EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – It doesn't get much closer than that.

Southeast Missouri yielded a two-set lead and had to come from behind in set five to overtake SIUE volleyball 25-20, 25-22, 19-25, 22-25, 19-17 Friday night at the Vadalabene Center.

SIUE, now 9-15 overall and 5-6 in the Ohio Valley Conference, amassed a season-high 77 kills and 122 digs.

"We earned 77 kills. That's phenomenal, but clearly that doesn't win a full match," said SIUE Head Coach Leah Johnson.

"There are many positives we had in this match. We were offensive to no end. Mallory (Mangun) moved the ball around well," added Johnson. Mangun bested her career high in assists with 67.

SIUE sophomore middle hitter Kristen Torre led all players with a career-high 22 kills and four service aces.

"I was pleased with how Kristen Torre took swings. They were high, aggressive, and had heat on them."

The Cougars maintained their composure after going down two sets. Southeast Missouri, led by 18 kills total from Colleen Yarber, made just three attack errors in the first two sets.

The Redhawks, 14-13 overall and 6-5 in the OVC, took advantage of 33 SIUE errors and finished with 13 blocks. Emily Coon led Southeast with six blocks.

SIUE's offense was helped by a strong defense that kept the ball in play. Libero Chelsea Colclasure's 39 digs was the second most digs ever in a match for SIUE. Cori Harris added 25 digs, and six players overall had 10 or more digs.

The Cougars made their way back in impressive fashion in sets three and four. Alicia Streetar had five of her season-high 15 kills in the third set. Kelsey Augustine, who had five kills in set four, matched her season high with 15 kills.

Set five looked promising for the Cougars when they held an 8-4 lead as the teams switched sides. Southeast Missouri came back to tie the match 12-12, avoided one match point, and won on a kill by Coon.

SIUE returns to action Saturday with a 2 p.m. match against UT Martin.