Volleyball Travels to SMU and Tulsa this Weekend

Friday, October 9

Dallas, Texas

8:00 p.m.

Temple University

SMU

Photo by: Joseph V. Labolito/Temple University

Volleyball Travels to SMU and Tulsa this Weekend

10.9.15 | Women's Volleyball

PHILADELPHIA -- Temple volleyball hits the road this weekend, continuing the American Athletic Conference season at SMU and Tulsa.

THE WEEKEND
The Owls will play at SMU on Friday at 8:00 p.m. local time (7:00 p.m. EST) and at Tulsa on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. (2:30 p.m. EST).

LAST TIME OUT: TEMPLE
Temple swept another weekend American Athletic Conference series, opening their home league slate with wins over Memphis and Cincinnati.
   On Friday, the junior class of Kirsten Overton, Tyler Davis, and Caroline Grattan combined for 37 kills as the Owls posted a 3-0 sweep over Memphis (25-16, 25-16, 25-20). Overton, Davis, and Grattan combined for 71% of the Owls' kills, with each hitting over .333. As a team, Temple had another outstanding offensive performance, hitting over .300 in each set to finish at a .365 clip.
   On Sunday, Temple topped Cincinnati, 3-1, (25-23, 25-19, 23-25, 25-16) in a tightly played match. The Owls hit .500 in the final set, recording just one error to seal the match victory. Sophomore Irem Asci had an outstanding day, recording season-highs of 25 kills and 19 digs for a double-double. Asci led an attack that saw seven Temple players record five or more kills in the match.

CONFERENCE LEADERS
After two weeks of conference play, the Owls are the only undefeated team in The American. Temple hits a conference-best .299, while also leading The American in kills per set (14.61). Individually, Overton leads The American in hitting percentage (.469) and is third in blocks per set (1.09). Asci is second in the conference in kills per set (4.19), while Sydlik is second in assists per set (11.61).

AMERICAN HONOR ROLL
Asci earned a spot on the American Weekly honor roll, her second of the season and the fifth for the Owls. Asci tallied 4.00 kills and 4.14 digs per set, despite playing back row only against Memphis. In the sweep over the Tigers, Asci recorded kills on three of her six attempts, while recording an ace and 10 digs. In a win over Cincinnati, she hammered a season-high 25 kills, adding another season high with 19 digs, to tally a double-double. Asci hit .373 against Cincinnati also adding two aces and two assists. For the week, the sophomore hit .386, accounting for 4.43 points per set.

OWL LEADERS
Asci leads the team with 4.19 kills per set, followed by Davis (2.84), sophomore Izzy Rapacz (2.65) and Overton (.469). Senior Sandra Sydlik has dished out 11.61 assists per set, while classmate Alyssa Drachslin leads the defense with 4.91 digs per set. Overton leads the Temple block, recording 56 total, while sophomore Janine Simmons has 51, including a team-best eight solo.

NATIONALLY-RANKED
Temple appears in the top-11 in three national stat categories this week. The Owls are 6th in the nation hitting percentage (.299) and rank 4th in kills per set (14.61). Temple is also 11th in the nation in assists per set (13.41). Individually, Overton ranks 2nd in the nation in hitting percentage (.469), while Sydlik ranks 5th nationally in assists per set (11.61). Elsewhere, Asci is 31st in Division I with 4.19 kills per set and Drachslin is 38th in digs per set with 4.91.

SCOUTING SMU
SMU is 13-3 overall, and 3-1 in conference play, coming off wins over Tulsa and ECU last weekend. The Mustangs are second in The American in hitting percentage (.240) and kills per set (14.15). Individually, setter Avery Acker is second in the NCAA with 12.37 assists per set, and Morgan Heise ranks fifth in the nation with 5.71 digs per set. Abbey Bybel leads a balanced attack with 2.97 kills per set, while Cailin Bula is second on the team with 2.84 kills per set. Janelle Giordano is second in the conference with a .394 hitting percentage, while leading the league with 1.34 blocks per set.

SCOUTING TULSA
Tulsa is 7-9 overall with a 2-2 mark in American play. The Hurrican are coming off a weekend split, defeating Cincinnati, but falling to Memphis. Tulsa's offense is led Erica Bohannon's 3.91 kills per set, while Ashley Hooper, averages 2.68 kills per set and hits a team-high .320. Sophie Bethke is third with 10.55 assists per set, while Brooke Berryhill is fourth in the conference, averaging 4.94 digs per set. Rebecca Reeve averages 2.85 kills per set and 2.89 digs per set to round out the Tulsa stat leaders.

OWLS AGAINST THE FIELD
Temple is 4-3 overall against this weekend's opponents. The Owls own the all-time series against SMU, 3-2, with the teams splitting last years' series. Temple is 1-1 against Tulsa, with the first meeting between the teams coming last season. Each team won their home match in 2014.

NEXT UP
Temple has another set of road matches next week, playing Wednesday and Sunday instead of the usual Friday-Sunday format. The Owls will take on their travel partner, UConn, on the road on Wednesday at 5:00 p.m., and then travel to East Carolina on Sunday for at 1:00 p.m.

Live Stats (vs. SMU) | Live Video (vs. SMU - $) | Live Stats (vs. Tulsa) | Live Video (vs. Tulsa - $) | Match Notes (PDF)