Tigers Take Down Eagles, 3-1, to Win Fourth Straight

Nov. 6, 2011

CHESTNUT HILL, MA – The Clemson volleyball team earned a 3-1 (25-20, 25-15, 18-25, 25-23) win over Boston College at Power Gym in Chestnut Hill, MA. The Tigers (18-8, 10-5 ACC) used a late run in the fourth set to put away the Eagles (7-19, 3-12 ACC) and win their fourth straight match overall, and ninth in a row over the Eagles.

The Tigers hit .236, but held the Eagles to a .121 mark and had 13.0 blocks, including eight from Alexa Rand. The Tigers used 13 kills from Sandra Adeleye, 12 from Serenat Yaz, and 11 from Rand, and had five players with double-figure digs in the match, led by Hannah Brenner’s 17.

Brenner had her 11^th double-double of the season with 39 assists as well, and led the Tigers to .300 hitting in the first two sets. Yaz also added 12 digs for her second straight double-double, and her ninth of the season.

The win was number 396 of Jolene Jordan Hoover’s career at Clemson, and mathematically assures the Tigers of their sixth straight winning season. Clemson sits alone in fifth place after Sunday, and their RPI of 60^th should be helped with the two road wins.

The Tigers travel next to NC State and North Carolina in what could be a big weekend come NCAA Tournament selection time.

Clemson took the first set, 25-20, hitting .326, while holding the Eagles to a .173 hitting percentage. The Tigers posted 16 kills to just two errors, and Yaz, Adeleye, and Rand each had four kills. Clemson looked to pull away on a pair of occasions, but the Eagles hung tough, getting back to within one at 21-20, before Clemson reeled of the next four in a row to close the set on two kills and a block from Adeleye.

In the second set, the Tigers ran out to a 10-4 lead behind Alexa Rand, who had two kills and a solo block during the run. Clemson upped the lead to 12 at 17-5. Clemson went back to Rand twice more to take the second set, 25-15. The Tigers hit .351 for the set, while holding the Eagles to just seven kills and a .000 hitting mark in the frame. Rand had four blocks in the set overall, and she and Simmons each had five kills to lead the Tigers.

The third set was tight, with the Tigers taking a 7-4 lead, before BC came back to knot the match at 11-11 and take a 19-16 lead, and hold the lead until 20-17, when the teams traded service errors. The Eagles then stiffened up, garnering the next four points for the 25-18 set win. Clemson hit -.030 offensively, while along just a .129 mark from the Eagles. Six Eagle blocks were the equalizer in the set, with six different players in on the action.

Clemson took the fourth in dramatic fashion, emerging from deficits both early and late in the set to pull out the victory. Using momentum from the third set, the Eagles opened a 4-0 lead on the Tigers, before the Tigers stormed back to take a 10-8 lead, forcing Boston College’s second timeout, which turned out to be crucial in the end of the set. The Eagles took a 23-21 lead as Yaz’ attempt was blocked. However, a kill form Rand, and a Rand and Yaz block knotted the match at 23-23. An Eagle then hit her attempt wide, and Yaz scored a kill to close out the match, 25-23.

After next weekend in North Carolina, the Tigers return for two at home against Miami and Florida State before closing the season at Georgia Tech.