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2015-16 Year in Review

2015-16 Year in Review

Note: The following appears in the June issue of Orange: The Experience. For full access to all of the publication’s content, join IPTAY today by calling 864-656-2115.

BASEBALL• Clemson was the No. 7 national seed in the NCAA Tournament, the program’s 41st appearance (fifth most in history). The Tigers hosted a regional for the first time since 2011.• The Tigers advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the 29th time in the last 30 seasons.• The Tigers won the 2016 ACC Championship, the program’s first in 10 seasons. It was the Tigers’ 15th ACC title, including 10th tournament crown, most in conference history.• Clemson totaled 44 wins, most since the 2010 season when the Tigers advanced to the College World Series.• Mike Triller, who entered the ACC Tournament with just four hits on the season, was named MVP. Also earning All-Tournament honors were Pat Krall, Reed Rohlman and Clate Schmidt.• Seth Beer received the Dick Howser Trophy as national player-of-the-year, the first freshman in history to win the award.• Beer was named ACC Player-of-the-Year, the first freshman to win the honor. He was also named ACC Freshman-of-the-Year.• Beer broke Matthew LeCroy’s long-standing record for home runs by a freshman, finishing with 18.• Beer was named to USA Baseball’s Collegiate National Team.• Chris Okey was named First-Team All-ACC, while Krall earned second-team honors.• Okey was a semifinalist for the Johnny Bench Award. Beer was a semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy and Golden Spikes Award. Krall was a semifinalist for the Gregg Olson Award.• Okey, Beer and Chris Williams were named to the Clemson Regional All-Tournament team.• Krall became the first pitcher in Clemson history to lead the Tigers outright in both wins and saves.• Head coach Monte Lee was the midseason national coach-of-the-year according to D1Baseball, while Beer was midseason national player-of-the-year by D1Baseball and Perfect Game.

 

MEN’S BASKETBALL• Clemson won 10 ACC regular-season games for only the fifth time in school history. The Tigers tied the school record for ACC wins and produced a winning league record for the seventh time in the last 25 seasons.• The Tigers defeated four teams ranked in the top 25 of at least one major poll, only the fifth time a Clemson team has recorded at least four in a season. It was the most in a season since the 1996-97 squad posted five.• For the first time in program history, Clemson defeated three consecutive top-25 opponents. It happened over the course of a calendar week, as the Tigers beat Louisville, Duke and Miami (Fla.). The Tigers were the first ACC team since Wake Forest in 2003 with three straight wins over top-25 ranked opponents during the regular season.• The Tigers beat top-10 opponents Duke and Miami (Fla.) in consecutive games. A Clemson team had not achieved that since the 1975-76 season.• The 74-73 win at Syracuse was Clemson’s first overtime triumph on the road in ACC play since 1986-87, Horace Grant’s senior season. It was Clemson’s first-ever road win over a team that made the Final Four in the same season.• The Tigers led the ACC in blocks per game for the second time in three seasons.• Jaron Blossomgame was named First-Team All-ACC and most improved player by the league head coaches and media. He was third in the league in scoring (18.7).• Blossomgame was named Naismith Trophy Player-of-the-Week and ACC Player-of-the-Week after leading the Tigers to wins over top-10 Duke and Miami (Fla.) in the same week.• Landry Nnoko was named to the All-ACC Defensive Team after leading the league in blocks per game. He finished his career fifth in Clemson history with 212 blocked shots.

 

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL• Nelly Perry had a breakout sophomore season, averaging a team-high 14.3 points per game.• Perry posted one of the best scoring performances in recent history when she totaled a career-high 33 points against Boston College. She was the first Lady Tiger to score 30+ points in a game since the 2008-09 season.• Danielle Edwards, a freshman, was second on the team in scoring (8.7) while also leading the Tigers in assists and steals.• Edwards was fourth among ACC players with 2.3 steals per game.• Edwards was named to the All-ACC Academic Team.

 

CROSS COUNTRY• Grace Barnett earned her first career All-ACC accolade in the fall, finishing 10th overall in the women’s 6K competition in Tallahassee, Fla.• Barnett became the first All-ACC performer in women’s cross country at Clemson since Kim Ruck in 2009.• Barnett and senior James Dwyer were both named to the All-ACC Academic Team.• The men’s team won the gold division race at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational on October 2. James Quattlebaum was the individual runner-up to lead the Tigers.• Both teams were named All-Academic by the USTFCCCA.

 

WOMEN’S DIVING• Clemson tied a program record by sending six divers to the NCAA Zone B Championships in March.• Sarah Braun advanced to the platform finals at the NCAA Zone B Championships, finishing 14th.• Megan Helwagen advanced to the one-meter finals at the NCAA Zone B Championships, finishing 16th.• Danielle Reitsma became the first Tiger diver to reach the platform final at an ACC Championship meet, placing sixth. As a team, the Tigers finished seventh, their highest ACC finish since moving to a diving-only program in 2012.• Sarah Blank was ACC Diver-of-the-Week on February 9, only the third such honor in program history.• Braun was named to the All-ACC Academic Team.

 

FOOTBALL• Clemson finished No. 2 in the nation in the AP and USA Today polls. The rankings were the second-highest final rankings in school history and best since 1981, when Clemson won the national championship.• Clemson was No. 1 in the nation in each of the six College Football Playoff polls, the first school to be No. 1 in every playoff poll during the season.• Clemson ranked in the top 12 of every AP poll throughout the season, a first in school history.• Clemson became just the eighth FBS team with 14 wins in a season, the second ACC team to do it (Florida State, 2013).• The Tigers set a school record with a 17-game winning streak over two years and won 23 of 24 games. It was the longest winning streak in Clemson history.• Clemson had three wins over teams ranked in the top 10 of the final College Football Playoff poll, the only team in the nation that could make that claim.• Clemson posted an 8-0 ACC record, the first Clemson team with eight ACC wins in a year. Clemson then won the ACC championship with a 45-37 win over North Carolina.• When Clemson defeated No. 8 North Carolina to win the ACC title and No. 4 Oklahoma to win the Orange Bowl, it marked the first time Clemson had beaten top-10 teams in consecutive games.• Clemson seniors finished with a 46-8 record, the most wins in a four-year period by four games. The previous record was 42 wins by the class of 2014.• Seventeen different players were named First, Second or Third-Team All-ACC by the media and coaches, most in school history. That included 10 players who were named First-Team All-ACC by at least one of the organizations.• Quarterback Deshaun Watson finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting. He was the first Tiger to go to New York as a Heisman Trophy finalist, and his No. 3 finish was the best ever by a Tiger.• Watson was the MVP of the ACC, the MVP of the ACC Championship game, the MVP of the Orange Bowl and became the first Clemson quarterback to be a consensus All-American.• Watson won the Archie Griffin Award as the nation’s top player and was a finalist for the Maxwell Award.• Watson won the Davey O’Brien Award and the Manning Award as the nation’s top quarterback, the first Tiger to win either award.• Watson became the first player in FBS history to accumulate 4,000 passing yards passing and 1,000 rushing yards in a season. He also set the ACC record for total offense in a season.

 

MEN’S GOLF• Clemson finished in a tie for 14th at the NCAA Tournament, the program’s best finish since the 2008 season.• The Tigers won the ACC championship by 11 strokes over Wake Forest, the program’s first title since 2004.• Head coach Larry Penley was named ACC Coach-of-the-Year for the eighth time in his career, and in the process became the first Tiger coach to win the honor in four different decades.• Four members of the team were named All-ACC, Stephen Behr Jr., Austin Langdale, Bryson Nimmer and Carson Young.• Behr won the Byron Nelson Award and Elite 90 Award as a senior.• Nimmer became the third Tiger in history to be named ACC Freshman-of-the-Year.• All five of Clemson’s starters were named to the All-East Region team by the Ping Golf Coaches Association of America.• The Tigers won the Clemson Invitational, the first tournament hosted by the school since 1987.• The Tigers also won the Bandon Dunes Championship in Oregon, bringing Penley’s career total at season’s end to 68 tournament titles.

 

WOMEN’S GOLF• Clemson advanced to an NCAA Regional for the second time in three seasons, finishing eighth at Shoal Creek Country Club in Birmingham, Ala.• The Tigers placed sixth at the ACC Tournament, their best finish in three appearances.• Lauren Stephenson advanced to the NCAA National Tournament, finishing 58th.• Stephenson qualified for the U.S. Women’s Open after advancing from a two-round qualifier in May.• Stephenson was named to the all-region team by the Division I Women’s Golf Coaches Association.• Stephenson was co-medalist at the Yale Intercollegiate in October.• Alice Hewson was named ACC Freshman-of-the-Year.• Hewson was named national amateur-of-the-month by the Southern Golf Association and ACC Golfer-of-the-Month for September after winning her first two college tournaments.• Hewson was named to the Curtis Cup team for Great Britain and Ireland, helping her country to victory.

 

ROWING• Clemson finished sixth at the ACC Rowing Championship, held on Lake Hartwell for the seventh straight spring.• The Tigers won the 2016 Carolinas Cup over Duke and North Carolina in March.• Paula Wesselmann, a senior, earned her first career All-ACC honor after being named to the second team.• Anna Skochdopole was an ACC postgraduate scholarship recipient and was named to CoSIDA’s Academic All-District at-large team.• Twelve members of the team were named CRCA National Scholar-Athletes, second most among ACC schools.

 

MEN’S SOCCER• Clemson advanced to the national championship match after defeating Syracuse in the College Cup. It was the Tigers’ first appearance in the national final since 1987.• Head coach Mike Noonan was named national coach-of-the-year and regional coach-of-the-year by NSCAA.• The Tigers finished the season with a 17-3-4 record.• T.J. Casner, Paul Clowes, Kyle Fisher and Andrew Tarbell were all named to one of the three All-America teams.• Clowes and Fisher were both named semifinalists for the Hermann Trophy. They were joined by Tarbell on the College Cup All-Tournament team• Clowes was named ACC Midfielder-of-the-Year, while Fisher was ACC Defensive Player-of-the-Year.• Seven Tigers earned All-ACC honors, including first-team selections Casner, Clowes, Fisher and Tarbell. Iman Mafi and Oliver Shannon were third-team selections, while Patrick Bunk-Andersen was an All-ACC Freshman Team choice.• Tarbell signed a Generation adidas contract with Major League Soccer in January. He was one of four Tigers chosen in the MLS SuperDraft, going eighth overall in the first round. Fisher (14th), Clowes (32nd) and Casner (47th) were the other selections.• Clowes and Kyle Murphy were named to the All-ACC Tournament team.• Clowes and Tarbell were named to the NSCAA Scholar All-America team.

 

WOMEN’S SOCCER• Clemson advanced to the NCAA Tournament, where it fell in penalty kicks to Mississippi after a 1-1 tie.• The Tigers finished the season with a 14-4-1 record.• Clemson defeated No. 5 Notre Dame on Claire Wagner’s goal in the 102nd minute. Wagner’s performance drew ACC Offensive Player-of-the-Week and Capital One Cup Impact Performance-of-the-Week honors.• Head coach Eddie Radwanski was named NSCAA Southeast Region Coach-of-the-Year.• Junior goalkeeper Kailen Sheridan was named a third-team All-American by NSCAA.• Five Tigers earned All-ACC honors, including Sheridan, a first-team selection. Catrina Atanda was a second-team choice, while Abby Jones and Claire Wagner both earned third-team recognition. Sam Staab was an All-ACC Freshman Team selection.• Emily Byorth was named a CoSIDA Academic All-American, while Claire Wagner was named to the NSCAA Scholar All-Region team.• Sheridan won a gold medal as a member of the Canadian National Team during the Algarve Cup.

 

MEN’S TENNIS• John Boetsch was named head coach after the season.• Clemson finished the season with a 16-14 overall record.• One of Clemson’s top performances was a 4-3 win over No. 38 Notre Dame.• Alex Favrot, a freshman, was named Second-Team All-ACC.• Favrot claimed one of the top performances of the season when he knocked off the nation’s No. 37 singles player, Brett Clark of North Carolina.• Favrot was listed as one of the top-10 newcomers among men’s tennis by ITA.

 

WOMEN’S TENNIS• Clemson made its 15th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and 24th in program history.• Ayan Broomfield was named ITA Carolina Region Rookie-of-the-Year. She advanced to the NCAA Singles Championship along with senior Joana Eidukonyte.• Broomfield was named ACC Freshman-of-the-Year and was a Second-Team All-ACC selection along with Eidukonyte.• Eidukonyte and Fernanda Navarro upset the nation’s No. 1 doubles team from North Carolina on April 15.• Eidukonyte advanced to the singles final at the ITA Carolina Regional in October and was a finalist at the prestigious ITA National Indoor Championships in November.• Tristen Dewar was an ACC Postgraduate Scholarship recipient.

 

TRACK & FIELD• Clemson was runner-up both on the men’s and women’s side at the ACC Indoor Championships. It was the men’s team’s highest finish since the 2008 season.• Tevin Hester swept the ACC short sprints and was named Most Valuable Track Performer in both seasons.• Hester was the USTFCCCA Southeast Region Indoor and Outdoor Track Athlete-of-the-Year.• Hester was a first-team All-American in the indoor 60m and 200m, and outdoor 200m.• Hester concluded his career with seven career ACC Championships, tied for the third-most individual titles in school history.• Mimi Land concluded her career with a first ACC title in her final competition, winning the high jump. She also advanced to the NCAA Outdoor Championships in two events.• Anasterasia Terrell was an NCAA qualifier in the indoor and outdoor triple jump.• The women’s distance medley relay team earned All-America honors with an eighth-place indoor NCAA finish. The group also won an ACC title in the event for the first time since 1994.• Jeffrey Green won the ACC indoor men’s 400m title, while he anchored the 4x400m relay to victory as well.• Myasia Jacobs was the ACC women’s champion at 60m.

 

VOLLEYBALL• Keelie Arneson led the ACC with 576 digs, one of the top-35 figures in the nation. It was the fifth-highest total in program history.• Arneson finished her career with 2,707 career digs, fifth most in NCAA history.• Arneson’s top performance was a 31-dig effort in Clemson’s 3-1 win at Georgia Tech.• Arneson and teammate Leah Perri both participated at the USA Volleyball National Team tryouts in February.• Perri was named to the All-ACC Academic Team, her third career honor. Perri led the Tigers with 412 kills.

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