Washington, D.C. – The Mount Aloysius women's volleyball team saw its eight-game winning streak come to an end on Saturday, dropping a pair of contests to Catholic University and Dickinson College at the Franny Murray Court. The Mounties now sit at 9-5 on the season.

In their opening match, the Mounties battled Catholic in a five-set thriller before falling 3-2 (25-15, 25-22, 21-25, 15-25, 15-12). After dropping the first two sets, Mount Aloysius rallied with strong hitting performances in the third and fourth frames to even the match. Molly Richards (Naples, Fla., Naples) led the offense with 21 kills and added 25 digs, while Poliana Lazarini (Marialva, Brazil / Garrido) had eight kills and 18 digs.

 Madison Barr (Pittsburgh, Pa., Shaler) did what she does best, having a team-high 26 digs and added three service aces. Despite out-digging the Cardinals 93-77, the Mounties came up just short in the decisive fifth set in an absolute thriller of a match. 

In the afternoon matchup against Dickinson, Mount Aloysius fell in straight sets (25-18, 25-16, 25-23). The Red Devils' efficiency at the net proved to be the difference, as they hit .272 compared to the Mounties' .176. Richards again paced the attack with 14 kills, while Mackenzie Barr (Pittsburgh, Pa., Shaler) added 10 kills and her sister Madison add 20 digs in another strong all-around performance. Setter Kiersten Cummings (Las Vegas, Nev, Nevada State) dished out 23 assists, while Kaylee Smith (Altoona, Pa., Altoona) contributed six kills and two blocks.

The pair of setbacks snapped Mount Aloysius's eight-game winning streak, their longest run of the season. The Mounties will look to bounce back on Tuesday when they travel to Penn State Harrisburg, a 7-3 squad currently riding a three-match winning streak. The match is expected to start at 7:00 PM at he Capital Union Building in Middletown, PA.