In the first match of the day against Notre Dame (0-4), sophomore middle hitter Gina Porto led MVNU (3-1) with 17 kills and five blocks, while junior middle hitter Jackie Albrecht (left) smashed 10 kills. Junior defensive specialist Caitlin Myles posted a team-high 20 digs and three aces, while senior setter Kaylin Austen handed out 33 assists to go with 13 digs. Senior outside hitter Julie Haumschild also finished with a career-high five kills, and junior middle hitter Sarah Yutzy tallied five kills.

Albrecht powered the Lady Cougars past Daemen (2-2) as she pounded 15 kills to go with three blocks. Senior right-side hitter Courtney Springer added 11 kills and nine digs, while Porto finished with seven kills and three blocks. Austen handed out 31 assists to go with 11 digs and is now 98 assists away from becoming the MVNU career leader.

“We did a nice job today of getting two wins,” said Lady Cougars’ coach Paul Swanson. “This was a good weekend of action for us to get the season under way. We have plenty of things to work on, but I’m pleased with the way that we performed.”

MVNU will now gear up for the biggest regular-season road-trip in the program’s illustrious 34-year history as the Lady Cougars will head to California next week for five matches on the West Coast for the first time ever. The trip will get started on Wednesday with a single match at The Master’s (Calif.) College at 7:30 p.m. PST. Then, the team will take part in the Point Loma Nazarene (Calif.) University Seaside Invitational on Friday and Saturday in a tournament that features several nationally-ranked teams.