This week: Notre Dame College volleyball plays five games this week, including their home opener. On September 10, NDC will host Malone University at 7 p.m. then they will go back on the road for a weekend tournament. The Falcons take on Goldey-Beacom College (1 p.m.) and Kutztown University (7 p.m.) on September 13. The next day, NDC will play St. Michael's College at 12 p.m. and Salem University at 4 p.m.

Records: Notre Dame is currently off to their best start to a season since the move to NCAA Division II, going 3-1 at an opening tournament. Malone is 1-3 after a tournament in Florida. Kutztown holds a record of 2-1 and Goldey-Beacom is 1-3. Salem University enters the week 0-4 while St. Michael's is 0-2.

Coaches Corner: Travis Hinkle is in his second season as head coach at Notre Dame and has a record of 19-18. Tanya Hockman is in her 21st season with Malone and the program has won at least 15 games in 17 of the last 20 seasons. Bob Trinsey is now in his fourth season at Goldey-Beacom. John Gump enters his 23rd season as the head coach of Kutztown and has a record of 385-312. Kim Lissinna is in her second season as head coach of St. Michael's with a record 0-21. Ashley Ziegle enters her third campaign at Salem.

Rankings: None of the teams are ranked in the AVCA Coaches Poll.

Series History: Notre Dame is 1-4 all-time against Malone. The Falcons beat Kutztown in their only matchup, which came in 2017. Against Salem, NDC has been successful, winning all three matchups. The Falcons have never played Goldey-Beacom or Saint Michael's.

Noting the Falcons: Notre Dame played very well, posting three wins at the Ashland Invitational, defeating Felician, Bloomsburg and California (Pa.). Paige Staudacher had 132 assists, including a 42 assist performance against Felician, which tied the program record for most in a three set match. Alexandra Kaeberlein also had an incredible tournament on defense, totaling 82 digs over the four games. Kaye Dregalla led the team in kills over the four games, recording 44 with a hit percentage of .313 in her first collegiate matches.

Noting the Pioneers: At the Eckerd College Invitational, Malone lost the first set in every contest and fell in three of the four matches. However, they took three of their four matches to at least four sets. The Pioneers were swept in one match, falling to No. 22 ranked Central Oklahoma. Hannah Eliason leads the team with 30 kills while Abbie Swaino has 51 assists. On defense, Faith Lau leads with 34 digs and Eliason has totaled nine blocks.

Noting the Lightning: Goldey-Beacom lost to West Chester University, twice, on Friday and Saturday before sweeping Pace University later in the day on Saturday. With a quick turnaround, the Lightning played Bridgeport on Monday, losing 3-0. In their win over Pace, GBC had a season-high hit percentage of .165. Lindsay Przywara led the team with 11 kills and 11 digs, while the team had 41 total digs in the win. Autumn Spendlove finished with 22 assists and 10 digs against Pace.

Noting the Golden Bears: Holly Owen had at least 14 kills over the weekend and led the team all three games, as Kutztown went 2-1 at the Shippensburg Raiders Classic. She had 50 total kills. KU defeated Chestnut Hill and Roberts Wesleyan and fell to Walsh. Sydney Wilson had at least 19 digs in all three games with a high of 30 in a win over Chestnut Hill. She ended the weekend with 77. Abbey James recorded 59 assists over the three games.

Noting the Purple Knights: Saint Michael's was swept in two games on Saturday, failing to win a set. After a tough 0-19 campaign in 2018, SMC opened up with a tough couple of games. They played Merrimack, a Division I team, and Southern New Hampshire. The Purple Knights averaged 14.7 points per match for the weekend and just 11 points in the match against Southern New Hampshire. Sarah Scott led the team with 13 kills over the two games and 14 digs and Katy Konow led the team with 20 assists.

Noting the Tigers: Salem has not won a match yet this season and were swept in all four games in Edinboro, Pa. SU lost to Edinboro and Glenville State on Friday before losing to Lock Haven and West Virginia Wesleyan, on Saturday. The Tigers are averaging 15.6 points per set and the most they have scored in one set this season is 21.