The Grand Canyon University women's soccer team opened its 2014 campaign tonight with a 2-1 loss to Loyola Marymount in an exhibition contest in Los Angeles, Calif. The Antelopes will remain in California through the weekend, as they will take on Cal State Fullerton in their final preseason match of the season on Sunday.

"I thought it was an excellent first game for us," said head coach Stevie Gill. "We had seven freshmen playing this evening and I thought they fought hard and competed well. Loyola Marymount is a very athletic team and gave us a great game."

The Lions got on the board first, scoring on a Jocelyn Blankenship goal in the 18^th minute to take a 1-0 lead.

Despite firing three shots in the first half, the Lopes were unable to find the back of the net and LMU carried a 1-0 lead after the first 45 minutes of play.

Cassie Beckwith, who scored a team-high four goals in 2013, knotted things up at 1-1 in the 50^th minute, as the junior scooted a ball by Lion goalkeeper Sophia Leksan to even the score.

"We came out very strong at the beginning of the second half to even the score and put ourselves in some great positions to add a couple more," said Gill.

Loyola Marymount broke the tie in the 71^st minute, when Shannon Kent scored to give LMU the upper hand. The Lions didn't look back and prevailed in the exhibition contest by a final of 2-1.

Daryl Bradley got the start in goal for the Lopes and made a pair of saves on the night. Freshman Blakely Fraasch got the nod in goal in the second half and tallied two saves in 45 minutes of play.

Beckwith finished with two shots on goal and junior Martine Gjennestad notched Canyon's other shot on goal in the first half of play. Freshmen Rachel Mina, Milla Benedetti, and Madison Reynolds all recorded one shot in their first action at the collegiate level, as the Lopes notched four shots in half number two.

"I thought Patricia Pape, Rachel Mina, and Milla Benedetti played great for their first college games. Taylor Layton was great in the midfield and worked tirelessly while Cassie Beckwith was always dangerous. Kelsey Smith was steady throughout the contest and played the full 90 minutes," added Gill.

"Now we look forward to playing Cal State Fullerton on Sunday to try out some other players in different positions before starting our regular season campaign," concluded Gill.

GCU will play at Cal State Fullerton on Sunday to wrap-up the 2014 preseason. The Lopes and Titans are slated to get underway at 1 p.m. (Arizona Time) on Sunday and fans can find more information by visiting www.gculopes.com.

LMU 2, GCU 1

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