visitors by 21 points (.235-.214) – a tally highlighted by .300+ hitting from Donkeng Okpara (.320, 12-4-25), junior Grace Fiaseu (.333, 9-2-21) and freshman Jenness Orcutt (.304, 9-2-23). Fiaseu, who served up one of the Falcons' four aces, tallied a match-high seven blocks (three solo, four assisted), while classmate Mia Loyd registered 31 assists. Walker added a career-high 20 digs for the 20th double-double of her career, while Ramos (10 digs, third double-double) and freshman Ella Vogel (17) also reached double-digit dig totals.
Fiaseu put the Falcons on the board with the opening point, while Donkeng Okpara helped Air Force to a 3-1 lead. The Lopes scored the next three points, but Air Force evened the score at four off a kill from Walker and began a back-and-forth swing that included set-tying scores from Donkeng Okpara (kill, 5-5), junior Bella Christensen (kill, 6-6) and Fiaseu (solo block, 7-7). Air Force went ahead 9-7 off an ace from Ramos, while a strike from Walker tied the set at 12. Grand Canyon strung together four-straight points for the largest lead by either team (16-12), before Fiaseu put down the Falcons' next three scores to cut the deficit to two (16-18). Walker added three more kills, while Fiaseu added another block, but the Lopes took the opening set by a 25-22 margin.
Fiaseu and Walker teamed up for a block to start the second set, while a kill from Orcutt broke a four-all tie and sparked a 7-1 run that included two kills and a block from Donkeng Okpara and Christensen. The sophomore added another kill at the 11-6 mark, while Ramos added a pair of scores to send the Falcons into the media timeout with a 15-9 advantage. The Falcons used a 5-1 run to push their lead to eight (20-12), with kills from Walker (two), Donkeng Okpara and Orcutt. Ramos tallied three more kills, while a strike from Fiaseu evened the match with an easy 25-16 win for Air Force.
The Falcons earned the first point of the third off a kill from Walker, who accounted for the Falcons' first three scores. A block from Donkeng Okpara gave Air Force a 5-4 lead, while two strikes and a block from Ramos headlined a 5-1 run that gave Air Force a 10-8 advantage. The Falcons earned scores from Walker (kill) and Fiaseu (ace) to maintain a two-point lead (13-11), while back-to-back kills from Walker and Orcutt kept that margin at the media timeout (15-13). The Lopes scored six of the next eight to take their own two-point lead (19-17), but Air Force responded to tie the set at 22 off kills from Fiaseu and Orcutt. Despite the set-tying run, Air Force was unable to add to its total, as GCU scored the final three for the 25-22 win.
The teams traded points in the fourth set, with Orcutt, Walker and Ramos helping the Falcons to a six-all tie. Air Force took the lead off a kill from Fiaseu on the next play and the teams continued to swap scoring plays. Christensen put down a pair of kills to tie the set at 12 – and again at 13, while a strike from Fiaseu gave Air Force a 15-13 lead. GCU answered the Falcons' run with one of its own, scoring five-straight points, before Fiaseu and Orcutt teamed up for a run-stopping block at 16-18. The Falcons closed the gap, as a pair of serves – an error by the Lopes, an ace from sophomore Sam Pope – helped Air Force take a 21-20 lead. A pair of scores from Walker (kill, ace) put the Falcons at their first set-point (24-23), while an errant attack from the Lopes gave Air Force another at 25-24- but GCU scored the final three points for the narrow 27-25 win in a set that included 21 ties and nine lead changes.
The Falcons and Lopes return to Cadet East Gym tomorrow (Oct. 17) for another 6:00 p.m. (MT) matchup.
Backed by double-digit tallies from junior Alysa Walker (18), sophomore Sonia Donkeng Okpara (career high 12) and senior Annamaria Ramo (10), the Falcons out-killed the Lopes by a 62-58 margin, while out-hitting the visitors by 21 points (.235-.214) – a tally highlighted by .300+ hitting from Donkeng Okpara (.320, 12-4-25), junior Grace Fiaseu (.333, 9-2-21) and freshman Jenness Orcutt (.304, 9-2-23). Fiaseu, who served up one of the Falcons' four aces, tallied a match-high seven blocks (three solo, four assisted), while classmate Mia Loyd registered 31 assists. Walker added a career-high 20 digs for the 20th double-double of her career, while Ramos (10 digs, third double-double) and freshman Ella Vogel (17) also reached double-digit dig totals.
Fiaseu put the Falcons on the board with the opening point, while Donkeng Okpara helped Air Force to a 3-1 lead. The Lopes scored the next three points, but Air Force evened the score at four off a kill from Walker and began a back-and-forth swing that included set-tying scores from Donkeng Okpara (kill, 5-5), junior Bella Christensen (kill, 6-6) and Fiaseu (solo block, 7-7). Air Force went ahead 9-7 off an ace from Ramos, while a strike from Walker tied the set at 12. Grand Canyon strung together four-straight points for the largest lead by either team (16-12), before Fiaseu put down the Falcons' next three scores to cut the deficit to two (16-18). Walker added three more kills, while Fiaseu added another block, but the Lopes took the opening set by a 25-22 margin.
Fiaseu and Walker teamed up for a block to start the second set, while a kill from Orcutt broke a four-all tie and sparked a 7-1 run that included two kills and a block from Donkeng Okpara and Christensen. The sophomore added another kill at the 11-6 mark, while Ramos added a pair of scores to send the Falcons into the media timeout with a 15-9 advantage. The Falcons used a 5-1 run to push their lead to eight (20-12), with kills from Walker (two), Donkeng Okpara and Orcutt. Ramos tallied three more kills, while a strike from Fiaseu evened the match with an easy 25-16 win for Air Force.
The Falcons earned the first point of the third off a kill from Walker, who accounted for the Falcons' first three scores. A block from Donkeng Okpara gave Air Force a 5-4 lead, while two strikes and a block from Ramos headlined a 5-1 run that gave Air Force a 10-8 advantage. The Falcons earned scores from Walker (kill) and Fiaseu (ace) to maintain a two-point lead (13-11), while back-to-back kills from Walker and Orcutt kept that margin at the media timeout (15-13). The Lopes scored six of the next eight to take their own two-point lead (19-17), but Air Force responded to tie the set at 22 off kills from Fiaseu and Orcutt. Despite the set-tying run, Air Force was unable to add to its total, as GCU scored the final three for the 25-22 win.
The teams traded points in the fourth set, with Orcutt, Walker and Ramos helping the Falcons to a six-all tie. Air Force took the lead off a kill from Fiaseu on the next play and the teams continued to swap scoring plays. Christensen put down a pair of kills to tie the set at 12 – and again at 13, while a strike from Fiaseu gave Air Force a 15-13 lead. GCU answered the Falcons' run with one of its own, scoring five-straight points, before Fiaseu and Orcutt teamed up for a run-stopping block at 16-18. The Falcons closed the gap, as a pair of serves – an error by the Lopes, an ace from sophomore Sam Pope – helped Air Force take a 21-20 lead. A pair of scores from Walker (kill, ace) put the Falcons at their first set-point (24-23), while an errant attack from the Lopes gave Air Force another at 25-24- but GCU scored the final three points for the narrow 27-25 win in a set that included 21 ties and nine lead changes.
The Falcons and Lopes return to Cadet East Gym tomorrow (Oct. 17) for another 6:00 p.m. (MT) matchup.
Players Mentioned
OPP
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
MB
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
OH/RS
/ Women's Volleyball
S
/ Women's Volleyball
L/DS
/ Women's Volleyball
OH
/ Women's VolleyballTeam Stats
GCU
USAFA
Kills
58
62
Errors
25
23
Attempts
154
166
Hitting %
.214
.235
Points
74.0
76.0
Assists
56
57
Aces
2
4
Blocks
14
10
Game Leaders
Kills
18
Aces
0
Blocks
1
Kills
12
Aces
0
Blocks
3
Kills
10
Aces
1
Blocks
1
Kills
9
Aces
1
Blocks
7
Tuesday, October 27
Tuesday, October 20
Monday, October 19
Monday, October 19
