Tag Archives: Temple Owls

Temple stays put at No. 16

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Temple stayed at No. 16 in this week’s Penn Monto/NFHCA Division I National Coaches Poll, and sit at No. 13 in the NCAA’s ratings percentage index rankings.

The Owls (11-5, 2-1 Big East) split this past weekend with a 3-2 loss to conference foe Old Dominion (now No. 17) Friday and a 4-1 win against William and Mary on Saturday.

There are three games left on the regular season schedule. Two of them are conference matchups against Georgetown (5-9, 0-3 Big East) on the road Oct. 24 and No. 5 UConn (11-2, 3-0 Big East) at home on Nov. 1.

The Owls will have one more non-conference game against Lafayette (5-9) on Oct. 26 at home.

As the regular season begins to come to a close, senior forward Amber Youtz has found herself at the top of the nation’s stat sheets. Her 1.31 goals per game is the best in the NCAA and her 2.81 points per game is second in the nation.

With 21 goals and 45 points, Youtz leads the Big East in both categories by a wide margin, and is a goal and nine points away from tying her career-high 22 goals and 54 points set in 2012.

Youtz is also closing in on third all-time in goals and points for the program, improving her career totals to 63 goals and 148 points after recording another three goals and 11 points during the weekend. She needs five more goals and 16 more points to tie Monica Mills (1981-84) for third in each category.

Redshirt senior goalkeeper Lizzy Millen has also put up a productive season to this point, posting a 79.5 save percentage that is seventh in the nation, and a 1.55 goals against average that ranks 20th.

Sydlik earns honor roll nod

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After road wins at Houston and Tulane during the weekend, Temple setter Sandra Sydlik was named to the American Athletic Conference weekly honor roll Monday.

Sydlik averaged 11.71 assists per set during the weekend and amassed 41 assists against Houston and another 41 against Tulane.

The Owls dropped just one set in both conference matches over the weekend improving to 14-6 overall and 5-3 in The American.

Rowers to compete at international event

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The women’s rowing team is hours away from the start of one of the largest two-day rowing competition in the world.

The 50th annual Head of the Charles Regatta will begin on Saturday as more than 11,000 rowers will be competing on a three-mile course on the Charles River in Boston.  Participating athletes will range from youth to senior citizens, and novices to those with Olympic experience.

Among Temple’s 49 rowers on the roster, only 19 of them will be representing Temple in three boats. Coach Rebecca Grzybowski said several elements went into choosing who will be going to the regatta, including experience and conditioning.

The women in Club 8+ are  junior Kelsey Franks (coxswain) junior Emilie Mehler (seat 8), junior Emily Opperman (seat 7), senior Moira Meekes (seat 6), junior Callie DiGuardia (seat 5), sophomore Jenna Bahel (seat 4), freshman Charlie Forman (seat 3), sophomore Lea Millio (seat 2) and sophomore Kaitlin Grisanti (seat 1).

In the Club 4+ (A)  boat are sophomore Ellie Oken (coxswain), junior Lily Papaleo (seat 4), junior Emily Leyland (seat 3), senior Annie Buckley (seat 2) and senior Kathy Bostion (seat 1).

In the Club 4+ (B)  boat are senior Erin Matz (coxswain), senior Kayla Dorney (seat 4), senior Gina Inverso (seat 3), junior Grace Kroner (seat 2) and freshman Danielle White (seat 1).

The competition begins on Saturday at 8 a.m. and can be watched online here.

Davis earns conference honors

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Tyler Davis’ productive weekend helped earn her a spot on the American Athletic Conference weekly honor roll, the conference announced Monday.

The sophomore outside hitter led the way in both of Temple’s home conference matches during the weekend. Davis hit a season-high 46.9 percent in the Owls’ 3-0 win against Cincinnati on Friday, and also led the team with 16 kills in the 3-1 loss to Memphis.

She finished the weekend with a 35.5 hitting percentage.

Owls working on transition, health ahead of USF

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There was one area the men’s soccer team worked on Wednesday afternoon in its preparation for the University of South Florida on Saturday night: the transition game.

“South Florida is a team that’s very good in transition,” coach David MacWilliams said. “We wanted to simulate a session where you’re keeping the ball, and then all of a sudden it’s played down to the other end of the field, and you have to get back behind the ball.”

Defending against a quick reversal of play will be key if the Owls are to win their first road match this fall. One of the key guys who could be back in Temple’s lineup is sophomore defender Stefan Mueller, who has missed the last three matches due to stomach pain.

MacWilliams said Mueller’s presence would greatly help come Saturday.

“We have to see how things go [this week],” MacWilliams said. “But if he’s able to play, it definitely strengthens our team.”

Freshman midfielder Filipe Liborio, who missed Temple’s last match against Cincinnati, was running around with a brace and also looks primed to play down in Florida.

In terms of the two Finnish players, freshmen forwards Olli Tynkkynen and Joonas Jokinen, MacWilliams said that Tynkkynen is closer to 100 percent than Jokinen, but didn’t rule out both of them playing at some capacity against USF.

 No. 22 USF looms

USF, which is currently ranked No. 22 in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America poll, carries a 5-3 overall record, and beat Connecticut 1-0 in an overtime win in its opening American Athletic conference match on Sept. 27.

When it comes to the Bulls, coach David MacWilliams said their tradition and overall quality makes them tough to play.

“They’re very quick and athletic,” MacWilliams said.  “They’re a tough team in transition, a tough team to break down … they’ve made the [NCAA Tournament seven] years in a row, so you’re going up against a lot of history and tradition there.”

The Bulls ended the Owls’ season last year by beating them 1-0 at Ambler in the first round of the American Athletic Conference tournament. MacWilliams said revenge will partially be a factor going into Saturday, but getting a result down in Florida is more important because of their non-conference results.

“Getting beat by them bothered us,” MacWilliams said.  “But I think right now, we’re in a stage where we just want to win games and get results … We just want to be able to play well and get a result down there.”

Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at Corbett Stadium.

Alston marks Owls’ second verbal commitment of 2015 class

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Temple picked up a second four-start recruit via verbal commit Tuesday morning.

Donning one of his father’s old Owls jerseys, local product Levan Alston announced his verbal commitment to the university in a press conference, marking coach Fran Dunphy’s second such commitment for the 2015 recruiting class.

The 6-foot-4 Haverford School product garnered All-State honors after posting 16.5 points per game as a junior last season. He’ll join fellow shooting guard and AAU teammate Trey Lowe (Ewing, New Jersey) at Temple in Fall 2015, as Lowe verbally committed to the Owls as a four-star shooting guard in August.

In committing to Temple, Alston will be joining the alma mater of his father, Levan, who played for the Owls under former coach John Chaney in the mid-1990s.

Bitter rivalry to resume in season opener

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Coach Ryan Frain said he is already treating tonight’s game against the University of Maryland as a playoff game.

The second-year coach’s emphasis on the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Hockey Association bout could be that every contest against Maryland since 2008 has been a close game for the Owls. The Terps have gotten the better of the matchups in that span, winning four of the last five.

No pair of games in one season with the two teams were closer than last season, when the Owls dropped a pair of overtime games to Maryland by scores of 6-5 and 2-1.

Another factor lies in the sting from the end of the 2012-13 season, which is still fresh in the mind of Frain and his veteran players.

The top 10 teams in the American Collegiate Hockey Association’s Southeast region make the regional tournament on a point system, but in 2013 the Terps edged the Owls by one point for the final spot.

The two schools weren’t far apart last season, either, as Maryland finished No. 11 in the region, while Temple finished in the No. 15 spot.

The game marks the second consecutive season that Temple and Maryland are starting their seasons against each other.

The two teams are both in the MACHA conference, but are in different divisions as Maryland resides in the MACHA South and Temple in the MACHA North.

-Stephen Godwin Jr.

Field hockey moves to No. 13 in poll

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Temple moved up to the No. 13 ranking in week two of the Penn Monto/National Field Hockey Coaches Association Division I National Coaches Poll, it was announced Tuesday.

The Owls, who were ranked No. 16 last week, are 4-2 overall thus far, with both of their losses coming from teams that were ranked within the nation’s Top 5. Duke, who was ranked No. 4 when it played Temple on Sept. 7, shut out the Owls 3-0. Maryland did the same this past Sunday, with the No. 3 ranking.

Both teams moved up a spot in the poll this week, with Duke (6-0) now No. 3 and Maryland (5-1) No. 2.

The weekend ahead has Temple facing Bucknell on the road this Saturday, then Drexel at home on Sunday.

Millen earns Big East honor for second time

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Lizzy Millen’s 17 saves against No. 3 Maryland on Sunday helped earn her Big East Defensive Player of the Week honors for the second time this season.

The redshirt senior goalkeeper tied her career high in saves in the losing 3-0 effort to the Terrapins, following the two saves she made in Temple’s 5-1 home opening win against Delaware on Friday.

With the Owls already up 5-0 against the Blue Hens, Millen was substituted out at halftime for junior Haley Mitchell, who allowed Delaware’s lone goal and also registered two saves.

Millen was first awarded the honor on Sept. 1, coming off the heels of an opening weekend sweep via a 4-2 win against Northeastern and a 2-0 shutout of the University of Massachusetts.

The Whitehall, Pennsylvania native is posting a .864 save percentage through six starts, good for 13th in the nation.

Hockey roster released

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Temple ice hockey coach Ryan Frain released the team’s final roster Tuesday night.

One highlight on the final roster lies in sophomore forward Brett Woyshner, who made the team after spending last season as a redshirt.

Frain is keeping 26 active players on his team and is grooming four redshirts for next season.

The squad will return 19 players from last year’s team, while it will feature 15 juniors and seniors.

Seven new names are set to join the team this season, but the two that stand out early are freshmen forwards Devon Thomas and Eric Graham.

Thomas worked hard during tryouts and scored two goals on the final night of the three-day trial, while Graham also netted a pair of goals in the tryout finale and had another ricochet off the post.

-Stephen Godwin Jr.