Redding, Klepetka Power Tech to Win at Clemson

Friday, September 15

Clemson, S.C.

6 PM

Texas Tech Athletics

9-2

Clemson

4-6

Texas Tech

Clemson

Redding, Klepetka Power Tech to Win at Clemson

September 15, 2017 | Women's Volleyball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

Red Raiders earn first non-conference win over a 'Power 5' school since 2012

CLEMSON, S.C. – Junior Sarah Redding blasted 16 kills on 21 attempts and senior Kate Klepetka served seven aces as Texas Tech volleyball surged to a 3-1 victory at Clemson Friday evening in Jervey Gym in its first match at the Clemson Challenge.

Redding's 16 kills was one away from matching her career high and her .619 clip was also just a few points shy of her best mark. Klepetka's seven aces set a school record for aces in a four set match and was one off from tying the overall school mark.

Tech recovered from Thursday's defeat at Georgia to grab the 22-25, 25-23, 25-13, 25-19 victory, improving to 9-2 on the year and capturing its third road win of the season. It also marks the first win over a power conference opponent for head coach Tony Graystone.

"We probably started to have some flashbacks to last night after that first set, but I give the team credit," head coach Tony Graystone said. "They really reeled themselves in and stayed on point with our game plan. We finished playing good volleyball tonight. We were clicking offensively, the serve game was going and you could just see that we were playing with a different set of confidence. That's all we are asking right now."

After the Tigers hit .368 in the opening frame, Tech held Clemson to a .131 attack percentage the remainder of the contest. Meanwhile, the Red Raiders displayed a consistent offense that hit .301 for the match.

"We changed our blocking scheme a little bit about halfway through," Graystone said. "We also changed our serving scheme. Offensively, we knew what we wanted to do, it was just a matter of getting the ball to a place where Missy could do it. As we went along, things started to open up for us and we just found the groove."

After dropping the first set, things opened up for Tech late in the second. Down 19-17, junior Katy Keenan and sophomore Chandler Atwood recorded kills to spark a 6-1 run that put Tech up 23-20. A Tiger error would give Tech the set at 25-23 to even the match at 1-1.

Tech raced out to a 10-4 lead in the third before Clemson closed the gap to three at 16-13. Klepetka would go on serve and close out the final nine points of the set with three of her seven aces in that stretch to put Tech ahead 2-1.

The Red Raiders took the lead in the fourth at 2-1 and never looked back, leading by as many as nine at 17-8 before closing out the win on a kill from Redding.

Sophomore Emily Hill joined Redding in double figures with 11 kills. Keenan added nine kills and freshman Allison White placed eight with both hitting at a .500 clip. Atwood also had eight kills and six digs on the night.

Klepetka posted a match-high 20 digs while junior Reyn Akiu compiled 14. Junior Missy Owens put up 42 assists with seven digs and three aces.

NEXT UP
Tech wraps up the Clemson Challenge and closes non-conference play with a Saturday doubleheader against South Carolina and Georgia Southern. The Red Raiders face the Gamecocks at 9 a.m. CT, before taking on the Eagles at 3 p.m. CT.

POST-GAME NOTES

Tech improves to 3-0 all-time against Clemson
The win moves Tech to 3-2 on the road in 2017
The win is Tech's second this year when trailing a match 0-1
The win is Graystone's first at Tech over a power conference foe
Graystone improves to 459-183 as a head coach and 19-23 at Texas Tech
This marked the first time this season someone other than Akiu has led the team in digs
Tech has hit .300 or better now in four of 11 matches this season
Redding's 16 kills are the second most in a single match by a Red Raider this season
Redding's .619 clip is the second highest by a Red Raider this season
Klepetka's seven aces set a school record for most in a four-set match and also marked a career high for the senior
Hill has been in double figures in eight of Tech's 11 matches
White recorded four blocks and two solo blocks, which marked her fourth match with two or more solo blocks this season.

For complete coverage of Texas Tech volleyball, follow the team on Twitter and Instagram at @TexasTechVB and find the Red Raiders on Facebook and YouTube. As always, stay tuned to www.TexasTech.com for all updates on Texas Tech.