DENVER – Chadron State showed Saturday that it is a much-improved volleyball program.
 
No. 9 MSU Denver showed it still has some skills, too.
 
The Roadrunners bounced back from a second-set surprise and finished strong for a 3-1 victory at the Auraria Event Center, extending their league-record in regular-season RMAC matches to 42.
 
Outside hitter Riley Anderson had 18 kills and middle blocker Ember Canty had 13 kills while hitting an error-free .765 as the Roadrunners improved to 7-3 overall and 2-0 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.
 
Chadron State, coming off a Friday night upset at Colorado School of Mines – beating the Orediggers for the first time since 2007 – was attempting to defeat MSU Denver for the first time since 2004. But the Roadrunners extended their winning streak in the series to 32 in a 25-20, 25-27, 25-16, 25-14 decision.
 
"Chadron was really feisty," MSU Denver coach Jenny Glenn said. "They did some things to make us uncomfortable, got second opportunities on coverage balls and extended rallies."
 
MSU Denver hit .318 for the match, including .378 in the final two sets.
 
"Tonight was a great night for our offense, specifically our middle blockers," Glenn said. "They had a lot of success throughout the course of the match, and I love the trust and confidence that our setters have in them. It's really opening up our offense as a whole."
 
McClinton teamed with Canty in the middle and had eight kills on .429 hitting, while right-side hitter Maddy Williams had a career-high 13 kills while hitting .455 and outside hitter Maddie Lindsay added 12 kills. Abbie McCrimmon had a career-high 22 digs, while setters Delaney Eckhardt (31) and Amela Qershia (29) combined for 60 assists.
 
Chadron State, which fought off four set points before winning the second set, hit .271 through two sets but had just nine kills on .115 hitting in the final two sets.
 
"We did a good job as the night progressed of slowing them defensively," Glenn said. "Their offense was going strong at the beginning of the match, but we were able to bring those numbers down. I liked the adjustments that we made, and how we got feistier as the match went on."
 
MSU Denver is on the road next weekend, starting with a Friday night showdown at No. 12 Colorado Mesa.