Senior Guard
Tasha Taylor

Head Coach Cristy McKinney will be anxious to see how senior Tasha Taylor and freshman Bryelle Smith recover from knee injuries that sidelined the guards last season. Taylor is a three-year starter, while Smith suffered the injury in her first career game as a Tiger.

Junior Lele Hardy holds the Clemson record for steals per game with a 2.97 career average. She set a school record with 98 as a freshman and has totaled 181 in her two seasons. The figure ranks seventh all-time and Hardy is likely to climb into the top five during the 2008-09 season.

The Tigers’ roster will be dominated by youth. Tasha Taylor, the team’s lone senior, joins four juniors for just five upperclassmen. Four players will be in their second seasons, and five newcomers and redshirt freshman Bryelle Smith then round out the squad.

Sophomore Guard
Sthefany Thomas

Sthefany Thomas played with the Argentinean national team in the summer of 2008 in their effort to play in the Olympic Games. The Argentineans finished second in the South American Championships in June to advance to the Olympic qualifier in Spain. Thomas averaged 12.3 points during the Championships, which included a 22-point performance in a win of Chili. Thomas’ mother is from Argentina and she lived in the country for several years before moving to the United States.

When the Clemson team travels to Seattle for a Thanksgiving tournament, it will be the first time in history that the Tigers have played a game in the state of Washington. However, it will be one of very few times that Clemson travels outside of South Carolina for a non-conference game in 2008-09. The Tigers’ only other non-conference games are at Furman, South Carolina, Western Carolina and Georgia.

The Tigers will have a new face in the coaching ranks in 2008-09 as A.G. Hall joined the Clemson staff in the off-season. A former letterwinner at North Carolina Central, Hall returns to the southeast following a six-year stint at Providence College.