HACKETTSTOWN, N.J. – Junior Katie Alvarez posted her third double digit dig performance of the season for the Centenary University volleyball team in the second of two matches on Saturday.

The Cyclones, who were playing their home opener, fell to Notre Dame (Md.) 3-0 to open Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) play. Centenary battled hard in a 3-0 loss to Mount St. Mary in its second contest of the day.

Notre Dame Recap
Notre Dame jumped out to an early 3-1 lead in the first set but the Cyclones responded with a 3-1 run of their own to tie the set at 4-4. Sophomore Leandra Garcia had a solo block during that stretch for Centenary. The Gators and Cyclones battled before Notre Dame took a 25-13 set win. The Gators went on to take the second set by a 25-13 mark and won the match with a 25-6 third set win.

Senior Melissa Krueger led the Cyclones with 13 digs and three assists against the Gators. Garcia had three kills while Alvarez and senior Valentina Suizzo had five digs each.

Sarah Sweet led Notre Dame with 10 kills and 11 digs.

Mount St. Mary Recap
The Cyclones battled hard against Mount St. Mary, pushing the Knights to a two-point battle in the second set.

Centenary won the first three points of the first set as Krueger recorded a service ace. The Cyclones pushed their lead to 5-3 on a kill from Garcia. The Knights used a 4-0 run to go back on top and eventually took the set 25-9. The second set was a back and forth battle as Mount St. Mary opened up a 7-3 lead, however the Cyclones battled back and took a 10-8 advantage. The two teams continued to battle as a bad set gave the Knights a 21-17 lead. Centenary used a 6-3 run to pull to within one, 24-23 but the Knights were able to take the next point and the set, 25-23. Mount St. Mary went on to take the third set 25-14 and won the match, 3-0.

Alvarez had 11 digs and three kills for the Cyclones in the match. Krueger contributed eight assists and five digs while Nicauris Veras finished with two digs, two assists and a service ace.

Morgan Burke led Mount St. Mary with 12 kills.

The Cyclones are back in action on Wednesday, Sept. 26 when they host Cairn at 7 p.m.