Clemson Volleyball To Host 2005 Big Orange Bash

Sept. 1, 2005

CLEMSON, SC – The Clemson women’s volleyball team will open the 2005 season by hosting the 16th annual Big Orange Bash. The Tigers welcome the Connecticut Huskies, Kentucky Wildcats and Western Carolina Catamounts for the two-day event. All matches will be played at the Jervey Gymnasium on Clemson’s campus and admission is free to the public.

The Tigers are led by preseason All-ACC honoree Brittany Ross. The outside hitter from Sunrise, FL was also named to the ACC All-Freshmen team last season after setting a Clemson record with 472 kills.

Clemson and UConn will face off in the opening match of the tournament on Friday, Sept.2 at 5:00 PM in what will be the first meeting between the two schools.

The Tigers will then meet Western Carolina on Saturday at 12:00 noon in the teams’ 34th meeting. Clemson has been the victor 23 times, while suffering only 10 losses to the Catamounts. The Tigers also hold a 12-2 advantage in matches played on their home court. The two teams met twice last season, including a contest in the 2004 Big Orange Bash, with Clemson claiming both matches in three games.

The final match of the tournament will be played at 5:00 PM on Saturday as the Tigers and Wildcats take to the court. Kentucky leads the series history, 6-2, over Clemson, but the Tigers have edged the Wildcats, 2-1, at home. The two schools last met during the 2001 season. Clemson defeated Kentucky 3-2 in a five-game thriller at Jervey Gym. The Wildcats are making their second appearance in Clemson’s annual tournament. The Tigers won the 1999 match in three games.

Fans may also follow Clemson volleyball action on clemsontigers.com.

This weekend’s schedule: Friday, Sept.2 5:00 PM – Clemson vs. Connecticut 7:30 PM – Kentucky vs. Western Carolina Saturday, Sept. 3 9:30 AM – Kentucky vs. Connecticut 12:00 PM – Clemson vs. Western Carolina 2:30 PM – Connecticut vs. Western Carolina 5:00 PM – Clemson vs. Kentucky