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Tigers Fall to FSU in Four
3
Sep 27, 2025, 8:09 AM
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CLEMSON, S.C. - The Clemson Tigers welcomed 1,500 fans into Jervey Gym on Friday night to open ACC play against the Florida State Seminoles (7-3, 1-0 ACC). The Tigers (12-1, 0-1 ACC) fell in four (20-25, 13-25, 25-21, 20-25) to drop their first match of the 2025 season. The 1,500 fans tied the 2024 South Carolina match for the most fans during Head Coach Jackie Simpson Kirr’s tenure.
Junior Kennedy Wagner highlighted the Clemson lineup with a career-high 22 kills, while Katie Hurta notched a career-high four kills. Katherine Sandt finished with her sixth double-double with a team-high 47 assists and 12 digs, and McKenna Gildon powered the back row with 25 digs, one shy of her career-high, and surpassed 500 career digs.
Neither team was able to gain much of an advantage through the opening frame. The Seminoles pulled ahead by two heading into the media timeout, and the Tigers trimmed it down to a one-point lead that forced FSU to call a timeout with a 19-18 advantage. Coming out of the timeout, Florida State outscored Clemson, 6-2, to take the opening set.
The Seminoles controlled the second set from the jump. FSU took an early lead that Mia McGrath, Kate Hansen and Wagner cut into, but the Tigers were forced to use an early timeout down 11-8. Florida State maintained control for the remainder of the set to take a two-set lead into the third.
With a few lineup changes, the Tigers, who had zero blocks heading to the third, took the lead behind three-consecutive blocks by Hurta and Kate Simington. Simington and Gildon kept the momentum in Clemson’s favor with a kill and ace, respectively. The Tigers used the Seminoles’ errors against them in conjunction with kills from Wagner, McGrath and Hansen to continue to push the lead to five points. Wagner extended it to seven and forced a fourth by scoring the final four kills for the Tigers.
Both teams traded momentum swings as the Tigers jumped out to an early lead that required FSU to call timeout within the first 12 combined points of the set. The Seminoles used their momentum swing that had Clemson calling timeout trailing by five. McGrath, Wagner and Simington tallied kills, and Wagner added a solo block to break up FSU’s runs, but it wasn’t enough as the Seminoles took set four and the match.
Tiger Leaders/Highlights:
Points: Kennedy Wagner - 23 points
Kills: Kennedy Wagner - 22 kills
Digs: McKenna Gildon - 25 digs
Assists: Katherine Sandt - 47 assists
Blocks: Katie Hurta - 4.0 blocks
Aces: McKenna Gildon - 1 ace
Wagner hit .333 en route to a career-high 22 kills
Gildon surpassed 500 career digs
Gildon has now recorded consecutive efforts of 25 or more digs
Hurta finished with a career-high four blocks (all assisted)
Sandt continued her streak of 40+ assist matches, securing her sixth consecutive and eighth of the year
Sandt had her sixth double-double of the season and 14th time in her career
Up Next
Clemson concludes its month-long home stand on Sunday, September 28 at 1 p.m. against Miami (Fla.) on ACCNX. All home games inside Jervey Gym are free and open to the public.
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