GWYNEDD VALLEY, PA. -- The Griffin Volleyball Team fell behind early, and could not catch up to Notre Dame of Maryland, as Gwynedd dropped a 3-1 decision (25-10, 25-18, 20-25, 25-17) to the Gators Wednesday night at The Griffin Complex.

The loss sends GM to 8-15 and 5-3 in CSAC play while Notre Dame goes to 8-7 and 2-2 in conference action.

Gwynedd did not get off to the start they would have liked as the first set saw the team have more hitting errors than kills. The Gators used that to their advantage, taking a 2-2 score to a 13-2 lead, thanks to an 11-0 spurt that saw four hitting errors by the Griffins. It was more of the same to start the second set, as Notre Dame was able to get out to a 12-4 advantage. GM would rally to get it to 18-15, as five hitting errors by the Gators in a 6-1 run helped close the gap.

In the third, the Griffins came out on fire as a pair of aces from sophomore Lauren Martin (Hershey, Pa./Hershey) and a big kill from Jessica Behr (Philadelphia, Pa./MaST Charter), helped stake GM to a 5-0 lead out of the gates. The lead grew to 9-1 before the Gators slowly climbed back in it. Cassidy Keller and Grace Park each had four kills apiece in the set as ND got to within 15-13, forcing a Gwynedd timeout. After the short respite, GM rattled off five-straight points thanks to a pair of kills from Behr and an ace from junior Laura Kirk (Saegertown, Pa./Maplewood).

The fourth set looked to favor Gwynedd, as the Griffins led 6-2 after a kill from freshman Samantha Schearer (Mertztown, Pa./Brandywine Heights). The Gators would put the match out of reach, thanks to a game-changing 15-2 run which included five kills and four aces. GM tried a late push, scoring seven-straight on game point to get within seven (24-17).

Behr led GM with 10 kills, reaching double digits for the second time this season. Senior Lauren Tressel (Pembroke, Ma./Pembroke) added six kills and nine digs while Kirk and senior Brianna Greer (Philadelphia, Pa./Bishop McDevitt) chipped in five enders. Kirk also registered seven digs, and three aces.

Keller had a match-high 13 kills while Park had seven and teammate Ashley Pasker contributed 10.

The team is back in action on Friday when they head to Albright. On Saturday, the squad will host its Senior Day when they play a home tri-match with Hood and Washington Trinity starting at 1 p.m.