Kennerly tears it up at NCAA regional

Staff reports

TEMPE, Ariz. — The Clemson golf team started three freshmen at an NCAA regional for just the fifth time ever, but it was a sophomore that stole the show for the Tigers at Karsten Golf Club.

Billy Kennerly finished with a one-under-par 69 on Saturday after an opening-round 68 and second-round 69 to give him a three-day total of 206. Combined with his final two rounds at the ACC Tournament, he finished the year with a school-record five consecutive rounds in the 60s.

Many players had scored in the 60s four consecutive rounds, including Corbin Mills last year, but never five in a row. [Read more...]

From the Desk of Dan Radakovich

May 13, 2013

Hello Tiger fans!

I am headed off to the ACC spring meetings this week in Florida. In my next writing, I hope to have much content to discuss as a result of those meetings. In the meantime, I thought it would be appropriate to focus this space on the student-athletes that graduated from Clemson last Friday. I had the privilege to be on hand for each of the three ceremonies as part of the president’s administrative council. It was wonderful to see so many orange stoles, which are worn to signify student-athletes, in each ceremony!

I thought I would share the wonderful success stories of a few of them. In all, 49 student-athletes walked across the stage in Littlejohn Coliseum to receive their degrees from President Barker. (See complete list of 2013 spring graduates below). It was particularly heart-warming to see some of our student-athletes who returned to earn degrees several years after their Tiger careers ended. [Read more...]

Beyond Clemson: Wong wins first professional title

By Schuyler Easterling

One year after helping lead Clemson to an 11th straight NCAA Tournament appearance and final Top 25 ranking, the accolades keep rolling in for All-American Keri Wong (2008-12).

On Sunday, Wong won the ITF Doubles Title in sundrenched Caracas, Venezuela, securing her first-ever professional tennis title with a 6-1, 6-2 win in the finals. Pairing up with Maria Fernanda Alvarez-Teran of Bolivia in the $25,000 tournament, the duo was seeded No. 4 in the 16-team doubles draw.

Taking the role of underdog throughout the tournament, Wong and Alvarez upset the No. 1 seed in the semifinals with a stunning 4-5, 6-3, (18-16) win in three sets to advance to the finals and nab the victory.

For Wong, her first season out of college as a professional has been nothing but a success. Since graduating from Clemson with a degree in management last May, Wong has stormed her way to a 13-6 overall record in the main draw of tournaments around the world. [Read more...]

Beyond Clemson: Ex-Tigers comprise final pairing at Zurich Classic

By Schuyler Easterling

AVONDALE, La. — As the final round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans began on Sunday, two familiar faces greeted each other on the sundrenched Louisiana Bayou.

For the first time in history, two former Clemson golfers were paired together in the final group of the final round of a PGA Tour event. Ex-Tiger greats Lucas Glover (1998-01) and Kyle Stanley (2006-09) reunited at the first tee, both focused on securing a PGA Tour victory.

Seeking his fourth Tour win and first in almost two years, Glover could almost sense victory in New Orleans. The Greenville, S.C., native seemed unstoppable on the greens, shooting rounds of 65-67-70 (-14) for a 202 total atop the leaderboard through Saturday. [Read more...]

Student-athletes walk orange carpet for CLEMMYs

Boyd, Adeleye named top male, female athletes

Clemson football players, from left, Quandon Christian, Tajh Boyd and Chandler Catanzaro pose for pictures before the inaugural CLEMMYs on April 15 at Littlejohn Coliseum. (Photo by Dawson Powers)

Photo Gallery

By Steven Bradley

IPTAY Media

CLEMSON — At most major award shows, the stars walk the red carpet and proceed into a ballroom where awards are handed out for the year’s best performances. That was also the case at the inaugural CLEMMYs April 15, only the stars were Clemson’s student-athletes, the carpet was orange and the ballroom was Littlejohn Coliseum.

The CLEMMYs were modeled after the ESPYs as a comprehensive year-end awards show encompassing athletic and academic achievement. They replaced the Athletic Department’s annual honor banquet, which was an academic-focused event where only student-athletes with at least a 3.0 GPA had been invited.

“It’s all about the student-athletes. This is a night for them to have fun and just get together and celebrate,” Assistant Director for Athletic Academic Services Lindsey Ricketts said. [Read more...]

From the Desk of Dan Radakovich

April 22, 2013

Hello Tiger fans!

I thought this would be a good time to reflect on the tremendous success enjoyed by our athletic teams on what was dubbed “Solid Orange Weekend,” April 12-14 in Clemson. Our teams not only went undefeated, but IPTAY members and Tiger fans were able to gather and participate in fellowship on what turned out to be a beautiful weekend in the Upstate.

We had over 140 former letterwinners participate in our spring golf outing at the Walker Course and Cross Creek Plantation on Friday afternoon, and then over 300 were on hand for the awards dinner that night. It was great to spend time with some of our alumni and their families. Dabo Swinney also held his All-In Ball at the new indoor practice facility on Friday, and over $250,000 was raised for his foundation, which focuses support toward a number of worthy causes. [Read more...]

Student-athletes take time out to say thanks to donors

Clemson women's golfer Taylor Ramsey calls an IPTAY donor during the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Thank-a-Thon on April 1 at the University Foundation building on campus. (Photo by Rex Brown/IPTAY Media)

Photo Gallery

By Steven Bradley

IPTAY Media

CLEMSON — One of the purposes of Clemson’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee is to give the university’s athletes a voice when it comes to issues that affect them, and last week that voice was used to say thanks.

This year’s SAAC Thank-a-Thon began April 1 and continued April 2 at the University Foundation building on campus with 100 Clemson athletes — 50 each day — taking time out to call as many IPTAY donors as possible to express their gratitude for the ways those donations have enriched their college experiences.

“That’s the great thing about IPTAY — we don’t hear a lot about IPTAY as far as our everyday lives,” said Brittney Waller, a senior thrower on the track & field team who helped head the initiative. “We don’t think about our facilities and how we’re able to do a lot of the things we do — traveling, maintenance, construction, those kind of things — so it is very nice to have IPTAY, and we’re really thankful to have donors who do support us and who do want us to be successful on and off the field.” [Read more...]

From the Desk of Dan Radakovich

Ricketts

April 8, 2013

Hello Tiger fans!

At the end of May, one of the fixtures in Clemson’s athletic department over the last 28 years, Robert Ricketts, will be retiring. Robert has dedicated most of his professional life to Clemson, and in the process has worn many different hats, first at the university and then within the athletic department. We are indebted to he and his wife, Kathey, for all they have done for Clemson Athletics. With that in mind, I asked Associate Sports Information Director Philip Sikes to sit down with Robert for a question and answer session to reflect on his experiences at Clemson.

Dan Radakovich [Read more...]

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