temple
TEMPLE VOLLEYBALL
2016 WEEKLY NOTES - TEMPLE VS. SMU (11/23) & TULSA (11/25) Lauren Ferrett, Associate Director for Athletic Communications | Email: [email protected] O: 215-204-1608 | C: 570-313-2338 | Website: www.OwlSports.com
MATCH INFORMATION
THE MATCH-UPS
Date.................................................... November 23, 25 Site........................ McGonigle Hall (Philadelphia, Pa.) TV (vs. SMU)..............................American Digital Network TV (vs. Tulsa)............................www.owlsports.com/watch Live Stats..........................sidearmstats.com/temple/wvball/ Temple vs. SMU.................................................................. 4-2 Last Meeting...................................................W, 3-2 at SMU Temple vs. Tulsa.................................................................. 4-1 Last Meeting..................................................W, 3-0 at Tulsa Twitter Updates....................................... @Temple_VB
SCHEDULE/RESULTS
Day Date Opponent Time Sonestra Philadelphia Hotel Temple Invitational Fri. Aug. 26 Northern Arizona W, 3-1 Sat. Aug. 27 Hampton W, 3-0 Puerto Rico Clásico Fri. Sep. 2 vs. Virginia Tech Sat. Sep. 3 vs. Alabama
L, 2-3 L, 1-3
Hilton Penn’s Landing Cherry & White Challenge Fri. Sep. 9 Cleveland State L, 2-3 Sat. Sep. 10 New Hampshire W, 3-1 Sat. Sep. 10 Rutgers W, 3-0 Philadelphia Big 5 Tournament (at Penn/La Salle) Fri. Sep. 16 Villanova (at Penn) W, 3-0 Sat. Sep. 17 at La Salle W, 3-1 Sat. Sep. 17 Penn (at La Salle) W, 3-0 American Athletic Conference Fri. Sep. 23 vs. Tulane Sun. Sep. 25 vs. Houston Wed. Sep. 28 at UConn Sun. Oct. 2 at Memphis Fri. Oct. 7 at Tulsa Sun. Oct. 9 at SMU Fri. Oct. 14 vs. USF Sun. Oct. 16 vs. UCF Fri. Oct. 21 at ECU Sun. Oct. 23 at Cincinnati Wed. Oct. 26 vs. UConn Fri. Oct. 28 vs. Memphis Fri. Nov. 4 at Houston Sun. Nov. 6 at Tulane Fri. Nov. 11 vs. Cincinnati Sun. Nov. 13 vs. ECU Fri. Nov. 18 at UCF Sun. Nov. 20 at USF Wed. Nov. 23 vs. SMU Fri. Nov. 25 vs. Tulsa
L, 2-3 W, 3-1 W, 3-2 W, 3-2 W, 3-0 W, 3-2 L, 0-3 L, 2-3 W, 3-1 W, 3-0 W, 3-0 W, 3-2 W, 3-0 W, 3-0 L, 3-2 W, 3-0 W, 3-2 W, 3-0 1:00 p.m. 1:00 p.m.
All times Eastern. | Home matches in bold
TEMPLE OWLS 21-7, 14-4 American HEAD COACH Bakeer Ganesharatnam / 6th Yr. Overall: 114-66 at School: Same LAST MATCH W, 3-0 at USF 11/20/16
SMU MUSTANGS 23-7, 16-2 American
TULSA GOLDEN HURRICANE 18-12, 7-11 American
HEAD COACH Lisa Seifert / 21st Yr. Overall: 365-287 at School: Same
HEAD COACH Ryan Wills / 3rd Yr. Overall: 55-38 at School: Same
LAST MATCH W, 3-0 vs. Memphis 11/20/16
LAST MATCH L, 3-2 vs. Memphis 11/18/16
TEMPLE HEADLINES
• Temple is 21-7 overall with a 14-4 mark in The American. • The Owls won a pair of American Athletic Conference matches on the road, winning 3-2 at UCF and 3-0 at USF. • The Owls finished with a 12-0 record in regular season road matches, and now have defeated every conference team at least once this year. • Senior Tyler Davis was named to the American Athletic Conference Weekly Honor Roll on Monday. • Head Coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam is in his sixth season with the Owls, recently winning his 100th career match to move to 114-66. • Temple was picked to finish second in the conference, after two-straight secondplace seasons. • The Owls had the most representatives on the preseason All-American Athletic Conference team, with three players making the list -- Irem Asci, Kirsten Overton, and Izzy Rapacz. • Asci (1st team), Overton (1st team), and Rapacz (2nd team) are returning 2015 AllConference honorees. • The Owls finished their tough non-conference slate with a 7-3 overall record, playing six teams that made the 2015 NCAA Tournament. • Temple won the Big 5 Tournament, as the Owls topped Villanova (3-0), La Salle (3-1), and Penn (3-0), with sophomore Mia Heirakuji being named MVP, and senior Tyler Davis earning All-Tournament honors. • Temple went 2-0 to win the Temple Invitational the first weekend of the season, defeating Northern Arizona (3-1) and Hampton (3-0). • Senior Izzy Rapacz was named Temple Invitational MVP, while juniors Irem and Kyra Coundourides earned All-Tournament honors. • The Owls finished second at the Cherry and White Challenge, with Kirsten Overton and Asci earning All-Tournament nods.
TEMPLE VOLLEYBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA - #TUVB #GDQ /TempleVolleyball
@Temple_VB
@Temple.VB
2016 TEMPLE VOLLEYBALL ROSTER NO NAME 1 Irem Asci 2 Janine Simmons 3 Mia Heirakuji 4 Iva Deak 5 Dara Peric 7 Kyra Coundourides 8 Carla Guennewig 10 Hannah Vandegrift 11 Kirsten Overton 12 Caroline Grattan 14 Dana Westfield 15 Tyler Davis 16 Izzy Rapacz
YR POS HT Jr. OH 5-11 Jr. MB 6-1 So. DS/L 5-5 So. MB 6-0 Jr. OH 6-0 Jr. S 5-10 So. MB 6-2 So. S 6-0 Sr. MB 6-1 Sr. OH/RS 6-1 Fr. OH 6-0 Sr. OH 6-0 Jr. OH/RS 6-2
HOMETOWN/PREVIOUS SCHOOL Ankara, Turkey/Collage Ayseabla/Charlotte Centreville, Va. Centreville Kailua, Hawaii/Kamehameha Zagreb, Croatia/IV Gimnazija Zagre/Iowa West. Belgrade, Serbia/HS of Tourism Brunswick, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit/Virginia Tech Muenster, Germany/Pascal Gym. Muenster Leesburg, Va./Loudoun County Royersford, Pa./Spring-Ford Pittsburgh, Pa./Mt. Lebanon Champaign, Ill./Champaign Central Palm Desert, Calif./Xavier College Prep Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South
COACHING STAFF Head Coach: Bakeer Ganesharatnam (Queens College ’05; 6th year) Assistant Head Coach/Recruiting Coordinator: Akiko Hatakeyama (Temple ’99; 5th year) Assistant Coach: Ren Cefra (Hawai’i-West Oahu ‘13; 2nd year) Operations Intern: Christian Kiselica
NEWS AND NOTES POST-SEASON PICTURE Temple is third in the American Athletic Conference standings, behind only SMU and Cincinnati. Temple holds the tiebreaker with Cincinnati and already has a head-tohead victory over SMU this season. If the Owls do not earn the conference’s automatic qualifying spot to the NCAA Tournament, they still have a chance at an at-large bid. OWLS’ ON ADN AGAIN Temple is set to make its second appearance of the season on the American Digital Network. The Owls won a game on ADN on Friday at UCF, and their match-up against SMU will also be broadcast by the network. ADN is covering a total of three volleyball matches this fall. LAST TIME OUT: TEMPLE 3, USF 0 (AMERICAN) Facing a standing-room only crowd at the Corral at USF, Temple swept the Bulls 3-0 (25-20, 25-23, 25-17) on their home court. The Owls hit .316 as a team, taking the large crowd out of play by not allowing USF to take a lead later than 2-0 in any set. Junior Irem Asci tallied a double-double with 15 kills and 10 digs, while junior Kyra Coundourides also doubled up with 46 assists and 10 digs. Junior Izzy Rapacz notched 12 kills with seven digs, while senior Tyler Davis had 11 kills and six digs. In the middle, senior Kirsten Overton had six kills with two blocks, while junior Janine Simmons tallied five kills, hitting .714. Sophomore Mia Heirakuji aided the defense with eight digs in the sweep. LAST TIME OUT: TEMPLE 3, UCF 2 (AMERICAN) Temple rallied from a 2-1 deficit on the road at UCF, topping the Knights, 3-2 (25-22, 21-25, 21-25, 25-22, 15-13) on their home court. The Owls got a double-double of 21 kills and 14 digs from junior Irem Asci, while classmate Kyra Coundourides also recorded a double-double with 44 assists and 12 digs. Senior Tyler Davis notched 14 kills with just one error, while junior Izzy Rapacz added 12 kills and seven digs. Sophomore Iva Deak notched seven kills, Kirsten Overton tallied six, and sophomore Carla Guennewig added five to aid the attack. DAVIS NAMED TO HONOR ROLL Tyler Davis was named to the American Athletic Conference Weekly Honor Roll for the period ending November 20, 2016. In two matches, Davis recorded just three errors on 57 total swings. She averaged 3.12 kills per set, hitting .389, as the Owls went 2-0 on their last road trip of the season. Davis opened the week with 14 kills and just one error, hitting .382 as Temple defeated UCF, 3-2. On Sunday, the senior recorded 11 kills with a .391 attack in a 3-0 sweep at USF. For the week, Davis added four total blocks and seven kills in the Temple wins. SCOUTING THE OWLS Junior Irem Asci leads the Temple offense, racking up 4.46 kills per set, ranking her second in the conference and 18th in the nation. Junior Izzy Rapacz (2.91 kills/set) and senior Tyler Davis (2.15 kills/set) attack from the outside for Temple, while senior
PRONUNCIATION GUIDE
#1 Irem Asci.........................................E-rem OST-chew #7 Kyra Coundourides.....KEE-ruh Con-DOOR-ee-dez #4 Iva Deak.............................................. Eeva DAY-ock #12 Caroline Grattan.........................................GROT-in #8 Carla Guennewig..................................Gun-uh-VIG #3 Mia Heirakuji................................. Hay-ra-KOO-gee #16 Izzy Rapacz.............................................. RAH-posh #5 Dara Peric...................................Darr-Uh PEAR-itch Bakeer Ganesharatnam ............................. bah-KEER GAH-nez-SHA-rat-nam Akiko Hatakeyama ........................................ a-KEY-ko Ha-tah-KAY-yama
AMERICAN TEAMS’ RPI RANKINGS
Rank 33 40 49 53 74 91 112 116 173 188 238
School SMU Cincinnati Temple UCF Tulsa Tulane South Fla. UConn Memphis East Carolina Houston
Record 23-7-0 20-9-0 21-7-0 22-9-0 18-11-0 16-13-0 16-13-0 16-12-0 13-16-0 15-12-0 5-24-0
PROGRAM INFORMATION
ALL-TIME • Overall record: 861-580 (1975-2015) • NCAA Appearances: 4 (1997, 1998, 1999, 2002) COACHING STAFF Head Coach: .................... Bakeer Ganesharatnam .................................................Phone: (215) 204-0476 ....................................... E-Mail: [email protected] .............. Career Record (Years): 93-59 (5 seasons) ........................................ Record at TU (Years): Same Assistant Head Coach:.............Akiko Hatakeyama ................................................ Phone: (215) 204-6289 ........................................E-Mail: [email protected] Assistant Coach:...................................... Ren Cefra ................................................ Phone: (215) 204-6289 ............................E-Mail: [email protected] Student Dir. of Operations......... Christian Kiselica ................................................ Phone: (215) 204-6289 ................................... E-Mail: [email protected] THE OWLS Letterwinners Returning/Lost: ...............................10/3 Starters Returning/Lost: ............................. 5/1 + libero Newcomers: .................................................................... 3 2015 Overall Record: ..............................................24-8 2015 American Record: ..........................................15-5 2015 American Finish: ............................................. 2nd TEMPLE UNIVERSITY Location:...............................................Philadelphia, Pa. Founded:....................................................................1884 Enrollment:............................................................39,000 Acting President:............................ Richard M. Englert Director of Athletics:............................Dr. Patrick Kraft Nickname:................................................................. Owls Colors:.................................... Cherry (201c) and White Home Court:........................... McGonigle Hall (3,900)
THE AMERICAN STANDINGS School Conf. % SMU 16-2 0.889 Cincinnati 15-3 0.833 Temple 14-4 0.778 UCF 12-6 0.667 Tulane 9-9 0.500 USF 8-10 0.444 Tulsa 7-11 0.389 UConn 7-11 0.389 Memphis 6-12 0.333 E. Carolina 5-13 0.278 Houston 0-18 0.000
All % Streak 23-7 0.767 W5 20-9 0.690 W4 21-7 0.750 W3 22-9 0.710 W1 17-13 0.567 W1 17-13 0.567 L1 18-12 0.600 L3 16-13 0.552 L3 14-16 0.467 L1 15-13 0.536 L1 5-24 0.172 L20
AMERICAN WEEKLY AWARDS - 11/21 Offensive POTW: Jordan Thompson, Cincinnati Defensive POTW: Mady Ruhlman, Memphis Honor Roll: Jale Hervey, UCF Katie Hegarty, SMU Brooke Berryhille, Tulsa Alison Kimmel, Cincinnati Tyler Davis, Temple
2016 OWL SEASON HONORS The American Offensive Player of the Week Izzy Rapacz, 8/29/16 The American Defensive Player of the Week Mia Heirakuji, 10/10/16 Under Armour/Owlsports.com Athlete of the Week Izzy Rapacz, 8/29/16 Kirsten Overton, 9/12/16 Irem Asci, 11/7/16 The American Weekly Honor Roll Kirsten Overton, 9/12/16 Irem Asci, 9/26/16 Irem Asci, 10/3/16 Kyra Coundourides, 10/24/16 Kyra Coundourides, 10/31/16 Irem Asci, 11/7/16 Izzy Rapacz, 11/14/16 Tyler Davis, 11/21/16 Temple Invitational All-Tournament Izzy Rapacz, MVP Irem Asci Kyra Coundourides Cherry & White Challenge All-Tournament Irem Asci Kirsten Overton Philadelphia Big 5 All-Tournament Mia Heirakuji, MVP Tyler Davis
NEWS AND NOTES Kirsten Overton (1.64 kill/set), sophomore Iva Deak (1.56 kills/set) shore up the middle. Overton’s .350 attack is second in the conference and 69th in the nation. Junior Kyra Coundourides is Temple’s top setter, averaging 10.80 assists per set, putting her second in The American and 39th in the nation. Defensively, Temple is led by sophomore Mia Heirakuji, who averages 3.41 digs per set. Asci (2.93 digs/set), Rapacz (2.55 digs/set), and Coundourides (2.36 digs/set) beef up the back row for the Owls. At the net, Temple is led by Overton’s 108 blocks, while Rapacz has 98 and Deak has 81. As a team, Temple hits .247 and holds opponents to a .195 attack. The Owls rank first in the American in team hitting and third in assists and kills per set. SCOUTING SMU SMU, last season’s conference champions, stand at 23-7 overall, 16-2 in The American. The Mustangs have swept five-straight matches, most recently topping Tulsa and Memphis. Katie Hegarty leads the Mustangs’ offense with 3.77 kills per set, while Lauren Mills (2.48 kills/set), Janelle Giordano (2.30 kills/set), and Kristen Stehling (2.13 kills/set) all aid the SMU attack. Kendall Patterson handles setting duties, averaging 10.87 assists per frame, while also leading the team with 33 aces. Defensively, Morgan Heise leads the Mustangs and the conference with 5.18 digs per set, while Mills (2.88 digs/set) and Patterson (2.61 digs/set) are also solid back-row players. At the net, Giordano leads the team with 142 total blocks, ranking first in the conference with a 1.38 block per set average. SMU leads The American with 2.25 blocks per set, holding opponents to a .162 attack. As a team, the Mustangs hit .223. OWLS VS. THE MUSTANGS Temple holds a 4-2 lead in the all-time series, including splitting the conference series in both 2015 and 2014. The Owls won the earlier meeting between the program’s, a 3-2 win at SMU. SCOUTING TULSA Tulsa is 18-12 overall with a 7-11 mark in the American Athletic Conference. The Hurricane have lost three-straight conference matches, including a 3-2 match against Memphis their last time out. Tulsa’s offense is led by Erica Bohannon’s 3.76 kills per set. Rebecca Reeve plays all-around to the tune of 2.73 kills and 3.09 digs per set, while Trinity Alualu averages 2.16 kills per frame. Tulsa runs a 6-2 offense with Ashton Anderson (6.36 assists/set) and Mariah Pardo (4.48 assists/set) handling setting duties. Brooke Berryhill captains the defense with 5.12 digs per set, a number that ranks her second in The American. Tulsa has four players with 50 or more blocks, led by Rachel Moore’s 109. Tulsa leads the conference with 18.34 digs per set and 39.60 attacks per set. OWLS VS. THE HURRICANE Temple leads the all-time series with Tulsa, 4-1, taking both matches in 2015. This season, Temple won the earlier meeting, a 3-0 win at Tulsa. PHILADELPHIA BIG 5 CHAMPIONS Temple won the 2016 Philadelphia Big 5 Championship for the third time in program history. The Cherry and White swept Villanova (3-0) on Friday, and then topped La Salle (3-1) and Penn (3-0) on Saturday to claim the title. TEMPLE INVITATIONAL CHAMPIONS Temple won the 2016 Sonesta Hotel Temple Invitational with a pair of victories last weekend. The Owls topped Northern Arizona, a 2015 NCAA Tournament team, 3-1 on Friday, and then swept Hampton, 3-0, on Saturday. TEMPLE PICKED TO FINISH SECOND Three Temple volleyball players earned American Athletic Conference pre-season honors, while the Owls were picked to finish second in a vote of the leagues’ coaches. Temple’s three selections -- senior Kirsten Overton, and juniors Irem Asci and Izzy Rapacz, were the most for any American squad. Temple earned two first-place votes in the coaches’ poll, and finished in second place in the final tally with 88 points. The Owls ended last season in second place with a 15-5 conference mark and a 24-8 overall record and return three of their four All-Conference selections from 2015.
2016 TEMPLE VOLLEYBALL TV ROSTER
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#
1
7
#
IREM ASCI
#
Ankara, Turkey
KYRA COUNDOURIDES Brunswick, Ohio
#
DANA WESTFIELD
14 Champaign, Ill.
2
JANINE SIMMONS
#
CARLA GUENNEWIG
#
Centreville, Va.
3
8 Muenster, Germany 10
#
TYLER DAVIS
MIA HEIRAKUJI
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HANNAH VANDEGRIFT
#
Kailua, Hawaii
Leesburg, Va.
15Palm Desert, Calif. 16
LAST YEAR’S OWL HONORS
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4
11
IVA DEAK
#
KIRSTEN OVERTON
#
Zagreb, Croatia
Royersford, Pa.
5
DARA PERIC
Belgrade, Serbia
CAROLINE GRATTAN
12 Pittsburgh, Pa.
IZZY RAPACZ
Glenville, Ill.
American Offensive Player of the Week 9/28 - Kirsten Overton 11/30 - Irem Asci
Temple Invitational All-Tournament Irem Asci Sandra Sydlik Seton Hall All-Tournament Irem Asci Tyler Davis
American Athletic Conference Academic Excellence Award 2015 Temple Volleyball
American Weekly Honor Roll 9/7 - Irem Asci 9/14 - Izzy Rapacz 9/21 - Kirsten Overton 9/28 - Alyssa Drachslin 10/5 - Irem Asci 10/12 - Alyssa Drachslin 10/19 - Tyler Davis 10/26 - Caroline Grattan 11/9 - Sandra Sydlik 11/16 - Izzy Rapacz 11/23 - Irem Asci
NCAA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Alyssa Drachslin
Owlsports.com Athlete of the Week 9/28 - Kirsten Overton
All-American Athletic Conference Sandra Sydlik, First Team Kirsten Overton, First Team Irem Asci, First Team Izzy Rapacz, Second Team Philadelphia Inquirer Academic All-Area Alyssa Drachslin AVCA Team Academic Award 2015 Temple Volleyball
Cherry & White Challenge All-Tournament MVP - Izzy Rapacz Sandra Sydlik Kayla Yingling Philadelphia Big 5 All-Tournament Kirsten Overton Irem Asci
2016 TEMPLE VOLLEYBALL STATISTICS - OVERALL 2016 Temple Volleyball Temple Combined Team Statistics (as of Nov 20, 2016) All matches RECORD: ALL GAMES CONFERENCE NON-CONFERENCE
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1 16 15 11 4 7 2 5 12 8 10 3
Player
ASCI, Irem RAPACZ, Izzy DAVIS, Tyler OVERTON, Kirsten DEAK, Iva COUNDOURIDES, Kyr SIMMONS, Janine PERIC, Dara GRATTAN, Caroline GUENNEWIG, Carla VANDEGRIFT, Hannah HEIRAKUJI, Mia TEAM TEMPLE Opponents
Team Statistics ATTACK Ki l l s Errors Total Attacks Attack Pct Kills/Set SET As s i s t s Assists/Set SERVE Aces Errors Aces/Set SERVE RECEPTIONS Errors Errors/Set DEFENSE Digs Digs/Set BLOCKING Block Solo Block Assist Total Blocks Blocks/Set Block Errors Ball handling errors ATTENDANCE Total Dates/Avg Per Date Neutral site #/Avg Current win streak Home win streak
sp
108 110 97 103 88 107 39 110 26 31 32 105 110 110
k
OVERALL 21-7 14-4 7-3
k/s
Attack e
482 4.46 227 320 2.91 130 209 2.15 55 169 1.64 31 137 1.56 36 54 0.50 12 40 1.03 16 32 0.29 20 30 1.15 19 26 0.84 13 3 0.09 0 0 0.00 1 1502 13.65 560 1324 12.04 575
TEMPLE
OPP
1502 560 3812 .247 13.7
1324 575 3841 .195 12.0
1421 12.9
1234 11.2
137 207 1.2
107 223 1.0
107 1.0
137 1.2
1627 14.8
1483 13.5
43 392 239.0 2.2 44 27
52 295 199.5 1.8 42 30
6501 13/500 3/36 3 1
3765 12/314 -
ta
pct
1171 .218 760 .250 593 .260 394 .350 320 .316 147 .286 100 .240 161 .075 85 .129 69 .188 4 .750 7 -.143 3812 .247 3841 .195
HOME 8-5 4-4 4-1 Set a a/s
sa
Serve se sa/s
22 0.20 35 50 10 0.09 18 33 5 0.05 0 0 9 0.09 3 3 8 0.09 12 40 1156 10.80 32 38 2 0.05 0 0 21 0.19 16 14 3 0.12 1 3 2 0.06 4 8 102 3.19 2 3 81 0.77 14 15 1421 12.92 137 207 1234 11.22 107 223
Date Aug 26 Aug 27 Sep 02 Sep 03 Sep 09 Sep 10 Sep 10 Sep 16 Sep 17 Sep 17 *Sep 23 *Sep 25 *Sep 28 *Oct 02 *Oct 07 *Oct 09 *Oct 14 *Oct 16 *Oct 21 *Oct 23 *Oct 26 *Oct 28 *Nov 04 *Nov 06 *Nov 11 *Nov 13 *Nov 18 *Nov 19
AWAY 12-0 10-0 2-0
Opponent NAU HAMPTON vs Virginia Tech vs Alabama CSU UNH RUTGERS vs Villanova at LaSalle at PENN TULANE HOUSTON at UConn at Memphis at Tulsa at SMU USF UCF at East Carolina at CINCINNATI UCONN MEMPHIS at Houston at Tulane CINCINNATI EAST CAROLINA at UCF at USF
Record in 3-set matches: 11-1 Record in 4-set matches: 5-1 Record in 5-set matches: 5-5
re
Dig dig dig/s
0.32 17 316 2.93 0.16 0 281 2.55 0.00 7 58 0.60 0.03 2 28 0.27 0.14 0 48 0.55 0.30 0 253 2.36 0.00 0 4 0.10 0.15 15 220 2.00 0.04 3 20 0.77 0.13 0 4 0.13 0.06 0 37 1.16 0.13 38 358 3.41 - 25 1.25 107 1627 14.79 0.97 137 1483 13.48 W W L L L W W W W W L W W W W W L L W W W W W W L W W W
Score 3-1 3-0 2-3 1-3 2-3 3-1 3-0 3-0 3-1 3-0 2-3 3-1 3-2 3-2 3-0 3-2 0-3 2-3 3-1 3-0 3-0 3-2 3-0 3-0 2-3 3-0 3-2 3-0
NEUTRAL 1-2 0-0 1-2
bs
Blocking ba total blk/s be bhe
6 42 48 5 93 98 2 27 29 13 95 108 6 75 81 1 26 27 7 22 29 1 1 2 1 3 4 1 7 8 0 1 1 0 0 0 43 392 239.0 52 295 199.5
0.44 7 0.89 4 0.30 1 1.05 3 0.92 18 0.25 3 0.74 4 0.02 2 0.15 1 0.26 1 0.03 0 0.00 0 - 2.17 44 1.81 42
points
1 544.0 2 389.5 0 224.5 1 232.5 2 192.5 17 100.0 0 58.0 0 49.5 0 33.5 1 34.5 3 5.5 0 14.0 27 1878.0 30 1630.5
Score by set 25-15,18-25,25-20,25-20 25-23,25-15,25-20 25-23,21-25,25-21,18-25,14-16 15-25,25-22,21-25,22-25 25-16,22-25,22-25,25-21,8-15 26-24,25-21,18-25,25-15 25-13,25-14,25-18 25-18,27-25,26-24 23-25,25-17,25-15,25-19 25-18,25-16,25-17 18-25,25-22,19-25,25-22,20-22 23-25,25-21,25-17,25-17 25-18,26-24,19-25,23-25,19-17 22-25,21-25,25-17,25-19,15-9 25-21,25-20,25-22 25-19,25-23,21-25,19-25,15-9 17-25,17-25,26-28 21-25,13-25,25-12,25-19,13-15 25-15,25-22,26-28,25-17 25-18,25-19,25-20 25-18,25-22,25-19 17-25,25-13,25-23,16-25,20-18 27-25,25-22,25-15 26-24,25-11,25-15 25-22,18-25,22-25,25-16,5-15 25-16,25-19,25-20 25-22,21-25,21-25,25-22,15-13 25-20,25-23,25-17
Att. 1216 765 0 0 527 223 401 109 181 181 517 196 165 218 112 418 541 412 451 482 461 619 386 140 256 367 463 568
2016 TEMPLE VOLLEYBALL STATISTICS - CONFERENCE ONLY 2016 Temple Volleyball Temple Combined Team Statistics (as of Nov 20, 2016) Conference matches RECORD: ALL GAMES CONFERENCE NON-CONFERENCE
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1 16 15 11 4 7 2 8 12 5 10 3
Player
ASCI, Irem RAPACZ, Izzy DAVIS, Tyler OVERTON, Kirsten DEAK, Iva COUNDOURIDES, Kyr SIMMONS, Janine GUENNEWIG, Carla GRATTAN, Caroline PERIC, Dara VANDEGRIFT, Hannah HEIRAKUJI, Mia TEAM TEMPLE Opponents
Team Statistics ATTACK Ki l l s Errors Total Attacks Attack Pct Kills/Set SET As s i s t s Assists/Set SERVE Aces Errors Aces/Set SERVE RECEPTIONS Errors Errors/Set DEFENSE Digs Digs/Set BLOCKING Block Solo Block Assist Total Blocks Blocks/Set Block Errors Ball handling errors ATTENDANCE Total Dates/Avg Per Date Neutral site #/Avg Current win streak Home win streak
sp
72 72 69 68 57 72 33 24 14 72 22 67 72 72
k
OVERALL 14-4 14-4 0-0
k/s
Attack e
335 4.65 160 200 2.78 81 164 2.38 36 101 1.49 18 82 1.44 25 37 0.51 8 33 1.00 12 21 0.88 9 12 0.86 7 4 0.06 4 0 0.00 0 0 0.00 0 989 13.74 360 899 12.49 371
TEMPLE
OPP
989 360 2515 .250 13.7
899 371 2584 .204 12.5
945 13.1
847 11.8
76 111 1.1
74 140 1.0
74 1.0
76 1.1
1093 15.2
984 13.7
25 241 145.5 2.0 27 20
36 178 125.0 1.7 27 24
3369 8/421 0/0 3 1
3403 10/340 -
ta
830 488 439 249 195 99 82 54 29 44 0 5 2515 2584
pct
HOME 4-4 4-4 0-0 Set a a/s
.211 14 0.19 .244 8 0.11 .292 4 0.06 .333 8 0.12 .292 6 0.11 .293 788 10.94 .256 2 0.06 .222 1 0.04 .172 2 0.14 .000 15 0.21 .000 53 2.41 .000 44 0.66 .250 945 13.12 .204 847 11.76 Date
*Sep 23 *Sep 25 *Sep 28 *Oct 02 *Oct 07 *Oct 09 *Oct 14 *Oct 16 *Oct 21 *Oct 23 *Oct 26 *Oct 28 *Nov 04 *Nov 06 *Nov 11 *Nov 13 *Nov 18 *Nov 19
sa
AWAY 10-0 10-0 0-0
Serve se sa/s
22 27 5 19 0 0 3 3 5 21 21 23 0 0 0 2 1 3 10 3 1 2 8 8 76 111 74 140
Opponent TULANE HOUSTON at UConn at Memphis at Tulsa at SMU USF UCF at East Carolina at CINCINNATI UCONN MEMPHIS at Houston at Tulane CINCINNATI EAST CAROLINA at UCF at USF
Record in 3-set matches: 7-1 Record in 4-set matches: 2-0 Record in 5-set matches: 5-3
0.31 0.07 0.00 0.04 0.09 0.29 0.00 0.00 0.07 0.14 0.05 0.12 1.06 1.03
re
15 0 4 1 0 0 0 0 2 10 0 23 19 74 76
Dig dig dig/s
199 2.76 184 2.56 43 0.62 24 0.35 21 0.37 170 2.36 3 0.09 2 0.08 12 0.86 156 2.17 28 1.27 251 3.75 1093 15.18 984 13.67 L W W W W W L L W W W W W W L W W W
Score 2-3 3-1 3-2 3-2 3-0 3-2 0-3 2-3 3-1 3-0 3-0 3-2 3-0 3-0 2-3 3-0 3-2 3-0
NEUTRAL 0-0 0-0 0-0
bs
Blocking ba total blk/s be bhe
5 30 35 3 52 55 1 16 17 7 57 64 2 43 45 0 17 17 6 21 27 0 3 3 1 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 25 241 145.5 36 178 125.0
0.49 6 0.76 1 0.25 1 0.94 2 0.79 11 0.24 3 0.82 2 0.12 1 0.21 0 0.00 0 0.00 0 0.00 0 - 2.02 27 1.74 27
points
0 377.0 1 234.0 0 173.0 1 139.5 2 110.5 13 66.5 0 49.5 1 22.5 0 15.0 0 14.0 2 1.0 0 8.0 20 1210.5 24 1098.0
Score by set 18-25,25-22,19-25,25-22,20-22 23-25,25-21,25-17,25-17 25-18,26-24,19-25,23-25,19-17 22-25,21-25,25-17,25-19,15-9 25-21,25-20,25-22 25-19,25-23,21-25,19-25,15-9 17-25,17-25,26-28 21-25,13-25,25-12,25-19,13-15 25-15,25-22,26-28,25-17 25-18,25-19,25-20 25-18,25-22,25-19 17-25,25-13,25-23,16-25,20-18 27-25,25-22,25-15 26-24,25-11,25-15 25-22,18-25,22-25,25-16,5-15 25-16,25-19,25-20 25-22,21-25,21-25,25-22,15-13 25-20,25-23,25-17
Att. 517 196 165 218 112 418 541 412 451 482 461 619 386 140 256 367 463 568
HEAD COACH BAKEER GANESHARATNAM
6th Season Queens ‘05 114-66 Career Record
Year Overall Conf. 2016 21-7 14-4 2015 24-8 15-5 2014 24-8 15-5 2013 18-12 9-9 2012 19-11 8-6 2011 8-20 4-11 Totals 114-66 65-40
Finish 2nd AAC T-2nd AAC 6th AAC 5th A-10 8th A-10
In six years on North Broad Street, Bakeer Ganesharatnam has turned Temple volleyball into a high-level program at the top of the American. Over Ganesharatnam’s tenure, Temple has continually surpassed expectations and has now proven itself as a top team in a strong conference. Most recently, Ganesharatnam’s 2015 squad recorded a 24-8 overall record, including a 15-5 mark in the American Athletic Conference. The Owls finished alone in second in the conference, having defeated each conference opponent at least once during the season, while also recording seven-straight wins to close the season. The 2015 squad tied the 2014 team for wins, the program’s best record since 2002. Individually, Temple boasted two American Player of the Week selections in junior Kirsten Overton and sophomore Irem Asci, while seven Temple players accounted for 11 American Weekly Honor Roll selections. In year-end awards, senior Sandra Sydlik, junior Kirsten Overton, and sophomore Irem Asci were named to the All-Conference first team, while sophomore Izzy Rapacz was named to the All-Conference second team. Ganesharatnam’s stellar 2015 campaign was built off of succes the team had during a record-setting 2014 season. The Owls finished 24-8 overall, tying for second place in the American Athletic Conference, and compiling the program’s best record in 12 years. The Owls had a number of big wins in 2014, including knocking off conference champion and NCAA team, UCF. As far as individual accolades, Temple earned a conference and program record five All-Conference sections in 2014. Sydlik was named to the first team, while sophomore Tyler Davis, senior Jennifer Iacobini,
Overton, and freshman Dara Peric earned second-team honors. Temple also boasted the American Athletic Conference Setter of the Year in Sydlik and the American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year in Peric. Sydlik later went on to earn the program’s first All-Region mention since 2002. In 2013, Temple finished at 18-12 overall to mark its second-straight season with a winning percentage of .600 or better. After being picked to finish seventh in the newly-created American Athletic Conference, the Owls bettered that by one and placed sixth with a record of 9-9. Ganesharatnam’s 2012 squad finished at 19-11 overall and advanced to the semifinals of the Atlantic 10 Tournament after not earning a spot in the tournament since 2009. The improvement from an 8-20 season in 2011 to a 19-11 season in 2012 ranked as the seventh-best differential among all NCAA Division I volleyball teams. Perhaps most impressive was the similarity in personnel between the teams of 2011 and 2012, as five of seven starters returned. Chelsea Tupuola was named the A-10 Libero of the Year, while Matautia earned A-10 First Team honors. The team was largely underestimated prior to the season, getting picked to finish 11th of 12 teams in the conference. The Owls proved that placement to be undeserved, as they went on to finish fifth in the league. Among other highlights in a strong season, the Owls recorded 17.90 digs per set to rank 15th among all NCAA Division I teams, and Temple won its first-ever Big 5 Tournament in the event’s four-year history, defeating Penn and La Salle and taking Villanova to five sets. The success of 2012 followed a more moderate but important step in Ganesharatnam’s first season. The 2011 Owls finished at 8-20 overall, a marked improvement over the season before his arrival. The team served up 78 aces in A-10 matches to lead all teams, and then-sophomore Elyse Burkert Proving that he is as committed to his student-athletes’ success in the classroom as he is to their success on the court, the team’s grade-point-average has improved significantly in the years since Ganesharatnam’s arrival. In the fall of 2010, the semester GPA for the team was 3.02. Ganesharatnam took over the reins in the spring of 2011, and by the end of his first fall semester, the team posted a GPA of 3.14. During the second season of competition under Ganes, the Owls posted a GPA of 3.32, and in the spring of 2013 it jumped all the way up to 3.45, showing more than
a four-tenths’ improvement in two years. In 2014, the Owls had the highest GPA of any American Athletic Conference squad, recording a 3.55. Prior to his arrival at Temple in January, 2011, Ganesharatnam spent five years as an assistant coach at West Virginia University. He served for three seasons as a full-time assistant with the Mountaineers after two prior years as a graduate assistant coach. As an assistant, Ganesharatnam served as the recruiting coordinator and worked with the players on skill development, as well as dealt with scheduling responsibilities. One year after Ganesharatnam’s transition to full-time assistant, the 2009 Mountaineers finished with their best overall record in five years, 17-13, and won six Big East games which ranked as the most since 1998. In 2010 the team finished 15-15 and took the title at its own WVU Classic early in the season with a perfect 4-0 record. Before his stint at WVU, Ganesharatnam served as an assistant coach at Cedar Valley College in Grand Prairie, Texas, for one season. He helped the Suns reach their co-conference championship in the 2005-06 season. His duties included assisting the head coach with all aspects of the program, including recruiting, practice and competition preparation, summer camps and travel arrangements, as well as alumni outreach and fundraising. In addition to his duties as an assistant coach at CVC, Ganesharatnam also served as the head coach of the 17’s ACE Elite Team at Arlington Courts in Dallas, Texas. Ganesharatnam was not a stranger to Temple when he arrived, having worked summer camps in 2005 and 2006 with former head coach Bob Bertucci. He completed his bachelor’s degree in political science with minors in economics and German from Queens College in 2005. He played four years of volleyball there while pursuing his degree. While having a standout career at Queens, he was also a four-year letterwinner and helped the Knights to two conference championships. Ganesharatnam was born in Sri Lanka, but moved to Germany when he was five. He has been playing volleyball since he was nine. In Germany, he competed on a very successful club team from 1990 to 2000, VFL Sindelfingen, winning the regional championship and the state championship many times. Ganesharatnam and his team also made numerous appearances at the national championship. Ganesharatnam received his master’s degree in athletic coaching education in 2007 from WVU.
2016 WEEKLY NOTES - TEMPLE VS. SMU (11/23) & TULSA (11/25) Lauren Ferrett, Associate Director for Athletic Communications | Email: [email protected] O: 215-204-1608 | C: 570-313-2338 | Website: www.OwlSports.com
MATCH INFORMATION
THE MATCH-UPS
Date.................................................... November 23, 25 Site........................ McGonigle Hall (Philadelphia, Pa.) TV (vs. SMU)..............................American Digital Network TV (vs. Tulsa)............................www.owlsports.com/watch Live Stats..........................sidearmstats.com/temple/wvball/ Temple vs. SMU.................................................................. 4-2 Last Meeting...................................................W, 3-2 at SMU Temple vs. Tulsa.................................................................. 4-1 Last Meeting..................................................W, 3-0 at Tulsa Twitter Updates....................................... @Temple_VB
SCHEDULE/RESULTS
Day Date Opponent Time Sonestra Philadelphia Hotel Temple Invitational Fri. Aug. 26 Northern Arizona W, 3-1 Sat. Aug. 27 Hampton W, 3-0 Puerto Rico Clásico Fri. Sep. 2 vs. Virginia Tech Sat. Sep. 3 vs. Alabama
L, 2-3 L, 1-3
Hilton Penn’s Landing Cherry & White Challenge Fri. Sep. 9 Cleveland State L, 2-3 Sat. Sep. 10 New Hampshire W, 3-1 Sat. Sep. 10 Rutgers W, 3-0 Philadelphia Big 5 Tournament (at Penn/La Salle) Fri. Sep. 16 Villanova (at Penn) W, 3-0 Sat. Sep. 17 at La Salle W, 3-1 Sat. Sep. 17 Penn (at La Salle) W, 3-0 American Athletic Conference Fri. Sep. 23 vs. Tulane Sun. Sep. 25 vs. Houston Wed. Sep. 28 at UConn Sun. Oct. 2 at Memphis Fri. Oct. 7 at Tulsa Sun. Oct. 9 at SMU Fri. Oct. 14 vs. USF Sun. Oct. 16 vs. UCF Fri. Oct. 21 at ECU Sun. Oct. 23 at Cincinnati Wed. Oct. 26 vs. UConn Fri. Oct. 28 vs. Memphis Fri. Nov. 4 at Houston Sun. Nov. 6 at Tulane Fri. Nov. 11 vs. Cincinnati Sun. Nov. 13 vs. ECU Fri. Nov. 18 at UCF Sun. Nov. 20 at USF Wed. Nov. 23 vs. SMU Fri. Nov. 25 vs. Tulsa
L, 2-3 W, 3-1 W, 3-2 W, 3-2 W, 3-0 W, 3-2 L, 0-3 L, 2-3 W, 3-1 W, 3-0 W, 3-0 W, 3-2 W, 3-0 W, 3-0 L, 3-2 W, 3-0 W, 3-2 W, 3-0 1:00 p.m. 1:00 p.m.
All times Eastern. | Home matches in bold
TEMPLE OWLS 21-7, 14-4 American HEAD COACH Bakeer Ganesharatnam / 6th Yr. Overall: 114-66 at School: Same LAST MATCH W, 3-0 at USF 11/20/16
SMU MUSTANGS 23-7, 16-2 American
TULSA GOLDEN HURRICANE 18-12, 7-11 American
HEAD COACH Lisa Seifert / 21st Yr. Overall: 365-287 at School: Same
HEAD COACH Ryan Wills / 3rd Yr. Overall: 55-38 at School: Same
LAST MATCH W, 3-0 vs. Memphis 11/20/16
LAST MATCH L, 3-2 vs. Memphis 11/18/16
TEMPLE HEADLINES
• Temple is 21-7 overall with a 14-4 mark in The American. • The Owls won a pair of American Athletic Conference matches on the road, winning 3-2 at UCF and 3-0 at USF. • The Owls finished with a 12-0 record in regular season road matches, and now have defeated every conference team at least once this year. • Senior Tyler Davis was named to the American Athletic Conference Weekly Honor Roll on Monday. • Head Coach Bakeer Ganesharatnam is in his sixth season with the Owls, recently winning his 100th career match to move to 114-66. • Temple was picked to finish second in the conference, after two-straight secondplace seasons. • The Owls had the most representatives on the preseason All-American Athletic Conference team, with three players making the list -- Irem Asci, Kirsten Overton, and Izzy Rapacz. • Asci (1st team), Overton (1st team), and Rapacz (2nd team) are returning 2015 AllConference honorees. • The Owls finished their tough non-conference slate with a 7-3 overall record, playing six teams that made the 2015 NCAA Tournament. • Temple won the Big 5 Tournament, as the Owls topped Villanova (3-0), La Salle (3-1), and Penn (3-0), with sophomore Mia Heirakuji being named MVP, and senior Tyler Davis earning All-Tournament honors. • Temple went 2-0 to win the Temple Invitational the first weekend of the season, defeating Northern Arizona (3-1) and Hampton (3-0). • Senior Izzy Rapacz was named Temple Invitational MVP, while juniors Irem and Kyra Coundourides earned All-Tournament honors. • The Owls finished second at the Cherry and White Challenge, with Kirsten Overton and Asci earning All-Tournament nods.
TEMPLE VOLLEYBALL ON SOCIAL MEDIA - #TUVB #GDQ /TempleVolleyball
@Temple_VB
@Temple.VB
2016 TEMPLE VOLLEYBALL ROSTER NO NAME 1 Irem Asci 2 Janine Simmons 3 Mia Heirakuji 4 Iva Deak 5 Dara Peric 7 Kyra Coundourides 8 Carla Guennewig 10 Hannah Vandegrift 11 Kirsten Overton 12 Caroline Grattan 14 Dana Westfield 15 Tyler Davis 16 Izzy Rapacz
YR POS HT Jr. OH 5-11 Jr. MB 6-1 So. DS/L 5-5 So. MB 6-0 Jr. OH 6-0 Jr. S 5-10 So. MB 6-2 So. S 6-0 Sr. MB 6-1 Sr. OH/RS 6-1 Fr. OH 6-0 Sr. OH 6-0 Jr. OH/RS 6-2
HOMETOWN/PREVIOUS SCHOOL Ankara, Turkey/Collage Ayseabla/Charlotte Centreville, Va. Centreville Kailua, Hawaii/Kamehameha Zagreb, Croatia/IV Gimnazija Zagre/Iowa West. Belgrade, Serbia/HS of Tourism Brunswick, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit/Virginia Tech Muenster, Germany/Pascal Gym. Muenster Leesburg, Va./Loudoun County Royersford, Pa./Spring-Ford Pittsburgh, Pa./Mt. Lebanon Champaign, Ill./Champaign Central Palm Desert, Calif./Xavier College Prep Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South
COACHING STAFF Head Coach: Bakeer Ganesharatnam (Queens College ’05; 6th year) Assistant Head Coach/Recruiting Coordinator: Akiko Hatakeyama (Temple ’99; 5th year) Assistant Coach: Ren Cefra (Hawai’i-West Oahu ‘13; 2nd year) Operations Intern: Christian Kiselica
NEWS AND NOTES POST-SEASON PICTURE Temple is third in the American Athletic Conference standings, behind only SMU and Cincinnati. Temple holds the tiebreaker with Cincinnati and already has a head-tohead victory over SMU this season. If the Owls do not earn the conference’s automatic qualifying spot to the NCAA Tournament, they still have a chance at an at-large bid. OWLS’ ON ADN AGAIN Temple is set to make its second appearance of the season on the American Digital Network. The Owls won a game on ADN on Friday at UCF, and their match-up against SMU will also be broadcast by the network. ADN is covering a total of three volleyball matches this fall. LAST TIME OUT: TEMPLE 3, USF 0 (AMERICAN) Facing a standing-room only crowd at the Corral at USF, Temple swept the Bulls 3-0 (25-20, 25-23, 25-17) on their home court. The Owls hit .316 as a team, taking the large crowd out of play by not allowing USF to take a lead later than 2-0 in any set. Junior Irem Asci tallied a double-double with 15 kills and 10 digs, while junior Kyra Coundourides also doubled up with 46 assists and 10 digs. Junior Izzy Rapacz notched 12 kills with seven digs, while senior Tyler Davis had 11 kills and six digs. In the middle, senior Kirsten Overton had six kills with two blocks, while junior Janine Simmons tallied five kills, hitting .714. Sophomore Mia Heirakuji aided the defense with eight digs in the sweep. LAST TIME OUT: TEMPLE 3, UCF 2 (AMERICAN) Temple rallied from a 2-1 deficit on the road at UCF, topping the Knights, 3-2 (25-22, 21-25, 21-25, 25-22, 15-13) on their home court. The Owls got a double-double of 21 kills and 14 digs from junior Irem Asci, while classmate Kyra Coundourides also recorded a double-double with 44 assists and 12 digs. Senior Tyler Davis notched 14 kills with just one error, while junior Izzy Rapacz added 12 kills and seven digs. Sophomore Iva Deak notched seven kills, Kirsten Overton tallied six, and sophomore Carla Guennewig added five to aid the attack. DAVIS NAMED TO HONOR ROLL Tyler Davis was named to the American Athletic Conference Weekly Honor Roll for the period ending November 20, 2016. In two matches, Davis recorded just three errors on 57 total swings. She averaged 3.12 kills per set, hitting .389, as the Owls went 2-0 on their last road trip of the season. Davis opened the week with 14 kills and just one error, hitting .382 as Temple defeated UCF, 3-2. On Sunday, the senior recorded 11 kills with a .391 attack in a 3-0 sweep at USF. For the week, Davis added four total blocks and seven kills in the Temple wins. SCOUTING THE OWLS Junior Irem Asci leads the Temple offense, racking up 4.46 kills per set, ranking her second in the conference and 18th in the nation. Junior Izzy Rapacz (2.91 kills/set) and senior Tyler Davis (2.15 kills/set) attack from the outside for Temple, while senior
PRONUNCIATION GUIDE
#1 Irem Asci.........................................E-rem OST-chew #7 Kyra Coundourides.....KEE-ruh Con-DOOR-ee-dez #4 Iva Deak.............................................. Eeva DAY-ock #12 Caroline Grattan.........................................GROT-in #8 Carla Guennewig..................................Gun-uh-VIG #3 Mia Heirakuji................................. Hay-ra-KOO-gee #16 Izzy Rapacz.............................................. RAH-posh #5 Dara Peric...................................Darr-Uh PEAR-itch Bakeer Ganesharatnam ............................. bah-KEER GAH-nez-SHA-rat-nam Akiko Hatakeyama ........................................ a-KEY-ko Ha-tah-KAY-yama
AMERICAN TEAMS’ RPI RANKINGS
Rank 33 40 49 53 74 91 112 116 173 188 238
School SMU Cincinnati Temple UCF Tulsa Tulane South Fla. UConn Memphis East Carolina Houston
Record 23-7-0 20-9-0 21-7-0 22-9-0 18-11-0 16-13-0 16-13-0 16-12-0 13-16-0 15-12-0 5-24-0
PROGRAM INFORMATION
ALL-TIME • Overall record: 861-580 (1975-2015) • NCAA Appearances: 4 (1997, 1998, 1999, 2002) COACHING STAFF Head Coach: .................... Bakeer Ganesharatnam .................................................Phone: (215) 204-0476 ....................................... E-Mail: [email protected] .............. Career Record (Years): 93-59 (5 seasons) ........................................ Record at TU (Years): Same Assistant Head Coach:.............Akiko Hatakeyama ................................................ Phone: (215) 204-6289 ........................................E-Mail: [email protected] Assistant Coach:...................................... Ren Cefra ................................................ Phone: (215) 204-6289 ............................E-Mail: [email protected] Student Dir. of Operations......... Christian Kiselica ................................................ Phone: (215) 204-6289 ................................... E-Mail: [email protected] THE OWLS Letterwinners Returning/Lost: ...............................10/3 Starters Returning/Lost: ............................. 5/1 + libero Newcomers: .................................................................... 3 2015 Overall Record: ..............................................24-8 2015 American Record: ..........................................15-5 2015 American Finish: ............................................. 2nd TEMPLE UNIVERSITY Location:...............................................Philadelphia, Pa. Founded:....................................................................1884 Enrollment:............................................................39,000 Acting President:............................ Richard M. Englert Director of Athletics:............................Dr. Patrick Kraft Nickname:................................................................. Owls Colors:.................................... Cherry (201c) and White Home Court:........................... McGonigle Hall (3,900)
THE AMERICAN STANDINGS School Conf. % SMU 16-2 0.889 Cincinnati 15-3 0.833 Temple 14-4 0.778 UCF 12-6 0.667 Tulane 9-9 0.500 USF 8-10 0.444 Tulsa 7-11 0.389 UConn 7-11 0.389 Memphis 6-12 0.333 E. Carolina 5-13 0.278 Houston 0-18 0.000
All % Streak 23-7 0.767 W5 20-9 0.690 W4 21-7 0.750 W3 22-9 0.710 W1 17-13 0.567 W1 17-13 0.567 L1 18-12 0.600 L3 16-13 0.552 L3 14-16 0.467 L1 15-13 0.536 L1 5-24 0.172 L20
AMERICAN WEEKLY AWARDS - 11/21 Offensive POTW: Jordan Thompson, Cincinnati Defensive POTW: Mady Ruhlman, Memphis Honor Roll: Jale Hervey, UCF Katie Hegarty, SMU Brooke Berryhille, Tulsa Alison Kimmel, Cincinnati Tyler Davis, Temple
2016 OWL SEASON HONORS The American Offensive Player of the Week Izzy Rapacz, 8/29/16 The American Defensive Player of the Week Mia Heirakuji, 10/10/16 Under Armour/Owlsports.com Athlete of the Week Izzy Rapacz, 8/29/16 Kirsten Overton, 9/12/16 Irem Asci, 11/7/16 The American Weekly Honor Roll Kirsten Overton, 9/12/16 Irem Asci, 9/26/16 Irem Asci, 10/3/16 Kyra Coundourides, 10/24/16 Kyra Coundourides, 10/31/16 Irem Asci, 11/7/16 Izzy Rapacz, 11/14/16 Tyler Davis, 11/21/16 Temple Invitational All-Tournament Izzy Rapacz, MVP Irem Asci Kyra Coundourides Cherry & White Challenge All-Tournament Irem Asci Kirsten Overton Philadelphia Big 5 All-Tournament Mia Heirakuji, MVP Tyler Davis
NEWS AND NOTES Kirsten Overton (1.64 kill/set), sophomore Iva Deak (1.56 kills/set) shore up the middle. Overton’s .350 attack is second in the conference and 69th in the nation. Junior Kyra Coundourides is Temple’s top setter, averaging 10.80 assists per set, putting her second in The American and 39th in the nation. Defensively, Temple is led by sophomore Mia Heirakuji, who averages 3.41 digs per set. Asci (2.93 digs/set), Rapacz (2.55 digs/set), and Coundourides (2.36 digs/set) beef up the back row for the Owls. At the net, Temple is led by Overton’s 108 blocks, while Rapacz has 98 and Deak has 81. As a team, Temple hits .247 and holds opponents to a .195 attack. The Owls rank first in the American in team hitting and third in assists and kills per set. SCOUTING SMU SMU, last season’s conference champions, stand at 23-7 overall, 16-2 in The American. The Mustangs have swept five-straight matches, most recently topping Tulsa and Memphis. Katie Hegarty leads the Mustangs’ offense with 3.77 kills per set, while Lauren Mills (2.48 kills/set), Janelle Giordano (2.30 kills/set), and Kristen Stehling (2.13 kills/set) all aid the SMU attack. Kendall Patterson handles setting duties, averaging 10.87 assists per frame, while also leading the team with 33 aces. Defensively, Morgan Heise leads the Mustangs and the conference with 5.18 digs per set, while Mills (2.88 digs/set) and Patterson (2.61 digs/set) are also solid back-row players. At the net, Giordano leads the team with 142 total blocks, ranking first in the conference with a 1.38 block per set average. SMU leads The American with 2.25 blocks per set, holding opponents to a .162 attack. As a team, the Mustangs hit .223. OWLS VS. THE MUSTANGS Temple holds a 4-2 lead in the all-time series, including splitting the conference series in both 2015 and 2014. The Owls won the earlier meeting between the program’s, a 3-2 win at SMU. SCOUTING TULSA Tulsa is 18-12 overall with a 7-11 mark in the American Athletic Conference. The Hurricane have lost three-straight conference matches, including a 3-2 match against Memphis their last time out. Tulsa’s offense is led by Erica Bohannon’s 3.76 kills per set. Rebecca Reeve plays all-around to the tune of 2.73 kills and 3.09 digs per set, while Trinity Alualu averages 2.16 kills per frame. Tulsa runs a 6-2 offense with Ashton Anderson (6.36 assists/set) and Mariah Pardo (4.48 assists/set) handling setting duties. Brooke Berryhill captains the defense with 5.12 digs per set, a number that ranks her second in The American. Tulsa has four players with 50 or more blocks, led by Rachel Moore’s 109. Tulsa leads the conference with 18.34 digs per set and 39.60 attacks per set. OWLS VS. THE HURRICANE Temple leads the all-time series with Tulsa, 4-1, taking both matches in 2015. This season, Temple won the earlier meeting, a 3-0 win at Tulsa. PHILADELPHIA BIG 5 CHAMPIONS Temple won the 2016 Philadelphia Big 5 Championship for the third time in program history. The Cherry and White swept Villanova (3-0) on Friday, and then topped La Salle (3-1) and Penn (3-0) on Saturday to claim the title. TEMPLE INVITATIONAL CHAMPIONS Temple won the 2016 Sonesta Hotel Temple Invitational with a pair of victories last weekend. The Owls topped Northern Arizona, a 2015 NCAA Tournament team, 3-1 on Friday, and then swept Hampton, 3-0, on Saturday. TEMPLE PICKED TO FINISH SECOND Three Temple volleyball players earned American Athletic Conference pre-season honors, while the Owls were picked to finish second in a vote of the leagues’ coaches. Temple’s three selections -- senior Kirsten Overton, and juniors Irem Asci and Izzy Rapacz, were the most for any American squad. Temple earned two first-place votes in the coaches’ poll, and finished in second place in the final tally with 88 points. The Owls ended last season in second place with a 15-5 conference mark and a 24-8 overall record and return three of their four All-Conference selections from 2015.
2016 TEMPLE VOLLEYBALL TV ROSTER
#
#
1
7
#
IREM ASCI
#
Ankara, Turkey
KYRA COUNDOURIDES Brunswick, Ohio
#
DANA WESTFIELD
14 Champaign, Ill.
2
JANINE SIMMONS
#
CARLA GUENNEWIG
#
Centreville, Va.
3
8 Muenster, Germany 10
#
TYLER DAVIS
MIA HEIRAKUJI
#
HANNAH VANDEGRIFT
#
Kailua, Hawaii
Leesburg, Va.
15Palm Desert, Calif. 16
LAST YEAR’S OWL HONORS
#
4
11
IVA DEAK
#
KIRSTEN OVERTON
#
Zagreb, Croatia
Royersford, Pa.
5
DARA PERIC
Belgrade, Serbia
CAROLINE GRATTAN
12 Pittsburgh, Pa.
IZZY RAPACZ
Glenville, Ill.
American Offensive Player of the Week 9/28 - Kirsten Overton 11/30 - Irem Asci
Temple Invitational All-Tournament Irem Asci Sandra Sydlik Seton Hall All-Tournament Irem Asci Tyler Davis
American Athletic Conference Academic Excellence Award 2015 Temple Volleyball
American Weekly Honor Roll 9/7 - Irem Asci 9/14 - Izzy Rapacz 9/21 - Kirsten Overton 9/28 - Alyssa Drachslin 10/5 - Irem Asci 10/12 - Alyssa Drachslin 10/19 - Tyler Davis 10/26 - Caroline Grattan 11/9 - Sandra Sydlik 11/16 - Izzy Rapacz 11/23 - Irem Asci
NCAA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Alyssa Drachslin
Owlsports.com Athlete of the Week 9/28 - Kirsten Overton
All-American Athletic Conference Sandra Sydlik, First Team Kirsten Overton, First Team Irem Asci, First Team Izzy Rapacz, Second Team Philadelphia Inquirer Academic All-Area Alyssa Drachslin AVCA Team Academic Award 2015 Temple Volleyball
Cherry & White Challenge All-Tournament MVP - Izzy Rapacz Sandra Sydlik Kayla Yingling Philadelphia Big 5 All-Tournament Kirsten Overton Irem Asci
2016 TEMPLE VOLLEYBALL STATISTICS - OVERALL 2016 Temple Volleyball Temple Combined Team Statistics (as of Nov 20, 2016) All matches RECORD: ALL GAMES CONFERENCE NON-CONFERENCE
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1 16 15 11 4 7 2 5 12 8 10 3
Player
ASCI, Irem RAPACZ, Izzy DAVIS, Tyler OVERTON, Kirsten DEAK, Iva COUNDOURIDES, Kyr SIMMONS, Janine PERIC, Dara GRATTAN, Caroline GUENNEWIG, Carla VANDEGRIFT, Hannah HEIRAKUJI, Mia TEAM TEMPLE Opponents
Team Statistics ATTACK Ki l l s Errors Total Attacks Attack Pct Kills/Set SET As s i s t s Assists/Set SERVE Aces Errors Aces/Set SERVE RECEPTIONS Errors Errors/Set DEFENSE Digs Digs/Set BLOCKING Block Solo Block Assist Total Blocks Blocks/Set Block Errors Ball handling errors ATTENDANCE Total Dates/Avg Per Date Neutral site #/Avg Current win streak Home win streak
sp
108 110 97 103 88 107 39 110 26 31 32 105 110 110
k
OVERALL 21-7 14-4 7-3
k/s
Attack e
482 4.46 227 320 2.91 130 209 2.15 55 169 1.64 31 137 1.56 36 54 0.50 12 40 1.03 16 32 0.29 20 30 1.15 19 26 0.84 13 3 0.09 0 0 0.00 1 1502 13.65 560 1324 12.04 575
TEMPLE
OPP
1502 560 3812 .247 13.7
1324 575 3841 .195 12.0
1421 12.9
1234 11.2
137 207 1.2
107 223 1.0
107 1.0
137 1.2
1627 14.8
1483 13.5
43 392 239.0 2.2 44 27
52 295 199.5 1.8 42 30
6501 13/500 3/36 3 1
3765 12/314 -
ta
pct
1171 .218 760 .250 593 .260 394 .350 320 .316 147 .286 100 .240 161 .075 85 .129 69 .188 4 .750 7 -.143 3812 .247 3841 .195
HOME 8-5 4-4 4-1 Set a a/s
sa
Serve se sa/s
22 0.20 35 50 10 0.09 18 33 5 0.05 0 0 9 0.09 3 3 8 0.09 12 40 1156 10.80 32 38 2 0.05 0 0 21 0.19 16 14 3 0.12 1 3 2 0.06 4 8 102 3.19 2 3 81 0.77 14 15 1421 12.92 137 207 1234 11.22 107 223
Date Aug 26 Aug 27 Sep 02 Sep 03 Sep 09 Sep 10 Sep 10 Sep 16 Sep 17 Sep 17 *Sep 23 *Sep 25 *Sep 28 *Oct 02 *Oct 07 *Oct 09 *Oct 14 *Oct 16 *Oct 21 *Oct 23 *Oct 26 *Oct 28 *Nov 04 *Nov 06 *Nov 11 *Nov 13 *Nov 18 *Nov 19
AWAY 12-0 10-0 2-0
Opponent NAU HAMPTON vs Virginia Tech vs Alabama CSU UNH RUTGERS vs Villanova at LaSalle at PENN TULANE HOUSTON at UConn at Memphis at Tulsa at SMU USF UCF at East Carolina at CINCINNATI UCONN MEMPHIS at Houston at Tulane CINCINNATI EAST CAROLINA at UCF at USF
Record in 3-set matches: 11-1 Record in 4-set matches: 5-1 Record in 5-set matches: 5-5
re
Dig dig dig/s
0.32 17 316 2.93 0.16 0 281 2.55 0.00 7 58 0.60 0.03 2 28 0.27 0.14 0 48 0.55 0.30 0 253 2.36 0.00 0 4 0.10 0.15 15 220 2.00 0.04 3 20 0.77 0.13 0 4 0.13 0.06 0 37 1.16 0.13 38 358 3.41 - 25 1.25 107 1627 14.79 0.97 137 1483 13.48 W W L L L W W W W W L W W W W W L L W W W W W W L W W W
Score 3-1 3-0 2-3 1-3 2-3 3-1 3-0 3-0 3-1 3-0 2-3 3-1 3-2 3-2 3-0 3-2 0-3 2-3 3-1 3-0 3-0 3-2 3-0 3-0 2-3 3-0 3-2 3-0
NEUTRAL 1-2 0-0 1-2
bs
Blocking ba total blk/s be bhe
6 42 48 5 93 98 2 27 29 13 95 108 6 75 81 1 26 27 7 22 29 1 1 2 1 3 4 1 7 8 0 1 1 0 0 0 43 392 239.0 52 295 199.5
0.44 7 0.89 4 0.30 1 1.05 3 0.92 18 0.25 3 0.74 4 0.02 2 0.15 1 0.26 1 0.03 0 0.00 0 - 2.17 44 1.81 42
points
1 544.0 2 389.5 0 224.5 1 232.5 2 192.5 17 100.0 0 58.0 0 49.5 0 33.5 1 34.5 3 5.5 0 14.0 27 1878.0 30 1630.5
Score by set 25-15,18-25,25-20,25-20 25-23,25-15,25-20 25-23,21-25,25-21,18-25,14-16 15-25,25-22,21-25,22-25 25-16,22-25,22-25,25-21,8-15 26-24,25-21,18-25,25-15 25-13,25-14,25-18 25-18,27-25,26-24 23-25,25-17,25-15,25-19 25-18,25-16,25-17 18-25,25-22,19-25,25-22,20-22 23-25,25-21,25-17,25-17 25-18,26-24,19-25,23-25,19-17 22-25,21-25,25-17,25-19,15-9 25-21,25-20,25-22 25-19,25-23,21-25,19-25,15-9 17-25,17-25,26-28 21-25,13-25,25-12,25-19,13-15 25-15,25-22,26-28,25-17 25-18,25-19,25-20 25-18,25-22,25-19 17-25,25-13,25-23,16-25,20-18 27-25,25-22,25-15 26-24,25-11,25-15 25-22,18-25,22-25,25-16,5-15 25-16,25-19,25-20 25-22,21-25,21-25,25-22,15-13 25-20,25-23,25-17
Att. 1216 765 0 0 527 223 401 109 181 181 517 196 165 218 112 418 541 412 451 482 461 619 386 140 256 367 463 568
2016 TEMPLE VOLLEYBALL STATISTICS - CONFERENCE ONLY 2016 Temple Volleyball Temple Combined Team Statistics (as of Nov 20, 2016) Conference matches RECORD: ALL GAMES CONFERENCE NON-CONFERENCE
##
1 16 15 11 4 7 2 8 12 5 10 3
Player
ASCI, Irem RAPACZ, Izzy DAVIS, Tyler OVERTON, Kirsten DEAK, Iva COUNDOURIDES, Kyr SIMMONS, Janine GUENNEWIG, Carla GRATTAN, Caroline PERIC, Dara VANDEGRIFT, Hannah HEIRAKUJI, Mia TEAM TEMPLE Opponents
Team Statistics ATTACK Ki l l s Errors Total Attacks Attack Pct Kills/Set SET As s i s t s Assists/Set SERVE Aces Errors Aces/Set SERVE RECEPTIONS Errors Errors/Set DEFENSE Digs Digs/Set BLOCKING Block Solo Block Assist Total Blocks Blocks/Set Block Errors Ball handling errors ATTENDANCE Total Dates/Avg Per Date Neutral site #/Avg Current win streak Home win streak
sp
72 72 69 68 57 72 33 24 14 72 22 67 72 72
k
OVERALL 14-4 14-4 0-0
k/s
Attack e
335 4.65 160 200 2.78 81 164 2.38 36 101 1.49 18 82 1.44 25 37 0.51 8 33 1.00 12 21 0.88 9 12 0.86 7 4 0.06 4 0 0.00 0 0 0.00 0 989 13.74 360 899 12.49 371
TEMPLE
OPP
989 360 2515 .250 13.7
899 371 2584 .204 12.5
945 13.1
847 11.8
76 111 1.1
74 140 1.0
74 1.0
76 1.1
1093 15.2
984 13.7
25 241 145.5 2.0 27 20
36 178 125.0 1.7 27 24
3369 8/421 0/0 3 1
3403 10/340 -
ta
830 488 439 249 195 99 82 54 29 44 0 5 2515 2584
pct
HOME 4-4 4-4 0-0 Set a a/s
.211 14 0.19 .244 8 0.11 .292 4 0.06 .333 8 0.12 .292 6 0.11 .293 788 10.94 .256 2 0.06 .222 1 0.04 .172 2 0.14 .000 15 0.21 .000 53 2.41 .000 44 0.66 .250 945 13.12 .204 847 11.76 Date
*Sep 23 *Sep 25 *Sep 28 *Oct 02 *Oct 07 *Oct 09 *Oct 14 *Oct 16 *Oct 21 *Oct 23 *Oct 26 *Oct 28 *Nov 04 *Nov 06 *Nov 11 *Nov 13 *Nov 18 *Nov 19
sa
AWAY 10-0 10-0 0-0
Serve se sa/s
22 27 5 19 0 0 3 3 5 21 21 23 0 0 0 2 1 3 10 3 1 2 8 8 76 111 74 140
Opponent TULANE HOUSTON at UConn at Memphis at Tulsa at SMU USF UCF at East Carolina at CINCINNATI UCONN MEMPHIS at Houston at Tulane CINCINNATI EAST CAROLINA at UCF at USF
Record in 3-set matches: 7-1 Record in 4-set matches: 2-0 Record in 5-set matches: 5-3
0.31 0.07 0.00 0.04 0.09 0.29 0.00 0.00 0.07 0.14 0.05 0.12 1.06 1.03
re
15 0 4 1 0 0 0 0 2 10 0 23 19 74 76
Dig dig dig/s
199 2.76 184 2.56 43 0.62 24 0.35 21 0.37 170 2.36 3 0.09 2 0.08 12 0.86 156 2.17 28 1.27 251 3.75 1093 15.18 984 13.67 L W W W W W L L W W W W W W L W W W
Score 2-3 3-1 3-2 3-2 3-0 3-2 0-3 2-3 3-1 3-0 3-0 3-2 3-0 3-0 2-3 3-0 3-2 3-0
NEUTRAL 0-0 0-0 0-0
bs
Blocking ba total blk/s be bhe
5 30 35 3 52 55 1 16 17 7 57 64 2 43 45 0 17 17 6 21 27 0 3 3 1 2 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 25 241 145.5 36 178 125.0
0.49 6 0.76 1 0.25 1 0.94 2 0.79 11 0.24 3 0.82 2 0.12 1 0.21 0 0.00 0 0.00 0 0.00 0 - 2.02 27 1.74 27
points
0 377.0 1 234.0 0 173.0 1 139.5 2 110.5 13 66.5 0 49.5 1 22.5 0 15.0 0 14.0 2 1.0 0 8.0 20 1210.5 24 1098.0
Score by set 18-25,25-22,19-25,25-22,20-22 23-25,25-21,25-17,25-17 25-18,26-24,19-25,23-25,19-17 22-25,21-25,25-17,25-19,15-9 25-21,25-20,25-22 25-19,25-23,21-25,19-25,15-9 17-25,17-25,26-28 21-25,13-25,25-12,25-19,13-15 25-15,25-22,26-28,25-17 25-18,25-19,25-20 25-18,25-22,25-19 17-25,25-13,25-23,16-25,20-18 27-25,25-22,25-15 26-24,25-11,25-15 25-22,18-25,22-25,25-16,5-15 25-16,25-19,25-20 25-22,21-25,21-25,25-22,15-13 25-20,25-23,25-17
Att. 517 196 165 218 112 418 541 412 451 482 461 619 386 140 256 367 463 568
HEAD COACH BAKEER GANESHARATNAM
6th Season Queens ‘05 114-66 Career Record
Year Overall Conf. 2016 21-7 14-4 2015 24-8 15-5 2014 24-8 15-5 2013 18-12 9-9 2012 19-11 8-6 2011 8-20 4-11 Totals 114-66 65-40
Finish 2nd AAC T-2nd AAC 6th AAC 5th A-10 8th A-10
In six years on North Broad Street, Bakeer Ganesharatnam has turned Temple volleyball into a high-level program at the top of the American. Over Ganesharatnam’s tenure, Temple has continually surpassed expectations and has now proven itself as a top team in a strong conference. Most recently, Ganesharatnam’s 2015 squad recorded a 24-8 overall record, including a 15-5 mark in the American Athletic Conference. The Owls finished alone in second in the conference, having defeated each conference opponent at least once during the season, while also recording seven-straight wins to close the season. The 2015 squad tied the 2014 team for wins, the program’s best record since 2002. Individually, Temple boasted two American Player of the Week selections in junior Kirsten Overton and sophomore Irem Asci, while seven Temple players accounted for 11 American Weekly Honor Roll selections. In year-end awards, senior Sandra Sydlik, junior Kirsten Overton, and sophomore Irem Asci were named to the All-Conference first team, while sophomore Izzy Rapacz was named to the All-Conference second team. Ganesharatnam’s stellar 2015 campaign was built off of succes the team had during a record-setting 2014 season. The Owls finished 24-8 overall, tying for second place in the American Athletic Conference, and compiling the program’s best record in 12 years. The Owls had a number of big wins in 2014, including knocking off conference champion and NCAA team, UCF. As far as individual accolades, Temple earned a conference and program record five All-Conference sections in 2014. Sydlik was named to the first team, while sophomore Tyler Davis, senior Jennifer Iacobini,
Overton, and freshman Dara Peric earned second-team honors. Temple also boasted the American Athletic Conference Setter of the Year in Sydlik and the American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year in Peric. Sydlik later went on to earn the program’s first All-Region mention since 2002. In 2013, Temple finished at 18-12 overall to mark its second-straight season with a winning percentage of .600 or better. After being picked to finish seventh in the newly-created American Athletic Conference, the Owls bettered that by one and placed sixth with a record of 9-9. Ganesharatnam’s 2012 squad finished at 19-11 overall and advanced to the semifinals of the Atlantic 10 Tournament after not earning a spot in the tournament since 2009. The improvement from an 8-20 season in 2011 to a 19-11 season in 2012 ranked as the seventh-best differential among all NCAA Division I volleyball teams. Perhaps most impressive was the similarity in personnel between the teams of 2011 and 2012, as five of seven starters returned. Chelsea Tupuola was named the A-10 Libero of the Year, while Matautia earned A-10 First Team honors. The team was largely underestimated prior to the season, getting picked to finish 11th of 12 teams in the conference. The Owls proved that placement to be undeserved, as they went on to finish fifth in the league. Among other highlights in a strong season, the Owls recorded 17.90 digs per set to rank 15th among all NCAA Division I teams, and Temple won its first-ever Big 5 Tournament in the event’s four-year history, defeating Penn and La Salle and taking Villanova to five sets. The success of 2012 followed a more moderate but important step in Ganesharatnam’s first season. The 2011 Owls finished at 8-20 overall, a marked improvement over the season before his arrival. The team served up 78 aces in A-10 matches to lead all teams, and then-sophomore Elyse Burkert Proving that he is as committed to his student-athletes’ success in the classroom as he is to their success on the court, the team’s grade-point-average has improved significantly in the years since Ganesharatnam’s arrival. In the fall of 2010, the semester GPA for the team was 3.02. Ganesharatnam took over the reins in the spring of 2011, and by the end of his first fall semester, the team posted a GPA of 3.14. During the second season of competition under Ganes, the Owls posted a GPA of 3.32, and in the spring of 2013 it jumped all the way up to 3.45, showing more than
a four-tenths’ improvement in two years. In 2014, the Owls had the highest GPA of any American Athletic Conference squad, recording a 3.55. Prior to his arrival at Temple in January, 2011, Ganesharatnam spent five years as an assistant coach at West Virginia University. He served for three seasons as a full-time assistant with the Mountaineers after two prior years as a graduate assistant coach. As an assistant, Ganesharatnam served as the recruiting coordinator and worked with the players on skill development, as well as dealt with scheduling responsibilities. One year after Ganesharatnam’s transition to full-time assistant, the 2009 Mountaineers finished with their best overall record in five years, 17-13, and won six Big East games which ranked as the most since 1998. In 2010 the team finished 15-15 and took the title at its own WVU Classic early in the season with a perfect 4-0 record. Before his stint at WVU, Ganesharatnam served as an assistant coach at Cedar Valley College in Grand Prairie, Texas, for one season. He helped the Suns reach their co-conference championship in the 2005-06 season. His duties included assisting the head coach with all aspects of the program, including recruiting, practice and competition preparation, summer camps and travel arrangements, as well as alumni outreach and fundraising. In addition to his duties as an assistant coach at CVC, Ganesharatnam also served as the head coach of the 17’s ACE Elite Team at Arlington Courts in Dallas, Texas. Ganesharatnam was not a stranger to Temple when he arrived, having worked summer camps in 2005 and 2006 with former head coach Bob Bertucci. He completed his bachelor’s degree in political science with minors in economics and German from Queens College in 2005. He played four years of volleyball there while pursuing his degree. While having a standout career at Queens, he was also a four-year letterwinner and helped the Knights to two conference championships. Ganesharatnam was born in Sri Lanka, but moved to Germany when he was five. He has been playing volleyball since he was nine. In Germany, he competed on a very successful club team from 1990 to 2000, VFL Sindelfingen, winning the regional championship and the state championship many times. Ganesharatnam and his team also made numerous appearances at the national championship. Ganesharatnam received his master’s degree in athletic coaching education in 2007 from WVU.
