BLACKSBURG – Heading into its final match of the regular season, the Virginia Tech volleyball team will play host to Clemson on Wednesday at 3 p.m. ET at Carilion Clinic Court at Cassell Coliseum.
The Hokies (14-15, 5-12 ACC) will take on the Tigers (15-14, 6-10 ACC) for the second time this fall, falling in the first contest, 3-0, in Clemson, South Carolina on Oct. 7. Clemson leads the all-time series 18-12, but Tech has won four of the last five matches.
The match will be broadcast on ACC Network Extra and is available to watch via the WatchESPN app. Jon Laaser and Jake Lawrence will be on the call.
WEEKEND SCHEDULE
Wed. | 3 p.m. ET vs. Clemson | Stats | Broadcast
Playing on the road for the final time, Tech made a road swing to the Northeast and was defeated by Boston College 3-2 and Syracuse 3-0.
Despite the loss to the Eagles (14-14, 4-12 ACC), numerous highs were set as Jaila Tolbert tied her career-high 22 kills, Kaity Smith posted a season-high 21 kills and Rhegan Mitchell owned a season-high 58 assists.
Ester Talamazzi finished with 11 kills, 17 digs and a career-high five blocks and Peyton Yelich turned in a career-high four blocks.
On Sunday, the Hokies were defeated by Syracuse (17-7, 13-3 ACC) 3-0, wrapping up their final road match. Smith had a team-high 10 kills, extending her streak of double-digit kills to six.
Angel Robinson played her best match yet, totaling a career-high eight kills on a .615 hitting percentage, marking the first time a Hokie has hit over .600 since Sept. 11 (Tolbert).
The Hokies are No. 5 in the ACC for service aces per set with 1.31 and are No. 5 in opponent kills with a 12.22 mark. Smith owns the fifth-best average for kills per set (3.55) in the league, as well as the sixth-best points per set mark (3.92).
FAN INFO
Before the match, Tolbert will be honored for her racking up her 1,000th kill last Friday against Boston College in the third set. She became the 16th player in school history to accomplish the feat.
Virginia Tech Athletics is implementing a clear-bag policy at all of its games this academic year. The policy will allow for a better and quicker experience at gates and is also a public safety measure that is being successfully implemented at other large venues including fellow ACC venues. For more info, click here.
SCOUTING CLEMSON
• Clemson (15-14, 6-10 ACC) is entering this weekend's matchup after falling 3-1 to Wake Forest at home last Friday, winning the first set then losing the next three. The matchup with Tech will not be Clemson's final bout, as it takes on Boston College at home on Friday.
• The Tigers went 9-4 in non-league action for a .692 winning percentage, improving upon last season's nonconference record of 5-7. In 2018, Clemson earned a Power Five nonconference win, taking down Mississippi State (5-24, 1-15 SEC) in five sets.
• Head Coach Michaela Franklin enters her second season year in Clemson, being in the same coaching class as Tech coach Jill Wilson. Franklin led the Tigers to a 7-25 (.219) record her first year after being the associate head coach at Iowa.
• Freshman Gabby Easton owns the second-best assists per set mark in the ACC with 10.82, while outside hitter Alyssa Deloney ranks seventh in the conference and first among non-middle blockers in hitting percentage with .350.
