Gameday: Volleyball Travels North To Face Temple And Connecticut

Matches 17-18: at Temple and Connecticut
The Matches	Oct. 6: at Temple \\\ 7 p.m. \\\ Live Stats \\\ Live Video Oct. 8: at Connecticut \\\ Noon \\\ Live Stats \\\ Live Video
Venue	McGonigle Hall \\\ Guyer Gym/Greer Fieldhouse
Social Media	@ECUVB (Twitter) \\\ Instagram \\\ Facebook \\\ @ECUScoreboard (In-Match Updates) \\\ #ECUndaunted

Weekly Release No. 7 (PDF)

GREENVILLE, N.C. – ECU looks to jump over .500 in American Athletic Conference play this weekend, playing two road matches at Temple and Connecticut. The Pirates face off against the Owls Friday night at 7 p.m. inside McGonigle Hall before battling the Huskies Sunday at Noon at Guyer Gym/Greer Fieldhouse.

The Pirates split two contests at home last weekend, losing a five-set decision to reigning league champion SMU before besting Tulsa 3-1, snapping a 16-match losing streak in the series with the Golden Hurricane.

ECU, UCF and Connecticut at tied for fifth in the conference standings at 2-2 while Temple and Cincinnati are tied for third with 3-1 records. The Pirates are 2-1 on the road this season with wins at Stetson and USF. Temple and Connecticut currently hold respective 2-1 and 3-2 records at home.

Last season, the Owls swept the season series from the Purple and Gold. ECU and Huskies split the season series a year ago with each squad winning on its home floor.

Looking At Temple
Temple enters Friday night's contest with a 7-5 overall record and 3-1 AAC mark after recording a pair of road wins at Tulane and Houston last weekend. The Owls downed the Green Wave in four sets before winning a 3-2 decision over the Cougars. Irem Asci and Izzy Rapacz sport respective kills per set averages of 3.00 and 2.98 to pace the Temple offensive efforts while Mia Heirakuji holds down the back row, sporting 167 digs (3.80 per set). Collectively, the Owls average 13.23 kills, 12.39 assists, 1.25 aces, 15.14 digs and 2.69 blocks per set while hitting .241. Temple leads the American Conference in blocks per set and has the top two statistical blockers in the league in Rapacz (1.22 per set) and Janine Simmons (1.21 per set).

The Series: Temple
Temple has won all seven meetings with ECU, including six since the Pirates joined the AAC prior to the 2014 campaign.

Scouting Connecticut
Connecticut holds a 9-7 overall record and 2-2 AAC ledger as the Huskies prepare to host Cincinnati Friday before entertaining ECU Sunday. Kayla Williams has been the go-to option on offense for Connecticut, averaging 3.66 kills per set and receiving over 300 more attempts than the next closest Husky player. Kennedy Arundel has been the top defensive performer for Connecticut, averaging 3.62 digs per set. As a unit, the Huskies average 12.88 kills, 12.18 assists, 1.43 aces, 13.82 digs and 1.74 blocks per set and are hitting .210. Connecticut is holding its opponents to a league second-best .172 hitting percentage.

The Series: Connecticut
ECU and Connecticut have split the six meetings between the programs and have halved the season series the last three seasons. The Pirates own a 1-2 record in matches played in Storrs.

Leftovers From Sunday's Victory Over Tulsa
ECU defeated Tulsa for the first time as a member of the American Athletic Conference, leaving SMU and Temple as the only two teams the Pirates have yet to beat since joining the league prior to the 2014 campaign … The Pirates' 91 digs were the most in a four-set match since recording 97 in a 3-1 setback at Campbell Sept. 10, 2013 … ECU had five players notch double-digit digs for the first time this season … The Pirates have started American Conference play at 2-2 for the first time in four seasons as a member of the league … ECU's 14 total blocks matched its season high also set against Gardner-Webb on Sept. 8.

ECU At-A-Glance
Record - 10-6 (.625) // AAC Record - 2-2 (.500) // Last 5 Matches - 3-2 (.600) // Last 10 Matches - 6-4 (.600) // Last 15 Matches - 9-6 (.600) // ECU will play the 141st match of the Julie Torbett era when it takes on Temple Friday // East Carolina's all-time record stands at 487-775 in its 41st season of competition.

Up Next
ECU returns home next weekend for a pair of AAC matches against Tulane (Friday) and Houston (Sunday).

Gameday: Volleyball Travels North To Face Temple And Connecticut

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