Wofford College Athletics

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Wofford College volleyball team took down Clemson University 3-1 on Sunday afternoon at Jerry Richardson Indoor Stadium. The Terriers earn their first victory over Clemson in program history and just the sixth win over a power conference opponent. Wofford improves to 6-3 while Clemson falls to 5-4.
 
"Just really proud of the girls," said head coach Lynze Roos. "Seeing us put everything together and walk out of here with a win is really important to where we are at now. It was good to see our team produce and keep our composure when the sets got close."
 
Chloe Smith led the team with 17 kills on a .286 hitting percentage to go along with 14 digs for her fourth double-double of the season. Bradley Brown followed behind with 12 kills on a .500 hitting percentage. Natalie Arnold had nine kills. Taylor Pecht dished out 22 assists while Maddy Frazier had 21 assists. Frazier had a season-high five aces along with three from Taylor Pecht.
 
"We had a pretty rough weekend, and I think this was the perfect way to bounce back," said Chloe Smith. "We wanted wins in the last two games really bad. Knowing what to do today and knowing when to push today was perfect."
 
Leading the way defensively was Laney Klika with 24 digs. Smith added 14 digs while Ella Coleman had 12. Chloe Smith and Charlotte Bell posted four blocks apiece. Avery White and Bradley Brown had three each.
 
Wofford totaled 54 kills on a .228 hitting percentage while Clemson finished the day with a .102 hitting percentage on 43 kills. Both teams finished the day with 10 aces. Wofford gained the edge at the net, totaling 11 blocks to Clemson's eight.
 
Wofford jumped out to a quick 4-2 lead, but Clemson scored four-straight points to take a 6-4 advantage. With the set tied 9-all, Wofford scored six unanswered points to give the team a 15-9 lead. Taylor Mendez, Natalie Arnold and Charlotte Bell closed out the run with kills. Clemson cut the deficit to three points, 18-15, but a 7-2 run from the Terriers sealed a 25-17 victory in set one.
 
Clemson gained a 4-2 lead to start the second set, but Wofford rattled off a 6-1 run to take a 9-6 lead over the Tigers. Wofford held a comfortable lead from there as the team led 15-10 heading into the media timeout. Clemson responded out of the stoppage, scoring five-straight points to tie the set at 15-all. Wofford regained a 19-17 lead after that, but Clemson had another five points unanswered, giving the Tigers a 22-19 lead. Trailing 23-20, Wofford tallied a 6-1 run to give the team a 26-24 set two win. A pair of kills from Chloe Smith along with an ace from Taylor Pecht highlighted the run.
 
The Terriers held a 6-4 advantage to start three. The team turned that into a 10-6 lead shortly after that, but Clemson scored four-straight points to tie the match at 10-10. The two teams traded points from there until another 6-1 Wofford run put the team up 19-15. Despite the Terriers leading 22-18, Clemson scored seven of the next eight points to claim set three 25-23.
 
Wofford jumped out a quick 7-2 lead in the fourth stanza after back-to-back aces from Maddy Frazier. Wofford eventually went up 9-4 after a kill from Taylor Mendez. After leading 15-12 at the media timeout, Clemson scored three-straight points to tie the set at 15-15. That was part of a 6-1 Tiger run as Clemson went up 18-16. Wofford responded with three points, however, regaining a 19-18 advantage. With the set tied at 21-all a few rallies later, Wofford scored four-straight points to win the final set 25-21 and the match 3-1.
 
The Terriers will be back in action on Thursday, September 17, for a 6:00 p.m. first serve at High Point University. The team will follow that up with a match against Wake Forest on Friday, September 18, at 4:00 p.m.