Clemson Volleyball Takes Another Point in the Palmetto Series
COLUMBIA, S.C. – For the first time since 1994, Clemson (3-0) claimed a victory against South Carolina (2-1) in Columbia with a five-set (14-25, 25-22, 25-17, 23-25, 15-11) win on Sunday afternoon. The win secured another point for Clemson in the Palmetto Series presented by the South Carolina Education Lottery. Sunday’s match was the second five-set showdown between the two programs in the last four years, and Clemson has come out on top in both.
Junior Kennedy Wagner led the program offensively with a career-high 19 kills to surpass her previous best of 17 set in 2023. Senior Mia Moore also hit a career-high with 12 kills, while Mia McGrath provided 14.5 points and a double-double with 12 kills and 12 digs. Defensively, three Tigers finished with double-digit digs, including McKenna Gildon recording a career-high 16.
The Gamecocks controlled the opening set after they jumped out to a 9-2 advantage. Junior Kate Hansen tried to spark the Tigers’ offense with a couple kills alongside Moore, McGrath and Wagner but nothing stuck as South Carolina took the first frame. The Tigers adjusted during the set break to be able to flip the script and jump out to a lead after getting middle hitters Nil Okur and Hansen good looks. Clemson maintained a four-point spread for the majority of the set that South Carolina trimmed to two, but Moore pushed the Tigers to even the match at a set each with two crucial kills.
Clemson jumped out to another early advantage in the third set after the Tigers strung together a seven-point scoring run with points from Katherine Sandt, Okur and Wagner. McGrath, Moore and Claire Luoma added to the points, and Clemson took advantage of attack errors by the Gamecocks to extend the lead. Moore and Wagner helped the Tigers to a .400 hitting percentage in the fourth set, and it was a combined block from Hansen and McGrath that sealed the 2-1 set advantage. In the fourth, both sides went on their respective scoring runs, but neither side took more than a three-point advantage before the other side answered. Both sides traded points after reaching 20, but the Gamecocks took set four to force a fifth.
Clemson controlled the fifth set from the first serve and jumped out to an early 6-2 lead that forced South Carolina to call timeout. A kill by Wagner had the two programs switching sides with Clemson ahead 8-3. South Carolina cut the advantage down to 8-6, but the Tigers fended the Gamecocks off by outscoring them 7-5. The win was sealed by a South Carolina service error to give Clemson the 3-2 match win.
Tiger Leaders/Highlights:
- Points: Kennedy Wagner (19.5)
- Kills: Wagner (19 – .286 hitting percentage)
- Digs: McKenna Gildon (16)
- Assists: Katherine Sandt (47)
- Blocks: Kate Hansen (5)
- Aces: Mia McGrath, Claire Luoma & Sandt (1)
- First Tiger win in Columbia since Nov. 8, 1994 when the Tigers swept the Gamecocks
- The Tigers are 3-0 to open the season for the first time since 2022
- Luoma surpassed 100 career digs with 10 in the match
- McGrath surpassed 800 career points with 14.5 points
Up Next
The Tigers will open their month-long home stand in Jervey Gym on Thursday, Sept. 4 at 6 p.m. in the first of two matches against NC A&T. The back-to-back matchup against the Aggies continues on Friday, Sept. 5 when the Clemson Volleyball program welcomes alumni back home for a 6 p.m. game.
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