Marian went from the cusp of victory to the brink of elimination in what seemed like the blink of an eye.

If, in fact it’s true that it is always darkest before the dawn, then sunrise happened without a second to spare for the Fillies.

Facing match point in the fifth and deciding game, Marian reeled off three straight points to turn a possible gut-wrenching defeat into a dramatic victory.

When Alivia Karchner finished off the ultimate point with a kill, Marian had survived to pull out a 25-16, 25-22, 24-26, 16-25, 16-14 win over Sacred Heart Academy Tuesday night in the PIAA Class 1A semifinals.

“This is what a state semifinal match is supposed to be like,” said Marian coach John “Doc” Fallabel. “That is a really good team - one that is extremely well-coached - that we just beat. They pushed us to the limit.

“This was our 11th state semifinal since I’ve been coaching here, and it might have been our most exciting. What a win this was. I’m so happy for our girls, especially our seniors.”

The reason for the excitement was an incredible comeback from Sacred Heart Academy as it battled back after dropping the first two games and falling behind 18-8 in game three.

“Our girls are fighters,” said Lions coach Sam Moyerman. “We are young, and when it clicks we can be very good. That’s what happened in that third game, things started clicking. Then we just rode that momentum in Game 4 and early in Game 5.

“But Marian is a great team, and they eventually found a way to turn things around. I’ve been following them all year. You just know to get to the state finals somewhere along the way, you’re going to have to beat Marian or Nativity. So I wasn’t surprised we played them tonight, and I’m not surprised that they battled back when their backs were to the walls.”

In the fifth game, SHA jumped out to a 6-2 lead. With all the momentum clearly on the Lions’ side, Fallabel called a time out.

“We didn’t talk any strategy,” recalled Fallabel. “I just told the girls that this is our house, and we aren’t going to let them beat us here.

“I sent them back out on the court and then just spent the remainder of that fifth game screaming, yelling and cheering ... I’m almost speechless right now. It was an amazing finish.”

Following the timeout, Marian returned to the court and won nine of the next 10 points to turn the 6-2 deficit into an 11-7 lead.

“I think we played our best volleyball of the season for two-and-a-half sets,” said Marian senior Jamison Wheeler. “Give Sacred Heart credit for their comeback, but we have lots of great leadership on this team, and we were determined that we weren’t going to lose.

“When we came out of that timeout, everyone believed that we were going to find a way to pull it out.”

Karchner had three service points and an ace during the Marian run, while reserve Lauren Reaman stepped to the service line for the first time in the match and reeled off four clutch points - two of them finished off by Kelly Sullivan kills.

But just as quickly as the Fillies seized control, Sacred Heart once again went into rally mode, reeling off five straight points behind the serving of Erin Corcoran.

The Lions led 12-11, 13-12, and 14-13, but each time Marian rallied to tie the score. Sullivan and Megan Paisley both had huge kills for the Fillies during the stretch.

After Marian tied it at 14, Tatiana Zeleniak stepped to the line and delivered two serves that Sacred Heart struggled to receive. After a passing error on the Lions gave Marian its first match point of the night, Karchner made sure it didn’t go to waste with her 26th and final kill of the match.

“I can’t even put into words how incredibly proud I am of this entire team,” said Karchner. “We were so mentally strong after letting a big lead slip away; not a lot of teams would have been able to turn the momentum around like we did on a couple of occasions during that fifth set.

“That just made the victory even sweeter. Finishing off that last point to send us to the state championship match is a dream come true for me. This is just an incredible feeling.”

BY THE NUMBERS ... In addition to Karchner’s 26 kills, Paisley had seven, Sullivan had six and Rebecca Dzuranin had five for the Fillies. Sullivan and Dzuranin both added eight blocks. Dzuranin also led the way with six aces. Defensively, Zeleniak had 19 digs, Wheeler and Paisley had 13 each, and Karchner chipped in 11. Ashlyn Klitsch had 44 assists.

LUCKY SEVEN? ... This will be Marian’s seventh state final appearance during Fallabel’s 18-year tenure. The Fillies are 2-4 in state finals.

UP NEXT ... Marian (14-3) will face unbeaten Clarion (23-0) in the state title match on Saturday at 10:30 a.m. at Cumberland Valley High School in Mechanicsburg. Clarion swept Bishop Canevin, 25-14, 25-15, 25-14 in Tuesday night’s other semifinal.