Volleyball Opens Conference Play at USF on Friday

Friday, February 12

1:00 P.M.

Temple University

USF

Photo by: Jake Hutchinson

Volleyball Opens Conference Play at USF on Friday

2.11.21 | Women's Volleyball

Watch on ESPN+Live Stats Match Notes (PDF)

PHILADELPHIA -- The Temple volleyball team opens conference play this weekend, playing a two-match series at USF. The Owls will take on the Bulls at 1:00 p.m. both Friday and Saturday at The Corral.

OWL ABOUT TEMPLE
The Owls are off to a 4-0 start to the season, taking down four non-conference opponents. Junior Miray Bolukbasi leads the Owls and is second in the American Athletic Conference with 4.87 kills per set. Classmate Peyton Boyd is tops on the team with a .358 hitting percentage that ranks second in the AAC. Junior Tyler Lindgren runs the offense, averaging 10.53 assists per set. A pair of freshmen lead the Owls' defense, as Falanika Danielson tops the team with 5.40 digs per set and Taylor Davenport has a team-high 0.80 blocks per set.

LAST TIME OUT: Temple 3, St. John's 0 (25-23, 25-20, 25-17)
Temple volleyball took down the defending Big East Champions on Saturday afternoon, sweeping visiting St. John's in McGonigle Hall. Temple hit .283 for the match, holding St. John's to just a .206 attack. Miray Bolukbasi finished with 14 kills, while junior Gem Grimshaw tallied her first double-double of the season, fnishing with 10 kills and a team-best 10 digs. Peyton Boyd finished with eight kills and two blocks, while Tyler Lindgren ran the offense to the tune of 37 assists.

SCOUTING USF
USF enters conference play with a 2-2 overall record. The Bulls won a pair of matches against North Florida to open the season, but fell in two against Florida Gulf Coast in their latest outings. Marta Cvitovic leads the Bulls offense to the tune of 3.82 kills per set, which ranks fourth in the conference. Also contributing to the offense, Makayla Washington is second on the team with 2.59 kills per set, which also places her in the AAC's top 20. Maria Idjilov is the team's top setter, dishing out 9.88 kills per set.

As a team, USF is second in the conference with 2.41 blocks per set, led by Washington's 1.12 per frame. Defensively, CC Clausen ranks ninth in the conference with 3.59 digs per set.

TEMPLE VS. USF
Temple is 8-14 all-time against USF. The Bulls dominated the early part of the series, as Temple started 0-10 against USF. The Owls then won eight straight matches, before USF won three of the last four meetings, which included a split in 2019.

LAST TIME THEY MET: Temple 3, USF 2 (18-25, 23-25, 25-22, 26-24, 15-11)
Temple volleyball team rallied from an 0-2 deficit to top visiting USF in the season finale for both teams. Led by a career-best 21 kills from senior Dana Westfield, the Owls grabbed the win to close the season on a high note. Also for Temple, Miray Bolukbasi tallied 21 kills with 15 digs and four blocks, while Peyton Boyd finished with 13 kills, adding seven digs and five blocks.

For USF, Lindsey Pliapol and Jac. St. Cin each tallied 16 kills, with St. Cin adding 16 digs for a double-double. Ally Barnhart and Aleia Wilborn each added 11 kills in the loss.

LINDGREN HONORED
On Monday, junior Tyler Lindgren was named the American Offensive Player of the Week for her performance in the Owls' 2-0 record against Coppin State and St. John's. For the week, she averaged 11.67 assists per set, adding 2.83 digs per frame.

CONFERENCE CLASHES
Friday marks the conference opener for Temple. The Owls are 77-55 all-time in the American Athletic Conference since joining the league for the 2013 season. Temple is 3-4 all-time in American Conference openers.