Cleveland State volleyball went to conference leading Roane State and nearly came home with a victory.

The Raiders did win in straight sets, but the 3-0 score does not tell the story.

"We had a good lead in the first set and then let them take the momentum from there, but we battled back for an exciting third set," head coach Alizabeth Atnip said.

Roane State (18-4, 4-1) won 25-12 and 25-15 in the first two sets, but needed an extra set point to defeat Cleveland State (2-12, 1-5) in set three 26-24. With this win the Raiders remain undefeated at home this season.

The difference between the two teams were in the kills category, similar to their first meeting, with Roane State winning that area 13-6 in set one, 12-3 in set two, but only 14-12 in set three.

As has happened in each match so far this season, libero Taylor Hancock led the team with 12 digs, but she also contributed six service aces to lead the team in that area as well. Ella Johnson also put together a strong night with the most kills for the Cougars while also having 10 digs and being second on the team in assists with six. Ryleigh McGinnis led the team in assists with 12.

Cleveland State looks to ride the momentum of this strong outing after following their first conference match victory earlier in the week.

The Cougars return home for two matches next week in back to back nights. Monday will be their next appearance hosting Reinhardt University in a non-conference match before getting back to conference play against Chattanooga State on Tuesday. Each match is set to start at 6:30 p.m.