Clemson To Face North Carolina And N.C. State In Final Weekend Home Series

Nov. 10, 2005

CLEMSON, SC – The Tiger volleyball team will host its final weekend series against North Carolina and N.C. State this Friday and Saturday. Clemson will face the Tar Heels of North Carolina at 7:00 PM on Friday, Nov. 11, and the Tigers and Wolfpack will take to the court at 4:30 PM on Saturday.

Brittany Ross has come on as of late for the Clemson team, bringing her hitting percentage up to a .253 mark with 371 kills for the season. Jeannette Abbott still leads the team with 387 kills for a 4.40 kill per game average. The Tigers continue to out-block their opponents as they have posted 243 total team blocks, compared to just 191 by the opposition. Freshman Danielle Hepburn leads the charge for Clemson as she has totaled 107 total blocks on the season. She needs just seven more block assists to hit triple digits for the statistic. Libero Anna Vallinch recorded her 1000th career defensive save against Florida State on Friday, Nov. 4. She now has 407 this season to equal 1,027 in her two seasons at Clemson.

Clemson fell earlier in the season to the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, NC by a score of 3-0. The win increased North Carolina’s lead in the series score to 45-12, including a 13-4 margin in matches played on the Tigers’ home court. Clemson’s last win over the Tar Heels at Jervey Gym was during the 1997 season. North Carolina won last season’s contest, 3-2, in Clemson, SC.

The Tar Heels of North Carolina have won six straight matches and 11 of their last 12 en route to a 19-7 overall record. UNC has also posted a 14-2 mark against ACC opponents, which ranks them second in the conference. The Tar Heels have six players with triple-figure kill totals, led by Camilla Ihenetu’s 364. Dani Nyenhuis is a close second with 323. At the net, Christie Clark and Amy Beaver have tallied 223 total blocks between them, helping North Carolina to a 2.61 block per game average. Taylor Rayfield has a team-high 517 defensive saves, while McKenzie Byrd leads the squad with 863 set assists.

The Tigers defeated N.C. State, 3-2, on Oct. 14 to extend their winning streak over the Wolfpack to 16 matches. Clemson now holds a 27-17 advantage in the series score, including a 14-4 record in matches played on its home court. The Tigers won the 2004 match at Jervey Gym by a score of 3-0.

The N.C. State Wolfpack enters this weekend’s action with a 7-17 overall record and a 1-15 mark in conference play. The Wolfpack is lead by senior Stefani Eddins who boasts a league-high .403 hitting percentage. Eddins has recorded 296 kills against just 56 errors this season, and she also leads the team in blocking with a 1.36 block per game average. Eddins has posted 26 solo blocks to go along with 84 block assists.

Livestats will be available by accessing www.clemsontigers.com.