BLACKSBURG, Va. - Sophomore Reese Klein found the equalizer in the 83’ of play for the Tigers to battle to a 1-1 draw on Sunday evening at Virginia Tech (6-5-5, 2-4-2 ACC). With the result, Clemson moved to 6-4-6 (2-3-4 ACC).
The Tigers applied pressure offensively throughout the match, outshooting the Hokies 16-15 and holding a 10-5 shots-on-goal advantage. Outside of Klein’s goal, senior Dani Davis led the team with six shots, four of which were on goal. Ella Bach also got three shots off, while Sadie Peterson ended the night with two.
The match opened with a physical first half that neither team was able to capitalize on with a goal. Davis got the first look on net for the Tigers in the 6’ with a saved shot, and Bach found herself with two different opportunities that included a saved shot in the 16’ and another chance to capitalize after a Hokie turnover in the 27’, but VT’s goalkeeper Julianna Trujillo made both stops. On the defensive end, graduate Nona Reason finished the half with three of her four total saves to keep the match scoreless through 45’.
Virginia Tech broke open the scoring in the 57’. After the first 11 minutes of the second half were quiet, Gabby Ciocca picked up the ball off of a turnover and got a shot off from just outside the box that got past a diving Reason to put the Hokies up 1-0.
Clemson’s offense attempted to respond with five shots within a six-minute span taken by Bach, Davis, Peterson and Carla Small. Peterson and Small each had shots on goal, including Small’s, which was a rebound of a deflected shot at the top of the box that was fired to the top right corner of the net, but Trujillo was just able to get a hand on the ball and punch it away. A minute after Small’s attempt, Davis got off a shot on a corner kick, but Trujillo once again made the save. Davis continued to look at the net with a shot from distance in the 76’, but another diving stop kept the Tigers off the board.
The Tigers broke through and evened the match in the 83’ as Klein scored her first goal of the 2026 campaign. Clemson was awarded a corner kick, and after the initial ball in play bounced back out to Jolie Jenkins on the sideline, Jenkins elevated the ball to the middle of the box where Klein finished the play by getting her head on the ball.
Both sides got at least one more look on goal in the final seven minutes, including Clemson’s Davis, who tallied another shot on goal that was saved in the final minute of play. Neither team found the back of the net again, resulting in the 1-1 draw.
Up Next
The Tigers return to the pitch on Thursday, Nov. 5, as they take on No. 4 Wake Forest. Kickoff in Winston-Salem is slated for 5 p.m., and the match will be broadcast live on ESPNU.
