KU Heads to Philly for Temple Classic
Aug. 30, 2006
LAWRENCE, Kan. –
The Jayhawks bring a 3-1 record into this weekend’s Temple Classic in Philadelphia. KU is scheduled to face host Temple (3-1) Friday at 6 p.m., Maine (0-3) Saturday at 9 a.m. and Rutgers (2-2) the same day at 2 p.m. All matches will be held in Temple’s McGonigle Hall. A recap and box score for all three matches can be found here shortly after each contest.
Road Warriors
Of their 29 scheduled matches, the Jayhawks play 16 contests away from the friendly confines of the Horejsi Family Athletics Center this season. KU is 2-1 on the road in 2006 and swept UMKC in its home opener Tuesday. In addition to six non-conference matches on the road this year, the Jayhawks play 10 Big 12 matches away from Lawrence each season.
The Tournament Field
Temple (3-1) suffered its first loss of the season Tuesday night to Delaware in three games. Junior outside hitter Yue Liu posted a team-high 14 kills and 12 digs and added three blocks. Liu leads the Owls with 4.23 kills per game on the season. Sophomore middle blocker Patricia Vernon (team-high 1.14 blocks per game) recorded six kills and three blocks while junior outside hitter Ying Sun Ling also contributed nine kills in the loss. The Owls opened the season at home with wins over Lehigh, Iona and Cleveland State in the Temple Invitational Aug. 25-26.
Maine (0-3) is looking for its first victory of the season at Temple after losses to Tennessee Tech, Western Michigan and Cincinnati last weekend in Cincy. Sophomore middle blocker Brittany Kiehl leads the Black Bears’ offense with 2.50 kills per game while senior setter Shelly Seipp dishes 6.90 assists per game. Maine, picked to finish six in the America East Conference, returns 10 letterwinners from last season, including senior libero Jody Connacher (4.20 digs per game). The Maine defense has posted 15.30 digs per game through three matches despite a struggling offense, which is averaging a .067 attack percentage.
Rutgers (2-2) split in both days of the James Madison Comfort Inn Invitational last weekend in Harrisonburg, Va. The Scarlet Knights grabbed wins over UNC Asheville and host JMU and fell to Duquesne and Canisius to open the season. Sophomore outside hitter Kyra Thompson leads the Rutgers offense with 3.56 kills per game while senior outside hitter Lora Yankauskas, a Preseason All-Big East selection, is close behind with 3.50 kpg. The Scarlet Knights run a 6-2 offense with sophomore Roxy Calder (5.62 assists per game) and senior Jocelyn Greenwald (5.75 apg) sharing setting duties.
Kansas vs. …
…Temple — KU leads the series, 1-0. The teams met last year in the Jayhawk Classic with KU winning, 3-0, on Sept. 10.
…Maine — First meeting between the schools in volleyball.
…Rutgers — First meeting between the schools in volleyball.
The Morningstar-Temple Connection
KU senior setter/defensive specialist Linsey Morningstar is no stranger to Temple and the city of Philadelphia. Morningstar played the last three seasons for the Owls before transferring to KU this year to be closer to home and her family. The Lawrence native appeared in 193 games at Temple and led the squad with .033 services aces as a junior in 2005.
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