CLEMSON, S.C. – Sophomore Kaity Smith posted a team-high 13 kills and team-best eight digs, but it was not enough against Clemson as the Virginia Tech volleyball team fell 3-0 on Sunday afternoon at Jervey Gym.
The Kentucky native has now had five matches in a row with double-digit kills for the Hokies (12-6, 3-3 ACC), dating back to Sept. 23. The Tigers (10-9, 1-5 ACC) were led by Brooke Bailey, who produced a team-high 12 kills on a .526 hitting percentage.
Knotted at 7-7 to begin the match, the Tigers would go on a 4-1 run to go up 11-8. Tech came back and cut it to 11-10, but Clemson would respond with a run of their own going up 17-13. The Hokies would cut it to three at 20-17, however, the Tigers would score five of the next six points to win it, 25-18.
Clemson got out to a 7-1 lead in the second frame, causing a Tech timeout. Out of the break, the Hokies would get a combination block by setter Rhegan Mitchell and middle blocker Marisa Cerchio and then a kill by Smith, but the Tigers kept their momentum and would go up 16-5, forcing another Hokie timeout. Tech scored four of the next five points following the break in action, but the Tigers finished strong and won 25-13.
Right-side hitter Jaila Tolbert put down a kill to cut the deficit to two, 11-9, but Clemson went on a 4-1 run to extend its lead to 15-10. Tech would start chipping away behind a couple kills from freshman Tessa Wyner, the first and second of her career, and trimmed the lead to two at 24-22, causing a Tiger timeout. But Clemson scored the next point to win the final stanza, 25-22.
NOTES
- Smith hit .346, which is her highest hitting percentage mark in an ACC match. Her previous high was .324 against Louisville on Nov. 12, 2017.
- Tolbert finished tied for the second-most kills for the Hokies, racking up seven with two blocks. The Minnesota native now has had at least one block in a match in seven consecutive matches, dating back to Sept. 16.
- Cerchio also had seven kills and stopped a team-high three blocks. The sophomore has been feeling it at the net in her last five matches, totaling 21 since Sept. 23.
- Mitchell distributed 29 assists and had three digs, two blocks and a kill. The redshirt senior has had one or more kills in seven straight matches.
- Wyner turned in her first-ever kill at the college level in the third set and went on to put down two more to finish with three kills on the day. The outside hitter also hit .400 and scooped up three digs, both career highs as well.
QUOTING HEAD COACH JILL WILSON
On the key reasons for Clemson having success:
"I think they were a little more mentally prepared," Tech coach Jill Wilson said. "We did not do a very good job of handling the game plan and staying mentally tough when they hit some nice shots. I was very disappointed in our resiliency as a team and how we executed the game plan."
On Kaity Smith turning in a solid performance:
"She hit some nice shots today," Wilson said. "Unfortunately, we did not have enough offense and defense to really make a difference. Clemson played extremely well. We just didn't have enough people that were really engaged in what we needed to do."
On what the team will work on in practice this week leading up to No. 25 Louisville and Notre Dame:
"I think the biggest thing we need to learn is how to play both Friday and Sunday," Wilson said. "We've put together two strong performances, but just one a weekend and not two. So, we're going to focus on how we prepare better for both matches. Our coaching staff will take a look at how we're preparing them and ask them to take a little bit more ownership as well."
WHAT IS NEXT
- The Hokies will hit the road for the second straight weekend, heading to No. 25 Louisville (13-4, 6-0) on Friday and Notre Dame (10-6, 4-2) on Sunday. Both matches will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra.
