Clemson Downs College of Charleston, 3-1, to Conclude Big Orange Bash

Aug. 29, 2009

CLEMSON, SC (ClemsonTigers.com) – The Clemson Volleyball team picked up its second win of the day on Saturday, using strong defense to power past College of Charleston, 3-1 (24-26, 25-19, 25-17, 25-20), in front of 1007 fans at Jervey Gymnasium. The Tigers finished the Big Orange Bash with a 2-1 mark to place second overall. Didem Ege were named to the All-Tournament Team.

“I was really happy to see the way that we responded after last night’s loss,” said Head Coach Jolene Jordan Hoover. “I was impressed that we were able to come back today and beat a tough Winthrop team in three sets, and come in tonight and win against the College of Charleston. I thought we were able to pass well and distribute the ball, giving us a balanced attack.”

Lia Proctor paced the Tigers with 22 kills and Brittany Fennell had 10 kills in 19 attempts with only one error for a .474 mark.

Clemson’s defense was the story, however, registering 16 blocks in the match and holding the Cougars to a .100 hitting mark on the day. The Tigers recorded 39 total blocks in the tournament, an average of 3.25 per set. Freshman Alexa Rand had 20 total blocks in her first three matches to pace the Tigers.

Didem Ege upped her consecutive double-digit digs streak to 48 matches with 16, while Kelsey Murphy led the tournament in assists/set with a 10.67 figure. Ege’s 57 digs paced the tournament and her 4.75 per set average was remarkable given the blocking success of the front line. Murphy also had success defensively with 32 digs (2.67 per set) and ten total blocks. She guided the Tigers to a .248 hitting percentage, highest of the tournament. Clemson had 162 to only 57 errors in 423 chances.

College of Charleston took the first set, 26-24, as they held the Tigers to a .070 hitting mark. The Tigers committed 10 errors, and looked a bit sluggish after the morning’s 3-0 win over Winthrop. The Cougars used a balanced attack in the set and we able to cause problems at the net, notching three blocks. The second set went to the Tigers, 25-19, who recorded seven total blocks, including four by Lia Proctor also had 5 kills in the set. The defense held the Cougars to a -.057 hitting mark, as their errors outweighed their kills, 11 to nine.

Clemson grabbed the match in the third set, as Murphy guided the Tigers to a .481 hitting mark. Fennell had five kills in five attempts, and Proctor added five of her own, and Natalie Patzin chipped in with four.

Proctor took over the deciding set, racking up nine kills in 14 attempts with no errors, and added an ace for good measure. Clemson hit .353 for the set as Murphy played a virtually flawless set.

The University of South Carolina emerged form the three day tournament 3-0 to win the Bash. Clemson placed second with a 2-1 mark. College of Charleston was 1-2, and Winthrop was 0-3 in the event. South Carolina’s Ivana Kujundzic took home Tourament MVP honors, leading the tournament in total kills, aces, and ranking fourth in digs/set.

Clemson will return to action next week as they travel to Chicago, Ill. for the Depaul Challenge. The will square off with Loyola (IL) on Friday Sept. 4 before meeting Western Illinois and DePaul on Sept. 5.

Big Orange Bash

Champion: University of South Carolina (3-0)

All-Tournament Team:

South Carolina Sarah Cline

South Carolina Hannah Lawing

Winthrop Kelley Taylor

Clemson Didem Ege

Clemson Kelsey Murphy

College of Charleston Emily Sawin

MVP:

South Carolina Ivana Kujundzic