The first ever boys volleyball sectional tournament game for Warsaw came against a familiar playoff foe. Facing off against Penn, the Tigers battled valiantly for four sets, but were unable to finish things off in a 3-1 loss.
The Tigers were able to enjoy a quick start to the match, scoring the first two points of the night as well as four of the first five. Play for the Tigers was especially crisp early on, as the visitors on the scoreboard looked like a well-oiled machine as they held onto their early lead against the Kingsmen.
Penn was able to tie things up momentarily at 6-6, but were unable to crawl past Warsaw just yet. Eventually, the home side took its first lead of the night at 8-7 after shaking off some rust early on. Just as quickly as they had fallen behind, the Tigers were able to come up with some answers and jump back in front.
Both offenses continued to improve as the match wore on, with each side adding as highlight-reel kill on the middle of the set. Warsaw regained a bit of control here, going up by as many as four at 14-10.
As the end of the first set grew nearer and nearer, the Tigers lead began to grow larger and larger. The Kingsmen were forced to call a timeout trailing 19-13 and with all of the momentum on the side of the visitors.
The break did well to get the home side back into things, as they were able to erase the deficit completely and jump back in front at 22-21. They didn’t stop there, riding that wave all the way to a 25-23 first set victory. Despite being in front for a majority of the opening game, the Tigers found themselves down 1-0 after Penn stole the set.
Things remained incredibly close as the second set got going, with neither side able to find an edge in the early points. Eventually, it was the Kingsmen that were able to find some separation, using a short run to extend their lead to 7-3.
Warsaw was able to answer, scoring five of the next six points to tie things up in a hurry. This led to yet another stretch of highly-contested play, with both sides fighting hard for each and every point. For a while it seemed that no matter how hard the Tigers tried, they could keep things close, but couldn’t get over the hump.
It remained a two-point game as Penn inched closer to 20 points, now leading 18-15. An ace the point after led to Warsaw calling its first timeout of the set. Similar to how the late timeout worked for the Kingsmen in the previous game, the Tigers came roaring back here, cutting things down to one. A few points later, they’d stick with it and tie things up at 20 all.
It looked as if Penn was going to cruise the rest of the way, as the home side scored the next three points. However, Warsaw refused to give up, scoring three straight themselves to create a thrilling finish. In the end, the Kingsmen scored the final two points of the set for a second straight 25-23 win that put them up 2-0 in the match.

    Junior Logan Carl of Warsaw bumps the ball as teammate Finn Bailey shouts instructions in the background...Nieter
With their season on the brink, the Tigers were able to get off to a strong start in the do-or-die third set. However, the early three-point lead was quickly erased and things began anew again at 6-6.
In a night full of close sets, this third one was no different from the others. The largest lead for either team over the next 10 points was two, with Penn in front for a large portion of time. As was the case in the prior set, the Tigers were able to remain in striking distance for large periods of time, just unable to make the move to the front.
Warsaw took a brief lead at 15-14, but the Kingsmen quickly jumped back in front. Both teams held the lead for short stretches during this time as the 25-point threshold neared closer and closer. Eventually, it was the Tigers that seized momentum by going up 20-17 and forcing a Penn timeout.
Despite the best efforts of the Kingsmen, Warsaw was able to hang on for a 25-23 win of its own to extend things to at least one more set.
With some momentum finally on their side, the Tigers got off to a fast start in the third set. Warsaw blitzed the home side with a 7-3 run to start things off, leading to a quick Penn timeout. It seemed to work, as four straight points for the Kingsmen tied things up immediately afterwards.
After the early runs for both teams, back-and-forth play resumed with each side looking to seize momentum. Penn was able to take a small two-point lead here and used it to remain in front for a bit of time, but it was still anybody’s game to win.
After trailing for a large chunk of time, Warsaw retook the lead at 20-18, an incredibly timely point in the match. Despite the Kingsmen taking the lead briefly later on in the set, the Tigers still found themselves a point away from a fifth and final set. However, they left the door open and allowed the home side to tie things up at 24. Two points later, they won the set and match 26-24.
Warsaw will return next season.