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No. 16 Jackets Tame Tigers

CLEMSON, S.C. – No. 16 Georgia Tech volleyball throttled Clemson for a conference road sweep (25-17, 25-23, 25-19) on Wednesday night in Clemson, S.C., earning its eighth sweep on the year and third in ACC play. Senior setter Matti McKissock bolstered her Yellow Jacket legacy on the night as her 38 assists moved her into sole possession of 6th in program history in career assists with 3,456 to date.

Tech (14-3, 5-2 ACC) bested Clemson (11-7, 3-4 ACC) nearly across the board on the night, leading the Tigers in kills (51-34), hitting percentage (.375-.242), assists (46-34) and digs (47-34).

Coming off of a weekend that earned her ACC Player of the Week, junior outside hitter Julia Bergmann once again spearheaded the Jacket attack. The heavy hitter tallied 14 kills at a .379 clip, also adding eight digs and a solo block on the defensive end. Junior middle blocker Erin Moss and freshman outside hitter Bianca Bertolino reinforced Bergmann offensively as Moss tied her season high of 11 kills while Bertolino picked up her seventh double double of the year behind 10 kills as well as 10 digs. Moss and Bertolino both maintained a hitting percentage over .400 as Moss finished at .450 while Bertolino averaged .444 on the day. Junior libero Paola Pimentel was Tech’s biggest defensive presence, finishing with 17 digs.

The Yellow Jackets are now a perfect 7-0 in true road matches and 5-0 away from The Flats in ACC play. Georgia Tech has won 46 of its last 55 matches dating back to 2019.

How it Happened

Georgia Tech got going early in the first set, stringing together a five-point run to lead 5-1 in the early stages. Clemson mounted a quick comeback to even the set at 8 all, but the Jackets responded with six consecutive points to catapult back in front, 14-8. The gap proved to be too much for the Tigers as they were never able to cut the deficit down by more than four points, resulting in Tech cruising on to a 25-17 first set win with a kill from senior middle blocker Breland Morrissette clinching the set.

The Yellow Jackets got off to a similar start in set two, using a three-point run to jump ahead, 6-2. Clemson once again battled back to even the tally at 7 apiece, but the Tigers managed to hang around through the set. For the remainder of the set, the two sides were separated by no more the three points as the match was tied eight more times, including four lead changes up to a three-point Tech run that put the Jackets up 21-18. Clemson once again knotted things up at 23 all, but senior outside hitter Mariana Brambilla took care of the Tigers with the final two kills of the set for a 25-23 second set win for the Jackets.

Tech used a streak of runs to take the final set for the sweep, beginning with a four-point run to initially lead, 4-1. After Clemson knotted things up, the Jackets pulled away again with another four straight points up to a 15-9 lead. Tech’s knockout punch came in the form of a six-point run that put the match out of reach for the home team, a 23-14 Jacket advantage. The Tigers refused to back down as they picked up four kills while Tech was at match point, but a service error to follow granted the Jackets a 25-19 set win and match sweep.

Up Next

Georgia Tech will return home to host Duke (11-6, 2-4 ACC) for a Sunday contest at 2 p.m. in O’Keefe Gymnasium. The match will be televised on the ACC’s Regional Sports Network, Bally Sports South in Atlanta.

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Alexander-Tharpe Fund

The Alexander-Tharpe Fund is the fundraising arm of Georgia Tech athletics, providing scholarship, operations and facilities support for Georgia Tech’s 400-plus student-athletes. Be a part of developing Georgia Tech’s Everyday Champions and helping the Yellow Jackets compete for championships at the highest levels of college athletics by supporting the Annual Athletic Scholarship Fund, which directly provides scholarships for Georgia Tech student-athletes. To learn more about supporting the Yellow Jackets, visit atfund.org.   

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