Aston, Pa.: The Centenary University women's volleyball team put up a strong fight in its Atlantic East Conference Tournament quarterfinal matchup, but ultimately fell in a hard-fought 3 -2 (25-19, 24-26, 7-25, 25-19, 11-15) decision to Neumann University on Tuesday evening.

The Cyclones (15–15, 3–4 AEC) came out sharp, taking the opening set behind efficient attacking from Poppy Skjonnemand and Jennifer Thistlethwaite. After narrowly dropping the second frame, Centenary stumbled in the third but rallied to dominate the fourth set and force a decisive fifth. Despite trading points early in the final set, Neumann (15–14, 4–3 AEC) pulled away late to advance.

Stat Leaders: 

•  Poppy Skjonnemand: 18 kills, 6 digs, 2 aces, 1 block assist, 20.5 points

• Jennifer Thisthlewaite: 18 kills, 8 digs, 1 ace, 3 block assists, 20.5 points

• Vanessa Pagano: 35 assists, 8 digs, 3 aces, 3 block assists

• Rey Bennett: 20 digs, 2 aces, 1 assist

• Cameron Fulcher: 5 block assists, 2 aces, 1 kill

• Gabriella Miller: 6 kills, 2 aces, 2 block assists

As a team, Centenary recorded 43 kills, 12 service aces, and 46 digs, while also tallying 9 team blocks.The Cyclones' offense flowed through Pagano, who surpassed 1,000 career assists earlier this season, and their defense was anchored by Bennett's steady play in the back row.

Despite the loss, the match capped off a successful campaign for Centenary, which reached 15 wins, tying the most in school history and earned a spot in the conference postseason for the second time since joining the Atlantic East Conference.