Volleyball Splits Two Tightly Contested Matches at City Classic

Saturday, September 18

McGonigle Hall

11:00 AM

Temple University

4-6,0-0AAC

Penn

3-5,0-0Ivy League

Penn

Temple

Photo by: Zamani Feelings

Volleyball Splits Two Tightly Contested Matches at City Classic

9.18.21 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

PHILADELPHIA – It was an Ivy League doubleheader for the Temple volleyball team on the final day of the City Classic Saturday at McGonigle Hall. In the opening match, the Owls defeated city-rival Penn, 3-1, winning two sets in overtime in picking up their fourth win of the season. The nightcap saw Princeton capture a 3-1 victory over Temple.

Recapping the Day

Temple 3, Penn 1 (20-25, 28-26, 25-22, 27-25)

> Only two total points separated the teams in the four sets, but it was Temple that won the match with thrilling overtime decisions in sets two and four.
> Temple did not lead in the match until the end of the second set, taking a 25-24 edge following a kill by Gem Grimshaw and block assists by Grimshaw and Taylor Davenport. Consecutive kills by Katerina Papazoglou (5 kills) gave the Owls the 28-26 win a few plays later.
> Grimshaw keyed a critical 5-1 run late in the third set to give the Owls a 22-18 lead. Penn cut the deficit to two, 24-22, before Davenport delivered the set-ending kill.
> Temple trailed only for one brief moment, 14-13, in the fourth and final set, but the Owls were never able to gain separation from the Quakers. Miray Bolukbasi took control for Temple in the waning moments, making three kills on Temple's final four points to help the Cherry and White prevail in overtime, 27-25.
> For the match, Grimshaw (15 kills) and Bolukbasi (14 kills) led the attack for the Owls with Grimshaw posting another double-double with 10 digs.
> Patrycia Zielinska topped Temple with 41 assists, her third 40-plus match of the season, while Kayla Spells, who was the lone Owl on the all-tournament team, added seven kills and a team-high four blocks.

Princeton 3, Temple 1 (25-22, 23-25, 25-20, 25-21)

> The first set went back and forth until the Tigers reeled off six straight points to open a 22-15 lead. The Owls responded with a similar 6-0 run to close the deficit to 23-22 before consecutive kills by Avery Luoma gave Princeton the set.
> A closely contested second set saw Temple start to pull away, extending its lead to four, 16-12, on a block by Davenport and then a few points later to five, 20-15, on consecutive kills by Bolukbasi.
> A late 4-1 run by the Tigers cut the margin to one, 23-22, but the Owls scored two of the next three points with a Grimshaw kill closing the set.
> Princeton broke open a close third set with a 7-1 run to take a 19-11 lead. Temple was able to close with four twice, but the Tigers were able to hold off the hosts for the victory.
> Temple held a four-point lead (12-8) midway through the fourth set, but an 8-2 Princeton run turned the momentum in the Tigers favor.
> Trailing 18-15, the Owls were able to stay close until the Tigers closed out the set and match by taking four of the final five points for a 25-21 victory.
> Grimshaw had a match-high 24 kills and posted another double-double with 10 digs.
> Bolukbasi added 16 kills while Davenport had a match-high seven blocks.
> Zielinska again topped Temple with 44 assists, her fourth 40-plus match of the season, while Danielson had a team-best 20 digs.

Quotable: Head Coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam

> On Penn: "This morning was a good step in the right direction towards where we want to be. It was not always pretty but it was good to get a positive result, to get a confidence booster and to see that this is the direction we have to go."

> On Princeton: "Princeton is a very, very good team. Most likely, if I was in the betting business, I would put my money on Princeton to win their league. They have been together for awhile and they do a lot of really good things on the court. So, for us to compete against them and to have a chance to win almost every set I think it shows we are on the right track for sure."

Up Next
> Temple opens American Athletic Conference play next weekend, traveling to SMU on Sept. 24 (8 pm) and Memphis on Sept. 26 (2 pm). Both matches can be viewed on ESPN+.