Temple University Athletics
Temple University
12-5, 5-2American
USF
13-6, 4-3American
Volleyball Upended by USF on Friday Night
10.14.16 | Women's Volleyball
PHILADELPHIA — The Temple volleyball team dropped a wild 3-0 decision at the hands of visiting USF on Friday night, 25-17, 25-17, 28-26. The Bulls improve to 13-6, 4-3, while the Owls dip to 12-5, 5-2 in conference play.
After suffering back-to-back 25-17 losses in the first two frames, Temple appeared to be on track to grab set three. The Owls led 22-17 with momentum on their side, but a USF sub entered wearing a jersey number not on the roster, which caused a 20-plus minute officials delay. When the match re-started, USF rallied for six-straight, and despite Temple spoiling three set points, USF grabbed the frame, 28-26, and the match, 3-0.
Senior Tyler Davis was nearly unstoppable, racking up nine kills with no errors, hitting .500. Junior Irem Asci notched 12 kills, while classmate Izzy Rapacz and sophomore Iva Deak added six each. Senior Caroline Grattan added three kills and four digs in just over a set of work, while junior Janine Simmons also did damage in just one frame, tallying two kills with five blocks, two of which were solo.
Junior Kyra Coundourides dished out 35 assists, tying for team-high honors with seven digs, while Rapacz also dug seven balls. Junior Dara Peric added six digs to round out the Temple numbers.
Set one was tied at 12-12 before USF broke away with strong hitting from the middle. Temple battled back to tie things at 16-16 on a Davis kill, but the Bulls went on a 9-1 run to end set one.
In the second, Temple led just 1-0 before USF took over the lead for good. The Bulls opened a 12-7 advantage, which they extended to 18-11 on back-to-back blocks. Temple couldn't get the deficit under six the rest of the way, as USF went up 2-0 with a 25-17 victory.
In set three, Temple turned a 11-10 lead into 17-12 as two kills from Davis and three Simmons blocks put the Owls up 17-12. After a USF timeout, Temple went up 22-17 before the extended delay. USF then ended things with an 11-4 run to earn the sweep.
Temple is back in action on Sunday, hosting UCF in a Dig Pink game. Donations can be made at the match or online at: https://giving.side-out.org/campaigns/11631
Box Score (PDF)
