Clemson Volleyball To Take on 14-Seed Oregon in NCAA Volleyball Tournament

Dec. 3, 2009

CLEMSON, SC – The Clemson volleyball team will travel to Lexington, KY for the opening rounds of the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers (23-9, 13-7 ACC) will play 14-seed Oregon in the first round at 5:00 pm on Friday, Dec. 4.

The winner of this match will play the winner of the Kentucky-Michigan State match on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. in the second round.

Clemson and Oregon have met once in history in 1995, when the teams opened the season at the University Park Classic in Fort Collins, CO. The Ducks won, 3-0, with set scores 16-14, 15-8, 15-11.

This will be the Tigers’ eighth NCAA Appearance, all under Head Coach Jolene Jordan Hoover. The 2009 NCAA Tournament will be the third straight for Clemson, the second time in school history that the Tigers have been to three consecutive NCAA Tournaments. Before this season, Clemson has been to the NCAA Tournament in 1993, 1994, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2007, and 2008.

The Tigers have hosted in each of the past two seasons, and have advanced to the second round in each season.

A total of 64 teams comprise the field. There are 31 conferences with automatic qualifications and the remaining 33 slots were filled with at-large bids to complete the bracket.

Clemson has a 23-9 record overall this season and finished fourth in the ACC with a 13-7 record.

Lia Proctor led the Tigers with 3.80 kills/set, while Alexa Rand is ranked ninth nationally in hitting percentage at .398 and is second in the ACC with a 1.29 blocks/set average. Freshman Sandra Adeleye is second on the team in kills and blocks, and ranks among the top ACC players in kills, blocks, and hitting percentage.

Setter Didem Ege is the ACC’s all-time dig leader as well, with 2,291 in her career. She is 14th in NCAA history.

Clemson enters the tournament having won eight of the last 10 matches played this season. Tigers have won 20 or more matches for four consecutive seasons, a first under Hoover.

Oregon finished the season with a 19-9 record overall and a 9-9 mark in the Pac-10. The Ducks’ Sonja Newcombe leads the team in kills with 447 and averages 4.34 kills/set. Newcombe has been named Pac-10 player of the week four times this season. Neticia Enesi leads the team in hitting pct. with a .380 mark. Setter Nevena Djordjevic is ranked second in the nation in assists/set at 12.25.

Oregon is ranked 17th nationally according to the latest American Volleyball Coaches Association poll. Oregon is also seeded 14th overall in the tournament.