BROOKLYN, N.Y. - The Mount Saint Mary College women's volleyball made an early claim on the top spot in the Skyline Conference, defeating the College of Mount Saint Vincent and NYU-Poly, the defending conference champions, on the opening weekend of conference play.  The Knights improved to 8-6 overall and earned a share of first place with a record of 2-0.

The Knights needed four sets to oust Mount Saint Vincent in the opening match.  After winning the first two sets (25-15 and 25-23), MSMC dropped the third (25-20) and needed a nail-biting fourth set (28-26) win to claim the match.

Three players, senior Mary Ann Raftery (Long Beach, N.Y.) and sophomores Katie Lynch (Island Park, N.Y.) and Natalie Candarelli (Cortlandt Manor, N.Y.), each finished with 10 kills.  Senior Lauren Halverson (Patchogue, N.Y.) posted team highs with 38 assists and 19 digs.

Mount Saint Mary carried the momentum into the match with Poly, shutting down the Blue Jays in straight sets (25-21, 25-16, 25-20).  Raftery led the way with nine kills, while Lynch checked in with eight.  Halverson picked up 21 assists and tied with freshman Jen Gries (Hicksville, N.Y.) for the team-high with 18 digs.

The Knighs will take a six-match winning streak to Rutgers-Newark on Monday evening.  The match is scheduled for a 7:00 p.m. start in Newark, New Jersey.