http://thecherry.temple-news.com/2012/11/02/volleyball-fights-for-playoff-spot/
(November 2, 2012)
The Owls head west this weekend looking to secure one of the final spots in the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament.
Temple sits at 6-5 in the conference, in a three-way tie with Duquesne and George Washington. If the season ended today, they would be the fifth seed.
The Owls take on Saint Louis (8-17, 3-8 in A-10) to kick off the weekend. A win would knock out the Billikens, who need to win their final three contests and hope Temple loses all of theirs in order to have a shot at the final seed.
A Temple victory also keeps them two games ahead of Fordham (with the head-to-head tiebreaker) and a game ahead of Rhode Island, who both stand at 5-6.
Temple hasn't made the tournament since 2009 under former coach Bob Bertucci. Bertucci's final season in 2010 snapped a streak of 14 consecutive seasons in the conference playoffs.
The match against Saint Louis starts at 8 p.m.
-Jake Adams
Nov 16, 2012
Nov 15, 2012
TTN: New faces, new places
http://temple-news.com/sports/2012/11/01/new-faces-new-places/
(November 1, 2012)
Temple competes against new A-10 competition.
While much of the talk surrounding conference realignment in college sports has been about how the Big East Conference has come out worse for wear than others, the Atlantic 10 Conference can’t claim it has come out unchanged either.
(November 1, 2012)
Temple competes against new A-10 competition.
While much of the talk surrounding conference realignment in college sports has been about how the Big East Conference has come out worse for wear than others, the Atlantic 10 Conference can’t claim it has come out unchanged either.
This season marks the last time Temple competes in the A-10 for volleyball before the university makes its all-sports move to the Big East in 2013. It also marks the first A-10 season for Virginia Commonwealth University and Butler.
“It was really interesting because I was actually on vacation when I found out that we were moving,” VCU coach James Finley said. “The shocker was that we did it this year.”
Both Finley and Butler coach Sharon Clark said the biggest challenges were logistics, such as rearranging their schedules and planning their trips against their new conference opponents, and preparing for teams they have rarely, if ever, faced before.
“For training your team you don’t know the style of play,” Finley said. “You’re watching videos, you’re trying to prepare that way, but you don’t have any experience to draw from.”
As Temple hits the home stretch of its conference season, the Owls get to face both programs, likely the only time they will do so for many years. On Oct. 26, Temple lost 3-0 to the Rams and will face the Bulldogs on Sunday, Nov. 4.
For Temple coach Bakeer Ganes and his Owls, the challenge is something they have time to prepare for. A key will be in recruiting higher quality talent, something Butler and VCU didn’t have time to do when they moved to the A-10 this summer, Ganes said.
“I think the main difference is probably in recruiting,” Ganes said. “I think that was probably the biggest advantage we had compared to Butler and VCU.”
For Butler and VCU, the change of scenery also equals an increased opportunity to make the NCAA Tournament. Last season the Colonial Athletic Association and Horizon League sent one team each to the big dance, as did the A-10. But the A-10 has a history of sending more than one team a year, something the other two conferences can’t claim usually.
“I just told [the team] that we were very excited as a coaching staff and as a university, because we felt like it was a move up for our sport specifically, and that we were going to have better competition, which our team really likes,” Finley said.
A big change for the coaches who watch their rivals leave is losing the competition they bonded over.
“I have a lot of great friends who are coaches in the CAA, and we have rivalries, a lot of strong competition, and a lot of things that have happened over the eight years that I’ve been here and they were really sad to lose the competition,” Finley said.
Ganes said other A-10 coaches reached out to Temple to offer their support of Temple’s move.
“[Xavier coach Mike Johnson] actually said he’s glad that we’re leaving, and that was before we beat them,” Ganes said jokingly.
“The volleyball community is tight,” Ganes added.
The biggest difference for all the programs changing scenery will be the uptick in competition, coaches said.
“I think the top of the [A-10] conference is stronger than the CAA was, and then the middle of the conference is very similar where you have to prepare every week,” Finley said. “If you don’t show up, something’s not clicking, you’re probably going to lose, which we have found out.”
“It’s size and physicality, that’s the main difference between a [Bowl Championship Subdivision] conference team and a non-BCS conference team,” Ganes said. “I think in the A-10, we have kind of proven it more or less, that you can get by without size if you know how to play together and you play smart. I think that will be much, much harder in the Big East.”
The best advice Clark could give, going through the situation herself, is to enjoy each moment and take it one day at a time. For Finley, he hopes Temple embraces the new challenge.
“I think the biggest thing is to make sure that you take the emotional piece about the opportunity to create new rivalries, the opportunity to go to new places, the opportunity to forge new competition,” Finley said.
Jake Adams can be reached at jacob.adams@temple.edu or on Twitter @jakeadams520.
Oct 29, 2012
TTN The Cherry: Volleyball fights for playoff spot against Charlotte
http://thecherry.temple-news.com/2012/10/28/volleyball-fights-for-playoff-spot-against-charlotte/
(October 28, 2012)
Less than 24 hours after dropping their fourth match in five contests the Owls get set to take on Atlantic 10 Conference opponent Charlotte (9-12, 1-8 in A-10).
Temple (15-9, 5-5 in A-10) dropped their match against VCU Friday night, noticeably lost throughout the match and unable to generate any momentum. Charlotte is coming off a four-set victory over La Salle.
"I think Charlotte is much better than they're record shows," coach Bakeer Ganes said Thursday. "They lost some tight matches. I don't think we can take them lightly."
The Owls are trying to remain a game ahead of Fordham for the sixth and final conference playoff spot, with a head-to-head tiebreaker against the Rams, and just four games remaining in the regular season.
The match is set to start at 7 p.m.
-Jake Adams
(October 28, 2012)
Less than 24 hours after dropping their fourth match in five contests the Owls get set to take on Atlantic 10 Conference opponent Charlotte (9-12, 1-8 in A-10).
Temple (15-9, 5-5 in A-10) dropped their match against VCU Friday night, noticeably lost throughout the match and unable to generate any momentum. Charlotte is coming off a four-set victory over La Salle.
"I think Charlotte is much better than they're record shows," coach Bakeer Ganes said Thursday. "They lost some tight matches. I don't think we can take them lightly."
The Owls are trying to remain a game ahead of Fordham for the sixth and final conference playoff spot, with a head-to-head tiebreaker against the Rams, and just four games remaining in the regular season.
The match is set to start at 7 p.m.
-Jake Adams
TTN: Owls lose in straight sets
http://temple-news.com/sports/2012/10/27/owls-lose-in-straight-sets/
(October 27, 2012)
Temple has dropped four of last five matches.
Despite returning home to an energetic crowd for the first time in four weeks the Owls dropped their fourth match in their last five, falling in straight sets to Atlantic 10 Conference newcomer VCU (22-3, 8-2 in A-10).
Temple now sits at 5-5 in the conference, struggling to hold onto the sixth and final conference playoff spot.
“I think we just need to regroup,” junior outside hitter Gabriella Matautia said. “We need to seriously sit down and assess ourselves individually and figure out what’s going on.”
“Our team works best when we’re all together and as soon as one person’s out, we’re struggling,” Matautia added. “If two people aren’t having a good game we’re really in trouble, and it’s just like a snowball effect.”
VCU jumped out right away in the first set and never looked back, as Temple was only able to tie the score once in the open points. The rams hit .571 in the set without recording an error as they ran away 25-15.
Temple didn’t fare much better in the second set as the Rams’ height was too much for them, en route to a 25-16 loss. VCU hit .320 with just four errors while the Owls struggled to get anything going, recording just nine kills on .094 hitting.
“It should have been actually really exciting for us,” senior libero Chelsea Tupuola said. “We made it look harder than it was.”
“People probably thought we were back on our heels and were just so surprised when we really weren’t,” she added.
The final set proved to be closer, with seven ties and three lead changes but the Owls fizzled at the end, falling 25-19 in front of an unusually silent crowd.
“They had a very good game plan and they really did a good job executing it,” coach Bakeer Ganes said. “But they’re actually not very skilled technique-wise, as a team they play very well together.”
The team was noticeably frustrated afterwards, particularly in their inability to generate energy within themselves.
“As soon as we start to play bad we get mad at ourselves and then we kind of put more unneeded pressure because we’re frustrated with ourselves that we just want to do as good as we know we can be,” Matautia said.
Ganes added that the team seemed timid, something Tupuola and Matautia agreed with. It didn’t help the Owls either that sophomore middle back Jennifer Iacobini sprained her ankle in practice this week and had to sit out. She’ll also miss the match against Charlotte on Saturday.
Temple lost in every major category, with the biggest difference being hitting percentage and blocks. VCU had 12 stuffs on the night compared to one for the Owls. The home team also had an uncharacteristically high seven service errors.
“We should have been more aggressive on the serve,” Ganes said. “That’s something we can control and it doesn’t matter how small, how big you are. That’s an easy way to attack the opponent.”
Matuatia led the match with 12 kills, hitting .233 on the night while fellow junior outside hitter Elyse Burkert tacked on 11 of her own. But that was as good as it got for Temple.
“It was a big goal for us to use the block instead of just swing,” Tupuola said.
Former Owl, redshirt senior middle back Jasmine Waters, was efficient against her former squad, hitting at a .583 clip with eight kills.
“I love that girl to death,” Tupuola said. “I’m very, very proud of her, but it was hard seeing her succeed as she did.”
The Owls have little time to regroup, however, as the take on Charlotte in McGonigle Hall on Saturday trying to stay in the playoff hunt. With Fordham and Rhode Island neck and neck with Temple every match is critical.
“It’s still there,” Tupuola said. “Our hunger for more is still there.”
(October 27, 2012)
Temple has dropped four of last five matches.
Despite returning home to an energetic crowd for the first time in four weeks the Owls dropped their fourth match in their last five, falling in straight sets to Atlantic 10 Conference newcomer VCU (22-3, 8-2 in A-10).
Temple now sits at 5-5 in the conference, struggling to hold onto the sixth and final conference playoff spot.
“I think we just need to regroup,” junior outside hitter Gabriella Matautia said. “We need to seriously sit down and assess ourselves individually and figure out what’s going on.”
“Our team works best when we’re all together and as soon as one person’s out, we’re struggling,” Matautia added. “If two people aren’t having a good game we’re really in trouble, and it’s just like a snowball effect.”
VCU jumped out right away in the first set and never looked back, as Temple was only able to tie the score once in the open points. The rams hit .571 in the set without recording an error as they ran away 25-15.
Temple didn’t fare much better in the second set as the Rams’ height was too much for them, en route to a 25-16 loss. VCU hit .320 with just four errors while the Owls struggled to get anything going, recording just nine kills on .094 hitting.
“It should have been actually really exciting for us,” senior libero Chelsea Tupuola said. “We made it look harder than it was.”
“People probably thought we were back on our heels and were just so surprised when we really weren’t,” she added.
The final set proved to be closer, with seven ties and three lead changes but the Owls fizzled at the end, falling 25-19 in front of an unusually silent crowd.
“They had a very good game plan and they really did a good job executing it,” coach Bakeer Ganes said. “But they’re actually not very skilled technique-wise, as a team they play very well together.”
The team was noticeably frustrated afterwards, particularly in their inability to generate energy within themselves.
“As soon as we start to play bad we get mad at ourselves and then we kind of put more unneeded pressure because we’re frustrated with ourselves that we just want to do as good as we know we can be,” Matautia said.
Ganes added that the team seemed timid, something Tupuola and Matautia agreed with. It didn’t help the Owls either that sophomore middle back Jennifer Iacobini sprained her ankle in practice this week and had to sit out. She’ll also miss the match against Charlotte on Saturday.
Temple lost in every major category, with the biggest difference being hitting percentage and blocks. VCU had 12 stuffs on the night compared to one for the Owls. The home team also had an uncharacteristically high seven service errors.
“We should have been more aggressive on the serve,” Ganes said. “That’s something we can control and it doesn’t matter how small, how big you are. That’s an easy way to attack the opponent.”
Matuatia led the match with 12 kills, hitting .233 on the night while fellow junior outside hitter Elyse Burkert tacked on 11 of her own. But that was as good as it got for Temple.
“It was a big goal for us to use the block instead of just swing,” Tupuola said.
Former Owl, redshirt senior middle back Jasmine Waters, was efficient against her former squad, hitting at a .583 clip with eight kills.
“I love that girl to death,” Tupuola said. “I’m very, very proud of her, but it was hard seeing her succeed as she did.”
The Owls have little time to regroup, however, as the take on Charlotte in McGonigle Hall on Saturday trying to stay in the playoff hunt. With Fordham and Rhode Island neck and neck with Temple every match is critical.
“It’s still there,” Tupuola said. “Our hunger for more is still there.”
TTN The Cherry: Volleyball hosts A-10 newcomer VCU
http://thecherry.temple-news.com/2012/10/26/volleyball-hosts-a-10-newcomer-vcu/
(October 26, 2012)
The Owls (15-8, 5-4 in the Atlantic 10 Conference) return home this weekend with five games remaining in conference play.
On Friday they take on A-10 newcomer Virginia Commonwealth University, who is off to a hot start at 7-2 in the conference, tied with Xavier for second. The Rams are coming off three straight sweeps, against fellow newcomer Butler, George Washington and Duquesne.
"I think it's going to be a really tough weekend for us because they're very big and very physical," coach Bakeer Ganes said. "I think it really comes down to ball handling."
There's a lot of excitement in this match on our part," VCU coach James Finley said. "The girls have had it marked down. They're looking forward to going and we know it's going to be a really tough match."
This is the teams' only matchup as conference foes, with Temple set to leave for the Big East following the season.
The match begins at 7 p.m. in McGonigle Hall.
-Jake Adams
(October 26, 2012)
The Owls (15-8, 5-4 in the Atlantic 10 Conference) return home this weekend with five games remaining in conference play.
On Friday they take on A-10 newcomer Virginia Commonwealth University, who is off to a hot start at 7-2 in the conference, tied with Xavier for second. The Rams are coming off three straight sweeps, against fellow newcomer Butler, George Washington and Duquesne.
"I think it's going to be a really tough weekend for us because they're very big and very physical," coach Bakeer Ganes said. "I think it really comes down to ball handling."
There's a lot of excitement in this match on our part," VCU coach James Finley said. "The girls have had it marked down. They're looking forward to going and we know it's going to be a really tough match."
This is the teams' only matchup as conference foes, with Temple set to leave for the Big East following the season.
The match begins at 7 p.m. in McGonigle Hall.
-Jake Adams
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