FOUNATIAN SPRINGS – Adversity was knocking at the doorstep of the Panther Valley volleyball team Monday night in Cesari-Hope gymnasium on the campus of North Schuylkill Junior Senior High School,

A Panther team that had lost just once in 22 previous matches this season, did what it has done for most of the season as it rolled to victories in the first two games of its Schuylkill League quarterfinal playoff game against Mahanoy Area.

Another PV sweep looked right on target.

But Mahanoy had other ideas. The Golden Bears won the third set and gave the Panthers a fourth set scare.

In the end, however, the two-time defending Schuylkill League champion Panthers did what great teams do — they found a way to win.

Panther Valley’s 25-15, 25-22, 25-27, 25-20 victory sends it into Wednesday’s semifinals against Pottsville.

“We sometimes don’t make things easy,” said Panther Valley senior Jenna Dubosky.

“It’s usually is a lot of fun, but tonight we felt some pressure,” added Jenna’s younger sister, Erika Dubosky.

The Panthers’ Oliva Dacey said the team never lost confidence.

“They came at us hard, but we held our own, and in the end, did what we needed to do,” she said.

Dacey was a huge reason why the Panthers were able to do that, as the veteran had 19 kills and four digs.

The Panthers had run roughshod over the Bears in a three-game sweep just a few weeks ago (25-18, 25-23, 25-15), but this one wasn’t quite as easy.

“I told them we came out ready, we were excited, but then we don’t play to our potential,” said first-year PV coach Emilie Baker.

PV opened the match with a full-throttle, pedal-to-the-metal approach, jumping out to a 19-7 lead and cruising to the opening-set win. The Dubosky sisters and Dacey were leading the way while Alexis Cooper, Madison Heckman, Natalie White and Gina Steber were also contributing.

Even though the Panthers pulled off a second set win, there was an air of uncertainty throughout that set. Baker knew, the fans sensed it, and the players were not feeling the good vibe.

“We were not making things happen,” said Jenna Dubosky. “We started to stand around, and they started to play very hard.”

Without a doubt, the Bears were awakened and were spurred on by Emily Lawrence and Amelia Fetco.

“We’re young, we’re learning and I thought we fought like all heck,” said Mahanoy Area coach Jason Green, knowing his team was going to take this match and build momentum for a postseason District 11 run.

The Bears crawled in front 14-10 in the third set, and when they seized a 20-17 lead, the pressure- cooker was building. Though Panther Valley finally tied the game, there wasn’t enough to grab onto, and the Bears pulled off the win, forcing a fourth set.

“They’ve got a great coach, and they know what they’re doing,” said Baker. “We deserved to lose that third set. We let them go out and take control of the court.”

And they almost let the Bears win the fourth set, too. Mahanoy kept hanging around and when it tied things at 20-20, someone had to step up for the Panthers — and several did.

Jenna Dubosky drove a kill emphatically to the floor, Dacey duplicated it with her own kill, Erika Dubosky used her superb athleticism for another point, and Heckman was serving up an ace while the Panthers closed with a flurry on a 5-0 run.

HELPING OUT … Lawrence, the senior Mahanoy outside hitter, was outstanding. She came up big throughout the game, finishing with 12 kills and 12 digs.

GOTCHA … Jenna Dubosky had 23 digs and six blocks to go along with her 27 kills. Erika Dubosky added 16 kills and 14 digs.

UP NEXT … The Panthers will now play Pottsville on Wednesday at Minersville in the semifinals. The Tide is the only team to beat PV this season.