Deacs Sweep Tigers In Front Of ‘Dig Pink’ Crowd

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Amid a colorful atmosphere on Friday evening (Sept. 29), Wake Forest volleyball (11-3, 2-1) brought the energy in its annual 'Dig Pink' match. Facing the Clemson Tigers in a third Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) test of 2023, the Demon Deacons finished the night on a 3-0 sweep (26-24, 25-21, 25-16).

Friday evening marked Wake Forest's third straight win over Clemson, dating back to Sept. 2022.

A third double-double of the fall happened for Paige Crawford, as the sophomore hitter ended with a match-best 16 kills in addition to 11 digs.

Making her first season start, Kylie Adams tallied 36 assists to set a new career high. The senior setter chipped in five digs as well and tied her career best in aces (2).

Olivia Franke returned to the starting lineup and shined with eight kills on a .444 hitting percentage while making eight blocks. The latter was a season-best total for the middle blocker.

Freshman Olivia Fish posted nine kills (.350 attacking percentage) and five blocks.

Emma Farrell led all individuals in digs (16) while Kalani Whillock chipped in eight of her own.

Wake Forest moved to 5-1 overall at home.

How it Happened

The two Olivia's, Fish and Franke, teamed on a block to open the night.
- The former followed on a kill and Wake Forest soon sat at a 4-0 start in set one.
Two kills and an ace put Clemson in the scoring column.
Paige Crawford bounced three consecutive kills to keep her Deacs in front, 9-5.
A 5-0 push gave the Tigers a one-point lead, 10-9.
- Wake Forest took its first timeout.
  - Crawford and Emmy Ogogor made a big block immediately after the break.
Clemson stretched its advantage to 14-10 on four points scored in a row.
The Deacs then began to claw back, with Ogogor, Franke, and Ava Carney each putting down a kill.
After Clemson tacked two more punches, Carney and Franke made hits to cut things down to a one-point game, 16-15.
A Tiger attacking error briefly evened the score before Carney gave her squad the lead back on a lengthy rally.
- Wake Forest led 17-16 at the time.
A few traded possessions led to Clemson tying the board before going up one on an ace.
- The Deacons regrouped in a floor break, trailing 20-19.
  - Kalani Whillock then subbed in for Wake Forest.
Tied scores continued, as a Crawford hit and Clemson error created a 21-21 mark.
- Fish and Ogogor connected on a block next.
Clemson scored twice but committed an error to place Wake Forest at set point.
- A kill by the visitors knotted the margin at 24 all.
Kylie Adams snuck a kill and Crawford lined an ace to put away set one, 26-24, in Wake Forest's favor.
- Crawford led the opening frame with six kills on a .357 hitting clip.
Adams dished out an ace in the second possession of set two.
Crawford and Franke stayed aggressive offensively, and Ogogor made two nice plays from the right side to bump Wake Forest's advantage to 9-6.
- Clemson subsequently took a timeout, having suffered a few errors on attacks and serves.
Two Fish kills kept the Deacs ahead, 14-11.
- Ava Torrance served up an ace and Whillock floated from the middle on a soft touch.
  - Clemson huddled back up, down 18-13.
The Tigers tried to make something happen, capitalizing on six of their next eight tries.
- Sparked by Crawford and Ogogor, Wake Forest worked to keep its lead alive, 19-22.
Carney and Franke made a timely block for a 23-20 mark.
- Fish followed from the right, leaping into a kill for set point.
Franke punched a ball to end set two, 25-21.
- Adams had 24 assists through the first two periods.
Crawford reached a dozen kills early in set three and her team led 5-2.
- Franke made a nice solo rejection at the net immediately afterward.
Back-to-back successful attacks by Fish increased the Deacon lead to 8-4.
Clemson found some momentum, piecing a 4-1 boost to trail by only one, 9-8.
Franke and Emma Farrell's defense helped Wake Forest get back on track, skying back up 15-10.
The next six possessions went back and forth between the two sides.
Crawford first sent in an ace before netting a kill, and Carney landed a swing to make it 22-15 for the Deacs.
Lasting kills by Carney, Dior Charles and Crawford put the evening to rest, 25-16 in set three.
Wake Forest swept Clemson, 3-0.

Standout Stats

Paige Crawford recorded her third double-double of the year during Friday evening.
- Versus Clemson (9/29/23): 16 kills and 11 digs
- Versus App State (9/15/23): 20 kills and 17 digs
- Versus Grand Canyon (8/27/23): 10 kills and 11 digs
Kylie Adams reached a new career high in assists (36) while making her first season start for Wake Forest.
Wake Forest held the upper hand in several major statistical categories against Clemson:
- Points: 61.0 - 45.0
- Kills: 45 - 34
- Aces: 5 - 4
- Blocks: 11 - 7
- Assists: 41 - 28

Additional Notes

With the win, Wake Forest has won five of its last six matches.
Senior middle blocker Olivia Franke was honored pregame as this year's 2023 Heather Holmes Tenacity Award recipient.
- The award is presented by the program in memory of former head coach Heather Holmes to the player who best embodies Coach Holmes' tenacious and indomitable spirit, displaying characteristics such as persistence, grit, kindness, passion and leadership.
Paige Crawford has led Wake Forest in kills nine times through the first half of the fall.
Kylie Adams made her first season start for the contest.

From Coach Smart

"I felt we played with good energy from the jump tonight and did not let much affect us," said head coach Randi Smart. "We have a lot of respect for Clemson and their staff – it was an honor to bring both sides together for this year's 'Dig Pink' match for some competitive volleyball. Offensively, we did some things quite well and I loved the fight that Paige played with through the entire match. It was great to recognize Olivia Franke pregame – she has done so much for this program and we are proud to be able to coach her. Sunday will be a big opportunity for us. It is time to shift that focus."

Up Next

Wake Forest will face its first nationally-ranked opponent of the year on Sunday (Oct. 1), as No. 11 Georgia Tech comes to town for a 1 p.m. ET matchup. The afternoon contest can be streamed on ACC Network Extra.

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Team Stats

Paige Crawford

Olivia Fish

Olivia Franke

Carney Ava

Players Mentioned

Kylie Adams

Dior Charles

Paige Crawford

Emma Farrell

Olivia Fish

Olivia Franke

Emmy Ogogor

Ava Torrance

Kalani Whillock

Wake Forest Athletics