In a nail-biter throughout the night, Southwestern proved time and time again that when it came time to determine a winner, the Trojans were the best of the best.

Class B2 champion Southwestern defeated the B1 champion Chiefs 28-26, 25-21, and 25-23 at North Tonawanda High School.

“I think our girls knew what they needed to do. They all want this so bad,” said Southwestern head coach Alexis Johnson. “… They just fought for every single point.”

After a back-and-forth start to the game, Southwestern trailed Iroquois 23-20 in the opening set.

Southwestern’s three seniors Jaidyn Newhouse, Lauren Cotter and McKenna Bodganowicz receive the Section VI Class B crossover plaque after Friday’s win over Iroquois. P-J photo by Braden Carmen

“I was so scared coming into this game. Iroquois was amazing. They fought two really hard games already this week and they busted their butts. They work so hard on every single play,” Johnson said. “… I knew we were going to have a challenge on our hands.”

But when challenged, instead of allowing their season slip away, the Trojans showed the heart of a champion to always answer back.

Southwestern rallied with three straight points to even the score at 23-all, then took a one-point lead on a kill from senior captain Lauren Cotter. The match was deadlocked again at 24-all, 25-all and 26-all until two straight points from Southwestern, capped by a kill from Cotter, finished the first set off in favor of the Trojans.

“Our coach just told us we were getting flustered. We just needed to calm down and regroup ourselves,” Cotter said. “We needed to go back on that court and play like a team, like we usually do, and we’d get it together and win.”

In moments as tight as Friday’s entire game was from start to finish, the tension of postseason play for Southwestern — especially its three seniors with their high school volleyball careers on the line — was consistent, but never overwhelming.

“It feels really stressful, not only on me, but my whole team. We’re all stressed, but we have each other through it to keep us calm and collected,” Cotter said. “I’m just glad I have my team to stay with me through all the stress.”

The nerves disappeared just as quickly as they emerged, as Southwestern answered the call every time it fell behind by quickly evening the score, and eventually, regaining the lead.

The first set could not have been much closer, as neither team led by more than four points at any point. In fact, that statistic carried throughout the entire match, as no more than four points separated the two teams at any time through all three sets.

In the second set, the two teams split the first 20 points evenly at 10 apiece. Iroquois then went on a 3-0 run, which prompted a Southwestern timeout. The Trojans immediately responded with a 3-0 run of their own, with Cotter serving as the Trojans evened the score again.

Each team also went on a 3-0 run later in the set, prompting the opposing team to call a timeout each time.

“It was crazy. This was probably the most intense game we’ve played all year,” Cotter said. “Even though it was really intense, I think our key to winning this game was staying calm.”

At 21-all, Southwestern responded from a timeout with the final four points of the set, including back-to-back kills from Cotter to finish the set with a 2-0 lead. The four-point advantage to finish the set was the most separation between the teams in the entire set.

“We always fought back. Even if we got down a few points, we were quick to bounce back — which was sometimes a struggle for us during the season, but we did it tonight, and it was awesome,” Johnson said.

The third set was just as close as the two that preceded it. Southwestern called a timeout down 8-5, but rallied to even the score at 11-all. Iroquois pulled ahead again, 15-11, before the Trojans responded to even the score with five of the next six points.

Iroquois led again 21-19 but just as the Trojans did in the first set, they refused to quit as the Chiefs inched closer to a set victory.

The third game was tied at 21-all, 22-all and 23-all, as the two teams traded points back and forth, as they did all night long. But also like the night as a whole, when there was a chance to finish, the Trojans capitalized.

As Cotter spiked the ball and the Chiefs faulted on the return, the final whistle sounded and the Trojans embraced to celebrate one of the most competitive three-set victories imaginable.

“We came into this game thinking they were a really hard team to beat. We knew we had to give it our all and step it up since (Wednesday’s) game at sectionals,” Cotter said. “We did that, and I’m really glad we won. … It really feels awesome. To win against such a hard team really felt amazing.”

Cotter fittingly ended the contest with its final point, as she led the Trojans with 19 kills on the evening. She also led Southwestern with 11 digs.

“Lauren played great, she always does,” Johnson said.

Southwestern’s other two seniors, Jaidyn Newhouse and McKenna Bodganowicz, also came up big to help continue their careers on the court together. Newhouse had eight kills, while Bodganowicz had nine digs. Southwestern libero Payton Swartz also had nine digs, while setter Bella Sirianni had 26 assists.

“I couldn’t have asked for better. They all worked so hard tonight,” Johnson said. “… Everybody just did an awesome job.”

The Trojans ran through the entire Section VI playoffs without dropping a set.

“I think it says a lot about their work ethic, how hard they are working throughout the playoffs. We’ve talked all year long about what this team could be, the potential they have, and I think it’s starting to show out in the playoffs,” Johnson said.

At a school like Southwestern, with so much success in other sports over the years, this season’s team has proven that volleyball belongs on the same stage as some of the district’s other elite programs.

“We’ve got some great names coming from the school, and great athletes always, but it feels great to take this one,” Johnson said.

Southwestern now advances to the Far West Regional match against the Section V champion next Saturday at Victor High School. The winner of that contest will advance to the state final four in Glens Falls on Nov. 18-19.

As for a trip to states, the Trojans already have their outfits picked out, and Johnson joked that the outfits were not cheap. As playful of a comment as it was, next weekend is all business for the Trojans, as they look to clinch the first trip to states that anyone associated with the program is aware of.

“States have always been the goal,” Johnson said. “… We’re happy to be at this point, but states would mean the world to us.”