Auburn (RV) Sweeps Clemson for Rick Nold’s 100th Career Victory

MATCH NOTES

• Auburn (RV) def. Clemson 3-0 (25-19, 25-18, 25-20)
• Auburn moves to 7-1; Clemson falls to 4-5
• War Eagle Invite, Auburn, Alabama
• Attendance: 345
• Box Score

The Auburn Tigers concluded their host invitational with a straight-set victory over Clemson, which also marked head coach Rick Nold’s 100th career victory with the program.

Auburn was led by junior outside Brenna McIlroy, who notched 14 kills. Sophomore middle blocker Gwyn Jones added 13 while senior setter Alexa Filley had a double-double with 36 assists and 14 digs.

For Clemson, junior setter Caroline Pearson recorded 34 assists while sophomore outside and Illinois transfer Kaylin Korte paced the visitors’ offensive attack with 12 kills.

Set one saw extended scoring runs on both sides of the net, with Auburn notching 10 straight points to build a 20-7 advantage before Clemson roared back to close within two at 20-18. Auburn, however, was able to hold off the late-charging visitors to take the set 25-19.

In the second, both teams remained close until a kill followed by a solo block by Gwyn Jones gave Auburn a 22-17 advantage and the set ended with the home team on top 25-18. The third set was all Auburn early as the home team quickly built a 15-6 margin that held up after several late Clemson rallies fell short.

Auburn travels to Miami, Florida next weekend to play Miami, Florida International and James Madison. Clemson will face Texas Tech, Georgia Southern and South Carolina as they host the Clemson Challenge.

HUGE congrats to @CoachRickNold! Tonight’s W over Clemson was his 100th at #Auburn! #WarEagle! pic.twitter.com/snXvxpRPwv

— Auburn Volleyball (@AuburnVB) September 10, 2017

War Eagle Invite All-Tournament Team

• Alexa Filley (Auburn)
• Brenna McIlroy (Auburn)
• Gwyn Jones (Auburn)
• Shaina White (Auburn)
• Kelley Hartman (South Alabama)
• Abby Baker (South Alabama)
• Kaylin Korte (Clemson)

PRESS RELEASES

Courtesy: Auburn Athletics

AUBURN WINS WAR EAGLE INVITE WITH 3-0 WIN OVER CLEMSON

AUBURN, Ala. – The Auburn volleyball team capped a successful weekend at the War Eagle Invitational with a 3-0 (25-19, 25-18, 25-20) sweep of Clemson Saturday night in Auburn Arena. With the victory, the Tigers improved to 7-1 on the season, marking the program’s best start since 2013.

In addition, the win was head coach Rick Nold’s 100th while at Auburn. He became the third-winningest coach in program history as well as the third to reach the 100-win mark on The Plains.

Four Tigers were named to the All-Tournament Team in senior Alexa Filley, junior Brenna McIlroy, and sophomores Gwyn Jones and Shaina White.

“I was really happy with the way we stayed aggressive tonight,” Nold said. “We thrived with the help of our emotional leaders like Brenna (McIlroy) and I’m really happy to come away with win.”

McIlroy and Jones led Auburn offensively, having 14 and 13 kills, respectively. S. White continued to be an efficient hitter for the squad, having eight kills on 12 attempts with just one error for a .583 hitting percentage. McIlroy’s .481 clip set a career-best for the Garland, Texas, product.

Defensively, Jones, S. White, and freshman Anna Stevenson had three blocks apiece.

All-tournament performer Kaylin Korte led Clemson (4-5) with 12 kills. Setter Caroline Pearson had 34 assists, while libero Madi Howell finished with 18 digs.

Auburn capitalized on early Clemson errors in the first to take a 7-3 lead. A pair of kills from Stevenson sent AU on a 10-point rally to go up 20-7. Clemson responded with a long run of its own and came within two, 20-18, but strong serving from Earl and a pair of AU blocks pushed the team to a 25-19 win.

Clemson took its first lead of the match at 4-3 in the second and held its advantage throughout the early parts of the set. Kills from Jones and Stevenson tied it up at 11 and CU errors pushed Auburn ahead at 14-12, forcing a Clemson timeout. A strike from Macy Reece and another by Jones made it 21-17 and AU forged on to win, 25-19.

The home Tigers held momentum in the final stanza and took a quick 6-1 advantage. A kill from Filley sent AU on a run to make it 15-6 and kills from McIlroy set the score at 20-13. Auburn held off a handful of Clemson rallies late and took the match, 25-20.

Auburn caps its non-conference slate on the road, traveling to Miami, Fla., for the UM/FIU Invitational. The Tigers are set to face James Madison and Florida International Friday, Sept. 15, on FIU’s campus. The team then concludes the weekend with a 10:30 a.m. CT match at Miami Saturday, Sept. 16.

Courtesy: Clemson Athletics

AUBURN, Ala. – The Clemson volleyball team fell to Auburn, 3-0 (19-25, 18-25, 20-25), Saturday’s nightcap of the Auburn Invitational. Sophomore outside hitter Kaylin Korte was named to the All-Tournament Team after leading the Tigers in kills per set (3.17) and tied for second on the team in digs per set (2.33) for the tournament. Clemson falls to 4-5 on the season and will look to regroup as they host the Clemson Challenge Sept. 15-16.

The Clemson Challenge commences this upcoming Friday and Saturday (Sept. 15-16) in Jervey Gym. Clemson hosts Texas Tech at 7 p.m. on Friday. Saturday, the Tigers take on Georgia Southern at 12:30 p.m. followed by South Carolina at 7 p.m.