This week: Notre Dame College will play four matches during the Eckerd College Invitational in St. Petersburg, Fla. On September 1, the Falcons will take on Saint Edward's University at 10 a.m. and the University of West Georgia at 5:30 p.m. On September 2, NDC's opponents will be Kentucky Wesleyan College at 12:30 p.m. and Eckerd College, the host of the tournament, at 7:30 p.m.

Records: Last season, the Falcons were 16-18, 8-8 Mountain East Conference (MEC). Saint Edward's was 11-18, 9-5 in the Heartland Conference (HC). West Georgia had a record of 4-26, 1-19 Gulf South Conference (GSC). Kentucky Wesleyan went 10-16, 4-6 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC). Eckerd was 18-13, 9-7 in the Sunshine State Conference (SSC).

Coaches Corner: Notre Dame volleyball head coach, Troy Haught is entering his third season and he holds an overall record of 20-43, 11-21 in the MEC. The Hilltoppers head coach has been Mary Dejute since 2015 and as a head coach she is currently 19-38. Trina Branden is the Wolves head coach. She has an overall record of 14-75 since 2014. Eric Hagan has been the head coach of the Panthers for four years and holds a record of 35-49. Michelle Piantadosi-Lima has been named the coach Eckerd for five seasons. She holds a record of 88-65.

Rankings: None of the teams were ranked in the top-25 in the AVCA Coaches Preseason Poll.

Series History: This will be the Falcons first game against both Saint Edward's and Eckerd. NDC is 0-1 against University of West Georgia, but haven't played them since 2013. The Falcons are also 0-1 against Kentucky Wesleyan, falling 3-1 in a match last season.

Noting the Falcons: Notre Dame lost to Fairmont State 3-0 in the MEC Tournament in the last game of its season in 2016. The Falcons return senior Melissa Maczuzak who was named to the All-MEC Second Team and was the first player from the program, since moving into NCAA Division II, to be named to the Second Team All-Atlantic Region team. Sophomore Ali Kaeberlein was also honored by the conference as she was named to the MEC All-Freshman team. Maczuzak led the team with 590.5 points and total attacks with 1632. Kaeberlein led the Falcons with 506 digs as the team's libero. NDC was voted to finish sixth in the MEC preseason poll.

Noting the Hilltoppers: In 2016, St. Edward's lost 3-1 to Lubbock Christian in the HC Tournament to end its season. Junior Morgan Beckham returns after being named to the All-Conference team and earning the HC Libero of the Year award. Prior to the season, junior Mikayla Parker was named to the All-Heartland Preseason Team. Beckham led the team in digs (605) and service aces (21) in 2016 while Parker led the team with 111 blocks. St. Edward's is projected to finish third in the HC in the preseason poll.

Noting the Wolves: West Georgia returns one senior, Halen Chapman and three juniors, Katie Hanson, Devon Dickey and Victoria Rushin. Hanson collected 219 kills in 2016, while playing in 99 sets, which was good for second on the team. Chapman is going to lead the backline this season. In the preseason poll, they were voted to finish 12^th in the GSC.

Noting the Panthers: Kentucky Wesleyan played in the G-MAC Championship last season, but lost 3-2 to Malone. Sierra Morrow and Kylie Foster both return as sophomores after being named to the All-Conference G-MAC All Freshman team. Morrow was named to the All-Conference Second Team, as well, and led the team in points with 224, service aces with 32 and block with 55. Foster led the team in set assists with 550. In the 2017 preseason poll, the Panthers were picked to finish in sixth place in the G-MAC West.

Noting the Tritons: Finished last season ranked eighth in the South Region. JaQuayla Baker was named to the All-Sunshine Conference First Team, was an honorable mention for AVCA All-Region team and All-American honorable mention following the 2016 campaign. Baker led the team in points (383) and total blocks (117). This season, Eckerd was picked to finish in sixth place in the SSC preseason poll.