The Panther Valley girls' volleyball team dug deep and found a way to defeat highly regarded Pottsville on Tuesday in a pulsating Schuylkill League match.

With their sweat spewing on the floor and their fist clinching in determination, the Panthers outlasted the Tide in a five-set thriller.For Panther Valley, it was all about believing and willing itself to victory. The final set alone was worth the price of admission as the Panthers needed volleyball's equivilent of overtime to eventually pull out an 18-16 victory.The loud explosion following the victory was a relief of anxiety and nerves that had beset the Panthers, who looked to be in control after shaking off a 25-21 loss in the opening set, to forge back-to-back impressive set wins, 25-19 and 25-11.But Pottsville roared back and collectively found its composure to tie the match with a 25-21 fourth set win."All I told the girls was to believe - believe in themselves," said Panther Valley coach Nancy Filer. "We're young and we made some mistakes but we overcame those errors."The win kept Panther Valley's perfect season in check as it improved to 7-0 overall and 5-0 in league play.Panther Valley got terrific play from Christina Dacey, Jenna Dubosky, Richelle Filer, Danielle Hudicka, Emilee Kwaak, Sydney Clouser and Chloe Markovich throughout the contest."Every one of our players played a big role," Filer said. "It's a team effort, and they believed they could win. We got rattled there for a few serves but we found a way to win because they believed they could win."Clouser without a doubt was dynamic in the Libero position. She came up 32 digs, including some uncanny saves to keep points alive. Freshman Dubosky checked in with six huge blocks, five kills and nine service points. Toss in Markovich's eight kills, six blocks and six service points, and it shows up as balance in the decision.After dropping the first set, the Panthers stormed through the second set, opening up a 16-6 lead thanks in part to a pair of aces off serves from Dubosky. Kwaak eventually slammed home a kill that to close out the 25-19 win.The Panthers made it look easy in the third set, riding the strong serves of Dacey, who had five aces as the Panthers jumped ahead 16-5 and coasted to a 25-11 win.The Tide (4-4, 3-2) fought back for a match-tying 25-21 win, leaving coach Maria Sherakas feeling good about the effort."We really battled in the fourth set and I thought we were going to win that fifth set the way we came back," she said. "It was a great effort on both sides."Indeed that was the case. Madison Sherakas, daughter of the Tide coach, registered 11 kills, with 6-1 Kyra Schenk registering nine kills. But that tandem couldn't save the Tide from the final set loss.The Panthers worked up a frenzy and with it an 11-3 lead. Pottsville never folded and roared back to tie it at 15-15 and then grabbed a 16-15 lead on an ace from Chole Bledsoe. But Dacey tied it for the Panthers with a kill, before a Filer block and Kwaak kill closed it out.RUNNING ON ADRENLIN ... The Panthers managed to stay afloat in the fifth set overcoming nerves and turning to the sensational play of Dacey, Filer and Kwaak.MAKING A STATEMENT ... Panther Valley may have asserted itself as the team to beat in the District 11 Class AA race.