Hackettstown, NJ - Notre Dame of Maryland fell on the road Monday afternoon, dropping a 15–7 decision to Centenary (N.J.) in nonconference women's lacrosse action. 

Centenary used a strong first half to build a comfortable lead and held off a late push by the Gators to secure the victory.

Centenary struck first just 38 seconds into the game when Trista Hough opened the scoring. Notre Dame responded quickly, as Soliery Baez Vergara tied the game at 1–1 at the 13:38 mark of the first quarter. The Gators briefly took the lead later in the period when Cailyn Motta finished a feed from Adrienne Villa to make it 2–1. 

The Cyclones answered with a surge late in the opening quarter. After Hough tied the game again, Centenary rattled off five of the final six goals in the period to build a 7–3 advantage heading into the second quarter. 

Centenary continued to control play in the second, extending the lead to 11–3 before Notre Dame began to chip away. Yasmine Rode scored unassisted with 6:51 remaining in the half, and Madison Miller followed with a goal off a Rode assist to cut the deficit to 11–5 heading into halftime. 

Notre Dame showed signs of momentum early in the third quarter when Miller connected again, this time off a pass from Ariana Rodriguez, to trim the margin to 11–6. However, Centenary responded with a man-up goal in the closing seconds of the period to push the lead back to six. 

The Cyclones added three more goals in the fourth quarter to extend the advantage before Miller capped the scoring for the Gators with her third goal of the game with 42 seconds remaining. 

Miller led Notre Dame with three goals, while Motta added two goals and an assist. Baez Vergara and Rode each contributed a goal, with Rode also recording an assist. Villa and Rodriguez also tallied assists for the Gators. 

Goalkeeper Leah Hasberry made 17 saves for Notre Dame, facing 46 shots in the contest. Centenary was paced by Hough with five goals and one assist, while Nora Dornich added four goals. 

Centenary finished with a 46–20 advantage in shots and held a slight edge in draw controls, 15–10. Notre Dame collected 25 ground balls in the game. 

Notre Dame will look to regroup as they will finally enjoy their home opener on Wednesday, March 11 at 12 PM.