Three years ago, there was no place like the road, at least for Cary volleyball coach Philip Goodloe. The Imps’ then freshmen saw the Goodloe-coached club win all of its matches away from home.

Now back on a renovated Walnut Street campus, Goodloe and his now 12 seniors know of no place like home. The Imps’ 25-16, 25-17, 25-20 Senior Night sweep on Oct. 9 of archrival Apex completed an undefeated home campaign for the Tri-Eight champions, who will host an opening round NCHSAA 4-A playoff match Saturday.

“We keep playing better and better. We’ve gotten out of playing to the level of our opponents,” Goodloe said. “There was no sense of urgency. And now, there is.”

Brittany Campbell put down two of her 10 kills on the match’s first two points to give Cary an opening set advantage it did not relinquish. Campbell had five kills in the stanza — a feat matched by teammate Brittany Lysik in the final set.

A Lysik ace secured the Imps’ largest lead (24-14) of the first game.

“We’ve learned to not get down,” Goodloe said. “And even if we do get down by one or two, they just stop and relax. And they do have skill.”

The second set included seven ties, with the Cougars taking a 15-14 lead on a Cary hitting error. Apex’s last lead was at 2-1 in the third game during which the teams tied as late as 17 apiece.

“We didn’t come out to put balls away. We played to stay in the game,” Apex coach Nikki O’Connell said. “Cary came to play.”

Katie Hill, who forced the tie at 17, recorded 10 kills for the Cougars, the lone conference team to defeat the Imps heading into Senior Night. Apex played the second match, however, without a former starter, and it was the Cougars’ first match since revelations it had used an ineligible player became public.

O’Connell said her team was not influenced by any distractions. Apex will not have to forfeit any wins because of the eligibility situation, a fact for which Goodloe is grateful, at least for pride’s sake.

“I would not like to have an undefeated (Tri-Eight) regular season like that,” he said. “It shouldn’t affect the way we play.”