Tulane University
9-4, 1-0American
Temple University*
7-4, 0-1American
Volleyball Wins Five-Set Thriller Over Temple in American Athletic Conference Opener
Sep 23, 2016 | Women's Volleyball
Final Stats
PHILADELPHIA – Tulane volleyball (9-4) moved to 1-0 in American Conference play for the first time in program history on Friday night in McGonigal Hall, defeating Temple 3-2 in a five-set thriller. The 22-20 score in the final set was the highest fifth-set score of any match in Tulane history.
QUOTE
"This was an outstanding win for our seniors. We dedicated this game to them because this is their last time to play in this arena and they've never won in it. As a team, I'm proud of how we battled and never gave up. Offensively, we did what we wanted by passing really well, and that allowed us to run our offense. Ultimately, we won by playing great defense, and we found three great sets where we played well on defense. We're going to celebrate this one tonight, but we have to turn our attention to UConn as we look to sweep on the road."
--Tulane head coach Jim Barnes
HOW IT WAS WON
Tulane put on a dominating performance in set one, opening the night with a 9-2 lead over the over the Owls before moving to a 25-18 victory. Set two played closer than the first, with Tulane holding the lead for the majority of the set before Temple nabbed a late 25-22 win to even the match at 1-1. The Green Wave returned to dominance in set three, taking a 25-19 victory on six kills by junior right-side hitter Sarah Ray, but set four was the Owls' to win, with Tulane battling from an early eight-point deficit. The Green Wave came within two points of Temple on multiple occasions, but the Owls forced Tulane's sixth set five of the year on a 25-23 victory. The fifth and final set of the night was one to remember, both teams going back and forth with multiple match-point opportunities. The set went into the twenties before Tulane claimed the 22-20 match victory on junior right-side hitter Sarah Ray's 22nd kill of the night.
On the night, sophomore middle hitter Dayna Kern tied a career-high 15 kills, hitting .400 or higher for the third straight match.
UP NEXT
Tulane travels to Storrs, Connecticut on Sunday to close out the road trip with a noon contest against the UConn Huskies, who defeated Houston in three straight sets to open conference play. The game will be streamed live here with live stats available here.
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