CLEMSON, S.C. – The Clemson Tigers dropped a three-set match (16-25, 10-25, 16-25) to the No. 23 SMU Mustangs on Sunday afternoon inside Jervey Gym. Following the loss, Clemson falls to 8-5 (0-2 ACC), while SMU improves to 10-3 (2-0 ACC).
Clemson pin attacker Azyah Dailey led the Tigers with six kills and one solo block for seven points. Freshman Neea-Maria Joki followed with six points behind four kills, a solo block and two block assists. Senior libero Devan Taylor finished with eight digs, and freshman Addi Rains added seven, while redshirt freshman Katherine Sandt clocked a team-high 12 assists.
Middle blockers Kate Hansen and Indigo Young, along with Dailey got the Tigers on the board in the opening set with kills that led to the two teams being tied at 9-all. The Mustangs went on a six-point run that stretched to a gap Clemson wasn’t able to close despite Kennedy Wagner clocking two crucial kills late in the set to lead to SMU taking the opening set.
In the second set, SMU tallied five aces within the first 10 points with a slew of kills to match. The Tigers were able to respond as setter Audrey Armbruster snuck a kill over the net on the second touch for a point. Hansen and Joki combined for a block on the next rally before Joki came up with a solo block to put Clemson on a 3-0 rally. Wagner and Dailey continued to add to their kill counts, but SMU pulled away to take the second set.
Sophomore Kate Simington added a new look for the Tigers in the third set and notched two early kills alongside Joki to keep pace with the Mustangs early. SMU went on to string together two scoring runs of three points each to jump ahead. Mia McGrath and Joki broke up those runs with kills, while Dailey and McGrath added a solo block each to keep Clemson in the match. Hansen added the Tigers’ lone ace of the match before the Mustangs closed out the set and match.
Up Next
The Tigers hit the road next week traveling to No. 5 Louisville on Friday, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. on ACCNX, before concluding the weekend on Sunday, Oct. 6 at Notre Dame. First serve against the Fighting Irish is scheduled for 1 p.m. on ACCNX.