WINSTON-SALEM, NC – Going into the 2025 season, North Carolina A&T head volleyball coach Hal Clifton wanted to prepare his team for playing on big stages. Seven matches into the season, his team has played in three Power Four matches and has been competitive in all three, including Thursday's matchup at Wake Forest University.
The Aggies lost to the Demon Deacons in three sets (25-18, 19, 15) at Reynolds Gym, dropping to 3-4 on the season. But the program's longest-tenured coach in history likes what he sees as Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) play approaches.
"Although we didn't win the match, I'm very pleased with what I saw tonight," Clifton said. "Sure, there were things we can get better at, but our focus was to compete and be aggressive. I really felt like we achieved that. We didn't get into a tip fest. We competed until the end. Near the end of the second set, the numbers were really close. I like that our hitters didn't back down."
Sophomore Tynee Ross led the Aggies with 10 kills, making only two errors in 24 attempts for a .333 hitting percentage. Junior Leonor Polezzi secured her 14th career double-double and her third of the season with 26 assists and 10 digs. Freshman Nicole Ellis added eight kills and two total blocks.
A&T trailed 12-7 in the first set before putting together a 3-0 run, which included a Ross kill and a Polezzi service ace. But Wake outscored the Aggies 7-3 from that point to take a 19-13 advantage. The Aggies fought to get within four at 22-18 on a Ross kill, but the Deacs scored the next three points to take a 1-0 lead in the match.
In the second set, A&T got to within three, 15-12, on a Ross kill before the Deacs grew their lead to 18-12. Ellis helped the Aggies get back to within three, 19-16, on a kill. But Wake outscored the Aggies 4-1 from there, leading to an A&T timeout. Paige Crawford gave the Deacs set point on a kill before another Ross kill cut Wake's lead to 24-19. However, Crawford added another kill to give the Deacs a 2-0 advantage in the match.
Wake sprinted out to a 19-8 lead in the third before the Aggies went on a 5-1 run to cut that lead to seven. A 3-0 run helped the Deacs extend its lead to 10 before a Ross kill and a Wake attack error cut the Deacs' lead to 23-15. But Sanaa Williams' kill gave Wake set and match point, and Patrycja Lagida ended the match with a kill, helping Wake improve to 5-5.
Lagida led the Deacs with nine kills. The Aggies return to action Friday night at 6 when they face Gate City rival UNC Greensboro at UNCG's Battle of North Carolina tournament at Fleming Gymnasium. A&T will face UNC Asheville at Fleming Saturday at 1 p.m. Six days later, the Aggies step on the CAA stage to face UNC Wilmington in Wilmington, NC.
"We were a little high error, but we have to learn to play at the level and we do, those errors will decrease," said Clifton. "Wake is a solid team and has an excellent coaching staff. Now, we have to rebound quickly to prepare for UNCG."
