SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio -- Notre Dame closed out its 2009 season on a winning note Thursday night at Murphy Gymnasium, defeating Urbana, 3-2. The victory vaulted the Falcons to a winning record for a third straight season, a first in program history. (Box)

The win for Notre Dame (17-16), by scores of 25-18, 25-23, 19-25, 22-25 and 15-12, halted a two-loss losing streak while ending a two-match winning streak for the Blue Knights (16-21). Under Head Coach #Mark Ridley#, NDC has now posted winning records in every season since 2006.

“This was a nice win and a good way for us to finish the season,” said Ridley.

Five players tallied double figures in points, led by #Paige Heistan# and #Kate Verhoff# garnering 17.5 each. Heistan had 17 kills and hit. 300. Verhoff had 14 kills, hit .433, and added 54 assists. As a team, Notre Dame hit .310.

With the victory on their home hardwood, Notre Dame closed out their 2009 campaign with an 8-2 record at home. The Falcons are now 20-7 (.741) at Murphy Gymnasium over the last three years (2007-09).

“You always want to have a feeling where you can have a significant advantage at home,” said Ridley. “Our seniors have kind of set that attitude and expectation the last few years.”

Thursday's match marked the second this season between Notre Dame and Urbana - the Falcons defeated the Blue Knights, 3-2, in Urbana on Sept. 9. Notre Dame's two wins over UU this season are a break in a previous trend. Prior to 2009, the Blue Knights had defeated NDC in seven consecutive matches, dating back to the 1999 season.

With the end of the season, Ridley reflected on Notre Dame's fortunes in the wins and losses column:

“We didn't end up where we wanted to. We had a lot of injuries and moves made up and down the lineup. But several young players got some valuable experience, and that's what we'll carry forward and build on.” 


NOTES FROM THE NEST …

SENIOR SALUTE: Thursday's season finale marked senior night for the NDC program, which started in 1970. Four players - #Katie Barbis#, #Cristin Brown#, #Jessica Parks# and Verhoff - were honored in a pre-match ceremony. Brown hit a statistical milestone on senior night - the co-captain and three-year member of the program recorded her 1,000 career dig. Brown came into the night with 999 digs in 90 career matches; she had 15 digs in the match. … NDC Volleyball has gone 72-60 in the last four seasons. That record marks the Falcons' first four-year stretch where the program has won more matches than it has lost.

STAT WRAP: Notre Dame finished the 2009 season with a .197 hitting percentage, 66 points off the NDC-record .263 mark the Falcons hit a year ago (2008). The .197 hitting mark is the program's lowest since 2004, when the Falcons hit .187. The Blue & White committed 636 hitting errors in 2009, compared to just 446 a year ago. … #Mandy Bastian# finished the season with 544 digs. Her 5.1 digs per set average stands as sixth best single-season mark in program history. … Kate Verhoff hit .433 on Thursday. She closes out her NDC career with a .304 mark in 1,202 attempts. The setter from Elyria, Ohio, finishes her career ranked fourth in assists for an NDC player, with 1994. … Barbis closed out her years on College Road with a total of 766 kills and 1,056 digs. … Parks tallied 483 kills and 129 total blocks.