SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio – Although Wheeling Jesuit University is ranked No. 20 in NCAA Division II, Notre Dame College was ready for the challenge, especially in the first set. Even with great effort, the Cardinals would go on to sweep the Falcons.

In the first set, the Falcons (11-12, 4-4 MEC) went head-to-head with WJU. Early on, neither team expanded their lead by more than two points. NDC went on a 4-0 run and snatched an 11-9 advantage. Notre Dame held that lead until Wheeling Jesuit (22-3, 9-0 MEC) took an 18-17 lead.

The Cardinals, who have only lost three sets over their first nine conference games, could not shake NDC. Following a kill by junior Mary Kate McHugh, the set was tied at 23. McHugh totaled eight kills and six digs after the first set.

However, Wheeling Jesuit put the final two points on the scoreboard and won, 25-23.

"(The first set) was so much fun to coach," said head coach Travis Hinkle. "Our players played like they had nothing to lose. They had fun. Paige (Staudacher) ran a great offense, finding options, and our defense didn't let the ball drop. We took care of the ball when we needed to and we played point-for-point. They made a few more plays in the first set that didn't go our way, but we came out with extreme force."

After a tough second set, that saw the Falcons fall by a score of 25-15, Notre Dame played well in the third set. The Falcons led 6-4, early in the contest. They would respond to a 3-0 Wheeling Jesuit run with a 3-1 run of their own, to grab a 9-8 lead. But, that would be the last advantage Notre Dame held. WJU would win the set, 25-17.

"I love that we never gave up on a ball," Hinkle said, when talking about NDC's defense. "A team like Wheeling, they're going to find shots and they're going to get over our block, especially with a little bit of adversity that we had there in the second and third set. Our defense stuck to their game plan and stuck to what we are as a team. We're a defense first team and our block slowed the ball down."

In the first set, NDC had multiple runs of two points and a four point run. In the second set, they had a run of three points and a two point run. And in the third set, they had a 3-0 run. Putting together these offensive outputs helped NDC stay with the tough conference team.

"We always talk about getting the next point and a lot of times, those runs really helped us," Hinkle mentioned. "Going forward, we know, no matter who is in the conference or who we have left on our schedule, we can play with them, we can take them. It makes the girls excited to know that they competed with a top-20 team in the country. We can compete with anyone else on our schedule."

McHugh led the team with 21 kills, two aces, and a .367 hit percentage. She also had 13 digs. The junior from North Canton, Ohio reached the 1000 career kills mark tonight and has become just the third player in Mountain East Conference history to record, at least, 1000 kills and 1000 digs. Junior Alexandra Kaeberlein, who was honored before the game for reaching 1500 career digs, led the team with 15 digs.

"Mary Kate (McHugh) and Ali (Kaeberlein) are the backbone of this team," Hinkle acknowledged. "They have been starters ever since they became Falcons and the team looks to them for guidance and look to them for leadership. When the game is on the line, who do want to pass the ball? Ali. Who do you want taking the big swing? Mary Kate. They embrace that and they take that challenge and they make each other better and they make the team better. They both play so calm on the court that you think nothing frazzles them. Even if they make a mistake they're the first ones saying 'I have the next point, I am going to do this.' Or when someone makes a mistake, they're the first one to pick them up. They're not just about the 1000 kills or the 1500 digs, there is so much more to what they bring."

Wheeling Jesuit had three players with double-digit kills and had a team hit percentage of .336. Two players recorded a .500 hit percentage. Stephanie Sylvester added 49 assists and 11 digs. Audrey Francis led the squad with 15 digs.

The Falcons will travel to the University of Charleston to play on October 16. The match will begin at 6 p.m.