BOONE, N.C. – Senior Devan Taylor, junior Mia McGrath and sophomore Audrey Armbruster set career-highs as Clemson defeated Wofford (5-4) in five sets (23-25, 25-18, 22-25, 25-16, 15-8) on Friday afternoon at the Black & Gold Invitational. After dropping the first and third sets, the Tigers stormed back to a commanding victory in the fifth to seal the match victory and move to 5-3 on the year.
Taylor dominated the match with 33 total digs over the five sets, to surpass her previous career-high of 29 that was set during the 2022 season against Virginia Tech. McGrath led the team with 23 kills which moved past her previous high of 17 that was set in 2022 vs. Florida State. Audrey Armbruster rounded out the career marks with 49 sets, which surpassed the 38 mark set in 2023 against UTEP.
As a team, the Tigers also finished with 11 aces for the most aces in a single match by the program since November 4, 2022, when Clemson tallied 14 against Florida State. The 11 aces came from McGrath, Neea-Maria Joki and McKenna Gildon each tallying three, and Taylor and Armbruster rounding out the group with one each. Additional stat highlights include Joki clocking 14 kills, while Armbruster and McGrath clocked double-doubles with 14 and 13 digs, respectively. Azyah Dailey also supplied two solo blocks, with Indigo Young, Kate Hansen and Joki adding one each.
McGrath and Armbruster kicked things off for the Tigers in the opening set by leading the team with five kills and 11 assists, respectively. McGrath and Hansen also added aces, while Taylor had a team-high seven digs in the opening set. Despite Clemson tying things late, Clemson dropped the opening set, 25-23.
The Tigers rebounded in the second by securing a 25-18 set win to even the score at 1-1 heading to the third. Clemson’s offense was powered by Dailey and Joki combining for nine kills, while both Dailey and Young added solo blocks. Armbruster and Taylor continued to lead Clemson in assists (23) and digs (15), respectively.
Clemson added five aces in the third set behind three-consecutive aces from Gildon, and one from both Armbruster and Joki. Both Joki (10) and McGrath (13) became the first Tigers to reach double-digit kills, while Taylor had 21 digs following the third set. The Tigers and Terriers exchanged the lead three times, while being tied six, that ultimately led to Wofford taking set three, 25-22.
The Tigers took advantage of the fourth set early by jumping out to a 9-3 lead following block assists from Young and Joki and an ace from McGrath. Clemson continued to push the tempo as Kennedy Wagner joined in for a block assist with Young, and Joki added another kill and her third ace of the match to make it 16-9. McGrath rounded out the set with a couple kills to force a fifth.
The Tigers refused to slow down in the fifth, jumping out to a 3-1 lead. Following blocks from Joki and Hansen, the two teams switched sides with Clemson leading 8-2. Hansen added another block, while McGrath added an ace and Wagner contributed a kill. McGrath once again rounded out the match with her 23rd kill to secure the set, 15-8, and the match victory.
Up Next
Clemson concludes both the Black & Gold Invitational and its season-opening road stretch on Saturday, Sept. 14 at 1 p.m. against Winthrop in Boone, N.C. on ESPN+.
