Staff photo / Dan Hiner South Range setter Parker Zwingle positions a ball for a spike during the first set of Thursday’s Division V playoff match with Champion at LaBrae High School.

LEAVITTSBURG – There’s no substitute for overcoming adversity. And after a challenging Northeast 8 schedule, the South Range volleyball team saw plenty during the regular season.

The Raiders tapped into some of that prior experience and took care of Champion in straight sets to advance in the Division V playoffs on Thursday night. They won 25-13, 25-21, 25-22 at LaBrae High School.

“We’re one of the lower-seeded teams here, but I feel like we’re playing better than anybody in this bracket,” South Range head coach T.J. Irons said. “I’m proud of our girls, and that (NE8) schedule helps us get ready.”

South Range (13-10) was in control for the first set and a half.

The Raiders held a slim 5-3 lead in the opening period, but slowly, they began to extend the lead. A little while later it was 11-6, then 17-10 and then 21-13 before taking the set 25-13 on a kill by Taylor Dado.

South Range jumped on the Golden Flashes (16-7) early by taking a 9-0 lead in the second set. However, Champion cleaned up some communication errors, and the Flashes began to chip away at the lead.

“Once we stop communicating, things tend to fall apart, the mistakes start happening,” Champion head coach Kelly Henson said. “But they pulled it together. They’re such a great group of girls. They learned to trust each other and work hard, and they figured it out, out there and they came rolling out.”

Champion trailed 14-3 but eventually cut the deficit to 20-13. After another run, the Golden Flashes only trailed by a couple points, but Hayden Carey saw enough room between Champion’s formation to push the ball into a void. The point clinched a 25-21 win for the Raiders and provided a 2-0 lead.

The Flashes weren’t out of it, though. Champion started the third period strong, jumping out to a 4-0 lead, but the Raiders grabbed the momentum back.

Trailing 5-3, South Range rattled off seven straight points to take a 10-5 advantage. Another Champion run tied the third set at 13, and the two teams traded the lead a couple times. The Raiders later took a 23-22 lead, and they closed out the game when Champion was unable to get the ball back over the net, resulting in a 25-22 win in the third.

“They’re a great team,” South Range’s Anna Toy said. “Tournament season, it’s such a different atmosphere than in the (regular) season, and we knew we had to bring it. Everyone on the team contributed, and it was just really fun.”

The season came to a close Thursday night for the Golden Flashes. It was a defining season for Henson and the Champion. They finished with 16 wins, a byproduct of buying in three years ago during their coach’s first season and working individually to improve.

The senior class was pivotal to helping the Golden Flashes take the next step. The senior class consisted of Kennedy Caldwell, Kennedi Jones, Sophia Cogar and Taylor Gearhart.

“I’m so proud of these girls. … I”m gonna miss ’em,” Henson said. “I’m gonna miss the seniors, and they left a high standard. They come in, my standard is here and they gotta get here. They pushed it higher, and the girls below know and they want to reach that standard for them.”

South Range will take on Canton Central Catholic on Tuesday. CCC beat section host LaBrae in straight sets to begin Thursday’s doubleheader.

“I hadn’t seen Canton Central Catholic play all year. I did get to watch them play (before playing Champion),” Irons said. “They’re a good team. Well-coached, a lot of really good athletes, they play really hard, up the middle’s really impressive.”