The Panthers hope to be advancing to their third straight New York State Public High School Athletic Association Class D Final Four after their 1 p.m. match at LeRoy High School.

The Cuba-Rushford Rebels stand in their way.

Panama, which defeated Section V’s Bishop Kearney in 2016 at LeRoy High School and Section V champion C.G. Finney in last year’s regional at Daemen College, is certainly the more experienced of the two teams.

Three of the Panthers have played key roles on both of their state finalist teams while a fourth was a role player two years ago and a starter last year.

Panama’s Kylie Schnars attempts a spike while Chautauqua Lake’s Olivia Anderson goes up for a block and the Panthers’ Maci Johnson looks on during Tuesday night’s Section VI Class D Crossover match at Jamestown Community College’s Physical Education Complex.

“Having five returning players has definitely helped us,” Panama coach Tammy Hosier said Friday night after practice. ” … The fact that they’ve been in adverse situations, they realize that being a team is really what you have to do to be successful.

“It’s easy to say what you need to say … but you have to live it and own it,” Hosier added. “They’ve learned that lesson over the last three years.”

Senior Madalyn Bowen leads the team with 225 kills and 206 digs to go along with 28 aces while junior Natalie Angeletti is second with 224 kills, 164 blocks and 48 blocks to go along with 36 aces. Maci Johnson, another senior, has 39 aces, 34 kills, 164 digs and 45 assists. Finally, senior Alexys Marsh has 99 kills, 77 digs, 21 blocks and 13 aces.

“For some of you this is your third trip here,” Hosier said was her message Friday. “Just the experience and nerves should be a lot better going into this than it was three years ago. At the same time, three years ago we know how hungry we were and how much we wanted that. That’s what Cuba-Rushford is going to be feeling.”

Kylie Schnars, who wasn’t on the varsity squad two years ago, is maybe Panama’s most imposing threat. The 5-foot-11 junior leads the team with 85 blocks and is third with 173 kills.

Cuba-Rushford will counter with seniors Madison Witcher (145 kills, 25 blocks), Kirsten Snyder (101 kills, 65 digs), Bree Kus (95 kills, 72 digs) and Rebekah Clark (299 digs); junior Kate Howe (463 assists, 84 digs); and sophomore Summer Mattison (87 kills, 14 blocks).

The Rebels advanced to their first Far West Regional under head coach Josh Tompkins by beating No. 3 Byron-Bergen, 21-25, 25-20, 25-13, 25-13, in the Class D-1 final last Saturday; and Bishop Kearney, 23-25, 25-17, 20-25, 25-23, 25-16, in the Class D Crossover on Thursday.

Panama had an equally impressive road to LeRoy, beating rival Maple Grove in the Section VI Class D-2 semifinals and North Collins in the Class D-2 finals before an unlikely comeback from a 2-0 deficit against Class D-1 champion Chautauqua Lake on Tuesday night.

“Chautauqua Lake came out so strong. After the second game I told them, ‘We know we can do this. We have to believe and play together,'” Hosier said. “They rallied together, stayed positive and whittled away. That’s definitely a positive going into this game.”

The Panthers are beginning to notice similarities between this season’s run and their 2016 run to a state title when they beat Maple Grove in the sectional semifinals and North Collins in the final before topping Bishop Kearney at LeRoy in the Far West Regional.

“So many things have mirrored that season,” Hosier said. “Everything has been similar to two years ago. That’s really fueled them. We want to go back and do what we did two years ago.”

Hosier’s girls are hoping today continues that trend and the season ends the same way next weekend — with a state title in Glens Falls.

“They are definitely in a good place,” Hosier said. “They were tired and sore. I was glad we had a few days off. They are definitely looking forward to (today).”