ESPN to feature two Temple games

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This week marked the announcement of two Temple men’s basketball games that will be nationally televised on ESPN this season.

The Owls will host Kent State at 7:00 p.m. on Nov. 11, a matchup that will be a part of the 2013 ESPN Tip-Off Marathon. Last year featured an identical matchup against the Golden Flashes in the network’s season-opening event, when Temple won 80-66.

Later in the season, The Palestra will host a Temple game against La Salle on Jan. 18. The game is set to be covered by ESPN College GameDay, the popular weekly show that is entering its 10th year in production. GameDay will be followed by an airing of the actual game.

The basketball team is currently on a 10-day trip to Europe, where it will play four games while touring Paris, Nice, Florence and Rome.

Real-life Owl to attend home games this season

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Stella

Stella will be at Temple home games this season. // FOOTBALL COMMUNICATIONS

Meet Stella.

The three-and-a-half-year-old great horned owl from the Elmwood Park Zoo is set to attend Temple football home games this year, with a sideline view at Lincoln Financial Field.

The owl was at practice this afternoon, where she “met with” the Temple athletes and head coach Matt Rhule.

Field hockey names new grad assistant

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When Kelly Driscoll became the full-time assistant coach for the Temple Owls, she left an opening for a new graduate assistant.

That role will now be fulfilled by Danica Deckard.

“We are so happy have Danica on our staff,” ninth year head coach Amanda Janney said in a press release. “She embodies everything we’re looking for in a role model for our student-athletes. She comes from a strong field hockey background, she excelled in the classroom, and is very intense and focused on her fitness.”

Deckard played field hockey for four years at Ohio State University, where she was a standout star. The idea of having her at Temple, however, isn’t exactly a new one.

“I tried to recruit her five years ago because I knew she was such a good athlete and good person,” Janney said. “We’re happy that she had a great career at Ohio State, but we’re very pleased that she’s able to come and work with our program now. We need to score a lot of goals to win in the BIG EAST and we know she’ll be able to help us improve our attack.”

Deckard didn’t choose Temple five years ago, but she is here now and is excited for the opportunity.

“I’m thrilled to be here at Temple,” Deckard said. “I’m very excited to be a part of the field hockey program as we start our first season in the BIG EAST.”

Off the field, Deckard earned her bachelor’s degree in education and human ecology at Ohio State and plans to earn her masters in sports business during her time here at Temple.

As a player, Deckard was an offensive force. She scored 13 goals, seven assists and 33 total points in 2012 to lead the Buckeyes in offense.  She also led the team in goals in her junior year with 11 and fell just short of double-digits with nine goals in her sophomore year.

Deckard tied for third in game-winning goals in the Big Ten conference in 2012 with five and her 33 points that year ranked seventh in the conference. She had 10 multi-point games in her senior year, giving her a 1.78 points per game average that was good for eighth in the conference.

Deckard’s accolades consist of two All-Big Ten Second Team honors in 2011 and 2012, plus a spot on the NFHCA All-Region First Team in her senior year.

The Selinsgrove, PA. native was also an Academic All-Big Ten selection twice, an Ohio State Scholar Athlete three times and a NFHCA National Academic Honoree.

Deckard attended and played for Selinsgrove High School.

Track adds another assistant coach

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Tamara Burns has been introduced as track & field’s latest hire, joining the staff full-time as an assistant working with the men’s and women’s throwing teams, coach Eric Mobley announced Monday.

Burns’ hire marks the third addition to the program’s staff in the last three weeks, joining sprint coach Marquese Stancil and distance coach James Snyder as newly appointed full-time hires for the 2013-14 season.

Burns will join Temple after spending six years as an assistant at St. Francis University in Loretto, Pa.

Prior to joining the St. Francis staff in 2007, Burns racked up several honors during a four-year throwing career at Virginia Tech University including All-American and All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors for both the weight and hammer throws in 2005 and 2006.

Women’s soccer training camp begins this week

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In past years, the Owls’ coaching staff says that because players were solely tested on conditioning, upon their return to campus from summer break, the athletes would primarily focus on the fitness test—with little to no time dedicated to the technicalities of their game.

This year, players will be tested on both aspects of the game.

During this summer, the Owls were not only given conditioning drills to run, but technique drills, such as striking, shooting and heading.

“The first three days are the testing,” coach Seamus O’Connor said. “We do physical test and then do technical test, which is their ability with a soccer ball. We’ve never done that before”.

“Now they’ve had to spend as much time on [their technique] as the running part of it. So, those first three days will give us the opportunity to evaluate who did the work during the summer and it’ll help us be able to rank the girls. Those three days will help me with my decisions,” O’Connor added.

In a previous interview, O’Connor voiced his belief in playing the best players regardless of age and for a roster that houses 24 freshman and sophomores, the initial trials will be an opportunity for young players to fill depth chart vacancies.

Players arrive on campus for training camp on August 8.

Field hockey 2013 recruiting class

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The 2013 field hockey squad has eight incoming freshmen on the roster, and they all have strong backgrounds in field hockey. Here’s a quick look at the Owls’ newest members.

Michelle Walsh (defense/midfield): Walsh started varsity all four years for Archbishop Carroll High School, a team that won four straight district championships. She served as captain of the team in her senior year and also played for the WC Eagles club team outside of school.

Katie Foran (forward): Foran was the offensive MVP for Central Dauphin High School in her senior year with 24 goals and 24 assists. She was named a Mid-Penn All-Star twice in her three years on the varsity team and was named to the Patriot News’ Big-11 in her senior year. Foran also played four years of varsity softball for Central Dauphin and played club field hockey for Key State.

Shawna Chopko (defense/midfield): Chopko was a four-year starter for Newark High School and was team captain for two of them. She was a three-time all-conference selection for Newark and played on the North Bay Crush club team outside of school. Chopko also played three years of varsity lacrosse and track and field for Newark. In 2011, she won the Delaware Women’s Alliance for Sports and Fitness’ Women’s Athlete of Promise Award. She played in the National Futures Championship this summer with teammate Taylor Janney.

Ali Meszaros (defense/midfield): Meszaros played for Phoenixville Area High School where she was named team captain in her senior year. She also ran track and field in high school and was a four-year honor roll student. Meszaros also played club field hockey for WC Eagles.

Paige Gross (midfield):  Gross started four years on the varsity team for Liberty High School. She was named a Lehigh Valley Conference All-Star twice and was named to the conference’s first team in her senior year. Gross’ high school team was the conference champion last season. Gross also played basketball and soccer for Liberty, serving as the soccer team’s captain in her senior year, when she was also named a conference all-star for the sport. Gross played club hockey for True North, who won gold at last year’s National Field Hockey Festival.

Taylor Janney (defense/midfield): Janney, who is a second cousin to head coach Amanda Janney, played three years of varsity field hockey for Cherry Hill High School. She was named Cherry Hill Offensive Player of the Year in her senior season and helped the team to the state tournament in her junior and senior year.  Janney played on the South Jersey Edge club and was involved in the USA Field Hockey Futures Program for four years. She, along with teammate Shawna Chopko, played in the National Futures Championship this summer.

Sarah Keer (midfield/forward): Keer served two years as team captain for Lehighton Area High School. Her school won the state championship in her freshman year and made it back to the finals the next season. Keer was also a member of the school’s track and field team, where she was a two-time conference champion in javelin. For club field hockey, Keer played for First Class for three years and played for the Pyramid Evolution last year.

Elle Hempt (midfield/defense): Hempt was captain of the Cumberland Valley High School team in her senior year and was named to the Mid-Penn All-Star first team in 2011 and 2012. She was also named to the Patriot News’ Big-11 team in 2011 and 2012. Hempt also played club field hockey for East Coast Field Hockey, where she has spent time as team captain over the last three years. Here is a profile on Hempt posted yesterday: http://temple-news.com/sports/2013/08/05/recruiting-spotlight-elle-hempt/.

In a June interview, Janney said she likes what she sees in the new recruits and that she hopes to see them get action on the field this year.

“We have eight very athletic and strong players coming in,” Janney said. “We’re hoping to see a lot of them get playing time early in August and help us out.”

Training Camp: Day 1

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Today marked the first day of summer practice for Temple football, as the team opened up training camp at Edberg-Olson Hall.

Training Camp Begins

“They were excited to get out there and play and run around and compete a little bit,” first-year head coach Matt Rhule said. “It’s kind of hard because there’s no pads on, and no hitting—the things they like to do. But I thought we had good energy.”

There is one item in particular Rhule says he is stressing more than anything else: running.

“We’re going to run all day,” he said. “Guys were maybe starting to cramp up a bit because we had a long practice, but in order to play that style of football you need to be in shape. You have to outrun your opponent. It’ll take a day or two to get that back in their system, but they like that and they like playing football this way.”

According to Rhule, unity is one of the biggest aspects of the team that stands out early on.

“The biggest thing we feel is that we’re in this together,” Rhule said. “We’ve been through a lot with these guys—they want to win, and we want to win. So we’re going to do that that together.”

Read more at: http://temple-news.com/sports/2013/08/05/football-training-camp-begins/

Ice hockey looks for new captain

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Due to the departure of three-year forward Jordan Lawrence, Temple ice hockey is currently without a captain.

“[Lawrence] was an amazing leader,” senior goaltender Chris Mullen said. “Not always the biggest talker but said what needed to be said and nothing more. He led mostly by example. He could play any position, defense or offense. He kept the team going, always hitting and blocking shots and always ready and in position.”

Mullen added, “I’ll never forget, [Lawrence] had a bruised or broken rib and he was still diving in front of shots. He always made you want to play for your team and made everyone feel welcome the moment you made the team. I know it’s over used, but I would honestly follow him to battle any day any time. I can’t say enough good things.”

As for who will attempt to fill Lawrence’s shoes as team captain, there are a few different options but newly appointed head coach Ryan Frain has been mostly silent on whom those options may be.

Frain admitted that he does have a pair of forwards who are the frontrunners to next wear the ‘C’ for the Owls but declined to name them. Frain also said that he is not sure how he wishes the decision to be made, whether it is left up to the team to vote on their next captain or whether Frain will make the decision personally.

Shortened preseason brings early exhibition play

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Due to their move to The American Athletic Conference, the women’s soccer team will not only see a shift in the regular season schedule, but in the preseason schedule as well.

The new conference scheduling was established this summer, which means Temple will face its exhibition opponents earlier than in previous years.

The Owls arrive on campus for their preseason training camp on Aug. 8, and will face their first exhibition opponent shortly after. In past years, the Owls had close to two weeks before facing an exhibition opponent, but this season, they will face both Wagner (Aug. 14) and Towson (Aug. 17) within the first 10 days of arrival at camp.

“It’s early, but we like it [because] it gives us a more realistic look at where we are,” coach Seamus O’Connor said. “You can practice against each other all you want, but you don’t actually truly find out, until you go against someone different, how the girls are going to respond”.

With the Owls athletic staff viewing an early exhibition schedule as a beneficial alteration, when Wagner was in need of an exhibition match, Temple took advantage of the opportunity to add it to their schedule. The Owls will now face two preseason opponents for the first time ever.

“It was great getting the two friendly scrimmages in so that we can work on stuff against somebody else,” O’Connor said.

A look at men’s tennis schedule

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The official 2013-2014 schedule has not been released yet, but the men’s tennis team now knows which non-conference opponents they will go head-to-head with during the season.

In six weeks, the Owls will travel 130 miles south to Annapolis, Md. to begin their preseason campaign with a couple of tournaments, starting with the Navy Blue Invitational on Sept. 6th through the 8th against Navy. Temple will then face in-town rival Penn in the UPenn Invitational on Sept 27th through the 29th. In October, the Owls will play in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Regional Championship, which will help gauge the Owl’s preparation for the upcoming season.

The preseason will then culminate with the VCU 4+ 1 Invitational in January. The regular season will get under way on January 31st back in Maryland against UMBC in Baltimore. The Owls will have a string of home games in February by first welcoming Drexel to Legacy, the Owls’ indoor facility. If last year is any indication, UPenn will be the Owl’s toughest non-conference competition this season, having previously posted a 20-5 record.

Although the full schedule has not yet been released, the Owls will face American Athletic Conference opponents Rutgers, University of Central Florida, Cincinnati, University of Houston, Louisville, UCONN, University of Memphis, University of South Florida, and Southern Methodist
University.