Clemson Volleyball Wins Microtel Mississippi State Classic With 3-1 Victory Over The Bulldogs On Sunday

Aug. 26, 2007

STARKVILLE, MS – The Clemson volleyball team rolled to a 3-1 victory over the Bulldogs in the Microtel Mississippi State Classic to claim the tournament title with a perfect 3-0 record for the weekend. Tiger junior Danielle Hepburn was named the Most Valuable Player after tallying 39 kills with 20 total blocks. Setter Meghan Steiner were also named to the all-tournament team after impressive weekends.

Hepburn led both the Clemson offense and defense on Sunday with a team-best 17 kills, while hitting a .536 figure, and a career-high 11 block assists. Overall, the Tigers recorded 19 total team blocks, which ranks third in program history. Steiner, Jeannette Abbott and Lia Proctor also tallied double-digit kill totals, while Murphy recorded 42 assists.

Abbott recorded her 3,000th career attempt in Sunday’s match, moving the junior from Downers Grove, IL into 10 th place in school history with 3,036.

Jamie Joyner led Mississippi State (2-1) with 12 kills.

The Bulldogs claimed game one, 30-24, to take the 1-0 lead in the match. With the score tied at 12 apiece, Mississippi State tallied five straight points to pull away and the Tigers never caught up. Bulldogs hitters recorded an impressive .357 percentage in the frame, while Abbott led the Clemson offense with five kills.

The Tiger defense stepped up in the second game, totaling seven team blocks and holding Mississippi State to a negative hitting percentage. Hepburn posted five block assists and recorded six kills in the frame. Trailing 11-8, Clemson scored four straight points gain the one-point advantage and then went on a 6-1 run to widen the gap to 18-12. The Bulldogs cut the Tigers’ lead to two at 23-21, but Clemson scored seven of the final nine points for the 30-23 win.

The Tigers were then dominant in the third frame, winning by a 30-12 margin. Clemson again recorded seven team blocks in the game with Hepburn tallying five more assists and Murphy adding four. The Tigers took control early thanks to a nine-point run on Ege’s service and extended their lead to 17 points at 25-8. Steiner notched three of her four kills during the 22-25 stretch, while also posting Clemson’s 26 th on a kill. The Tigers closed out the game with four straight points to take the 2-1 lead in the match.

The fourth and final game was much like the third with the Clemson offense displaying its power and versatility. Four players had at least four kills in the frame, while the team hit an impressive .472 figure and Murphy tallied 16 assists. The Tigers allowed the Bulldogs to score just twice on their own serve and were in control the entire game en route to the 30-10 game victory.

After a 12-day hiatus, Clemson will open its home schedule on Friday, Sept. 7 against Florida A&M in the 17 th annual Big Orange Bash.

Game Scores: Game 1: 30-24 Game 2: 30-23 Game 3: 30-12 Game 4: 30-14