Volleyball Digs Pink Against SMU on Friday; Plays Tulsa on Sunday

PHILADELPHIA - The Temple volleyball team will host a pair of American Athletic Conference matches this weekend, including a special Friday night "Dig Pink" match against SMU at 7:00 p.m. The Owls will also take on Tulsa on Sunday at 12:00 p.m. Fans are encouraged to wear pink on Friday in honor of breast cancer awareness.

The "Dig Pink" match serves as a fundraiser for the Side-Out Foundation's Dig Pink campaign. The Owls' "Dig Pink" event is coordinated with hundreds of other events across the nation through the Side-Out Foundation, whose mission it is to raise funding for breast cancer research through high school and collegiate volleyball events. Donate to the Temple campaign for "Dig Pink" online at: https://www.side-out.org/cb/campaigns/campaign/9557 or donate in person at the game.

Temple is coming off a pair of American victories on the road last weekend, as the Owls topped Houston (3-1) and Tulane (3-0) to move to 5-3 in the conference, 14-6 overall. Against Tulane, Temple hit a conference-record .471 in the three-set sweep. In eight conference matches, sophomore Tyler Davis leads the Owls offensively, averaging 3.56 kills per set. Freshman Dara Peric (2.65 kills/set) and junior Halle McCullough (2.62 kills/set) have also stepped up their offense in conference matches, while sophomore Kirsten Overton is hitting .378 in conference action for Temple. Junior Sandra Sydlik, who was named to the American Athletic Conference Honor Roll last week, averages 11.3 assists per set, while junior Alyssa Drachslin averages 4.53 digs per set in American matches.

SMU heads to Temple with an identical 5-3 conference mark, carrying a 16-4 overall record. Two SMU players top the American stat leader boards, Avery Acker averages 11.40 assists per set and Janelle Giordano averages 1.91 blocks per set with 91 total on the year. The Mustangs are led offensively by Caroline Young who averages 3.01 kills per set, while Giordano has a team-best .333 hitting percentage. Temple holds a slim 2-1 edge in the all-time series against SMU, with the teams splitting a pair of American matches last year.

Tulsa is 12-7 overall and 4-4 in the American, including winning four-straight conference matches. The Golden Hurricane lead the conference in service aces, led by Valerie El Houssine (35) and Bailey Clampitt (26) who both rank in the top three in the American in total aces. Erica Bohannon averages 3.78 kills per set to lead the Tulsa offense, while Brooke Berryhill heads the defense with 4.63 digs per set. Sunday's match will be the first meeting between the programs.

OF NOTE...
• Temple is 14-6 overall this season, carrying a 5-3 mark against American Athletic Conference opponents.
• The Owls earned their first weekend sweep of the conference season with wins against Houston (3-1) on Friday and Tulane (3-0) on Sunday.
• Temple hit a conference record .471 in Sunday's sweep of Tulane. The Owls recorded 49 kills on 87 attempts with just eight errors in the match.
• The Owls are second in the American in three categories: hitting percentage (.258), kills per set (13.72), and assists per set (12.86).
• Junior Sandra Sydlik was named to the American Athletic Conference Honor Roll for her play last week. She recorded 11.71 assists/set, had 12 kills without an error, and was the setter as Temple hit .471 against Tulane.
• Sydlik has also contributed to the offense, recording 20 kills and just two errors to hit .391 in eight American matches this season.
• Junior Alyssa Drachslin has recorded double-digit dig numbers in all eight conference matches, including recording 19 against UConn and 16 against both Houston and ECU. She averages 4.53 digs per set on the season.
• Sophomore Kirsten Overton currently ranks 11th among all players in NCAA Division I with a hitting percentage of .421. She also ranks second in the American in the category.
• Sophomore Tyler Davis has reached double-digit kill totals in six of eight American matches this season. She also recorded a double-double against Houston with 17 kills and 13 digs.
• SMU is 16-4 overall with a 5-3 mark in the American.
• Two Mustangs rank first in the American individually: Avery Acker (11.40 assists per set), and Janelle Giordano ( 1.91 blocks per set).
• Tulsa is 12-7 overall, 4-4 in the American, including winning its last four conference matches.
• The Golden Hurricane lead the conference in service aces, led by Valerie El Houssine (35) and Bailey Clampitt (26) who both rank in the top three in the American in total aces.
• Temple won three of the four tournaments it competed in this season, taking team titles at the Syracuse Invitational, its own Temple Invitational, and the Big 5 Tournament hosted by Penn.
• Sydlik was named the Big 5 Tournament MVP, Drachslin was named the Tournament MVP of the Temple Invitational, and Overton was named the Tournament MVP of the Syracuse Invitational.
• Temple players have appeared on the American Weekly Honor Roll six times in 2014. Sydlik and Drachslin have each done it twice, while Overton and Davis have also appeared on the list.
• Head Coach Bakeer Ganes is now in his fourth year at the helm of the program, with an overall record of 57-49... His record for the last two seasons (2012 and 2013) was 37-23.

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Volleyball Digs Pink Against SMU on Friday; Plays Tulsa on Sunday

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Players Mentioned

Tyler Davis

Alyssa Drachslin

Halle McCullough

Kirsten Overton

Dara Peric

Sandra Sydlik

Temple University Athletics