GCU Athletics

LAKEWOOD, NJ (Sept. 1, 2026) - In their first home game of the regular season, Georgian Court Volleyball earned their first victory. The Lions played host to St. Thomas Aquinas Tuesday afternoon and through four tight sets, the Lions came out on top, 3-1 (25-22, 19-25, 25-21, 25-23). It's the first win of the season for the Lions who start the year 1-0 in the Wellness Center.

How it Happened
• Georgian Court's defense separated themselves from the Spartans in what was a close match throughout. The Lions put back 11 total blocks, four each in the first three sets to St. Thomas Aquinas' four.
• The Spartans scored more kills, 51-46, but GCU hit .177 with 46 kills and 20 errors while STAC hit .160 with 26 errors to their 51 kills.
• On the serve, both teams scored 10 aces, but STAC hurt themselves with 10 errors. The Lions hit seven serve errors.
Set 1
• The first set featured half of the total tie scores from the match. There were seven ties and three lead changes.
• It was a good start for STAC, who was playing in their 2026 season opener, as they scored the first three points of the match.
• The Lions settled in shortly after and tied the game at 10 on the second of two-straight Ana Nikolic service aces. 
• Neither team gained more than a three-point lead the rest of the set.
• The Spartans were able to use a 6-1 run to jump back on top, 19-17.
• Still trailing by two, 20-18, and after a timeout, Georgian Court scored three straight as Nikolic landed two kills and a block, putting the Lions back out in front.
• Tied at 22, GCU closed the set on a 3-0 run getting a kill from Ava Churnesky and an Emily Mundaray service ace won the set, 25-22.
Set 2
• St. Thomas Aquinas again took an early lead in set two, and this time never gave it up.
• Georgian Court was able to tie on a few occasions, the last being at 9-9.
• After that, STAC outscored GCU 11-3, to take a commanding 20-12 lead.
• The teams traded points down the stretch which suited the Spartans who tied the match with a 25-19 win.
Set 3
• It was another slow start for the Lions in set three as St. Thomas Aquinas scored 10 of the first 13 points.
• Slowly but surely, Georgian Court rallied and came all the way back to finally tie the set at 18 on a Flavia Pecora block.
• Roshell Chevres Sanchez gave the Lions their first lead one point later and GCU never trailed again.
• After the Spartans retied the frame at 20, GCU scored five of the final six points and took advantage of back-to-back attack errors to close out the set.
Set 4
• The fourth and final set was the only one Georgian Court scored the first point in.
• In fact, they raced out to a 10-3 lead looking to finish the Spartans in four.
• STAC didn't go away quietly though. They quickly cut that seven-point deficit down to two, 11-9, thanks to a 6-1 run.
• Georgian Court answered though and again extended the lead to seven, 19-12, and seemed to be in control. 
• With an 11-5 run, STAC brought the Lions lead down to just one, 24-23.
• On their fourth attempt at match-point, GCU finally put the game away. Churnesky landed her 16th kill of the match and GCU held on, 25-23.

Lion Stat Leaders
• Ava Churnesky led the Lions with 16 kills and secured 10 digs for a double-double. Churnesky came on late with six kills in both sets three and four after just four total kills in the first two sets combined.
• Ana Nikolic was all over the court for the Lions. She finished with 10 kills and a team-high-tying 17 digs with four blocks and four service aces.
• Flavia Pecora hit .370 with 13 kills and seven blocks.
• Roshell Chevres Sanchez passed out 20 assists while also hitting three aces and picking up six blocks.
• Maggy Hallihan tallied a 17-assist, 14-dig double-double.
• Carmen Rivera Colon matched Nikolic with a team-high 17 digs.

For the Spartans
• Amelie Gasche hit a game-high 17 kills.
• Stepanka Bicistova secured a double-double with 23 assists and 15 digs.
• Greta Santini was a kill shy of a double-double, hitting nine kills with 12 digs.
• Boglarka Kiss picked up 22 digs.
• Adriana Zarceno scored 18 points with 15 kills, three aces and 17 digs.

News and Notes
• Ava Churnesky surpassed 300 career kills and 200 career digs.
• Ana Nikolic's line of 10+ kills, 10+ digs, 4+ aces, and 4+ blocks has only been done one other time since 2018 - Nylene Mateo in 2024. 
• This is just the Lions second-ever win over St. Thomas Aquinas and first since 2023. They avenged a 2025 loss to the Spartans in Sparkill.  
• The Lions .177 attack percentage was their highest this season. 
• It's the Lions second match of the season with 10+ total blocks. 
• After three straight matches with double-figure service errors, GCU now has back-to-back with fewer than 10.

Up Next
• The Lions have another tournament on tap for this weekend. They'll be in Rochester, NY for the Roberts Wesleyan Invitational to take on the Redhawks, along with Redeemer and Lock Haven.