Shreveport, La. - The Centenary volleyball team edged the St. Thomas Celts, 3-2, in a five-set thriller on Saturday evening inside a spirited and loud Gold Dome in the Ladies' home opener.

The Ladies won their second consecutive match and improved to 3-7 on the season while the Celts fall to 2-5. First-year head coach Ashley McDonough earned her first home victory as the Ladies finally played in front of their Maroon and White supporters after the first nine matches of the season were on the road. 

St. Thomas won the first two sets by scores of 25-23 and 25-21 before the Ladies dominated the third set (25-10) to strecth the match to a fourth set. Centenary prevailed, 25-17, in set four and then closed out the victory to the delight of the large crowd, 15-10. 

"I couldn't be more proud of the Ladies", said McDonough. "They have done a fantastic job of staying mentally tough and fighting back against some very challenging Division III talent. We have a small roster and a few injuries, but we are battling back. "This definitely set the tone for us in moving forward."

Senior Marissa Sandoval (San Antonio, Texas) led the Ladies with 25 digs on Saturday. The 5-3 defensive specialist owns the career record for digs in school history, setting the mark last weekend in the Cal Lu Fornia Invitational. Junior Ami Powers (Katy, Texas) added 22 digs and teammates Kristian Loving (Tyler, Texas), Rachel Demerjian (Glendora, Calif.), and Mariah Martinez (San Antonio, Texas) all posted double-digit digs Saturday.

The Celts had four players in double figures in digs. Powers led the way for the Ladies with 27 kills while sophomore Lauren Kelley (Fort Worth, Texas) added 16. 

The Ladies are back on the road Tuesday, Sept. 17 as they face the LeTourneau YelloJackets in Longview, Texas. Centenary will then be back at home to host four other conference squads in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Association Group A Divisional Friday, Sept. 20 and Saturday, Sept. 21. #CTheOpportunity