POTTSVILLE - Never underestimate the underdog.

And never take anything for granted.

Panther Valley wasn’t the favorite to win the Schuylkill Volleyball League championship. That was bestowed upon Pottsville - before the first set was even played this season.

So what happened in the end?

The Panthers are wearing the crown after a furious, stunning rally at fabled Martz Hall Thursday evening.

As it did Tuesday in the semifinals against Nativity, PV came back to win a five-set match.

Panther Valley slid through the first set with a 25-20 win, but then had its feet knocked out from under them with back-to-back losses to the Tide in sets two (25-23) and three (25-20).

However, it was deja vu all over again for the Panthers.

After battling back from a 2-1 deficit against Nativity two days earlier, PV did it again against Pottsville - though this one was much sweeter.

The Panthers pulled out a thrilling 26-24 in the fourth set to force a deciding fifth and a classic finish.

While it was stressful, Panther Valley never wavered. It turned to its senior leader Riley McArdle, along with classmate Maddison Maynard. Juniors Emma Dacey and Natalie Vermillion also stepped up, while Carolina Breslin caught fire at the right time - as did Abby Benack and Morgan Orsulak.

After forcing a 6-6 tie, the Panthers used a surge to break away and grab a 14-9 advantage.

When Pottsville failed to return the ensuing serve, the lid was lifted off the PV side and a roar was heard as the Panthers were crowned Schuylkill League champions for the first time since 2018.

“I’ll tell you what, the best thing that happened, literally was Nativity,” said Panther coach Emilie Baker referring to the come-from-behind win against the Green Wave. “We used that as a confidence thing; our girls knew that after we were down 2-1 to Pottsville, we just dug harder and maintained our poise and confidence.”

Few probably gave Panther Valley a chance after falling behind. After all, Pottsville had dropped only three sets the entire season.

“Yeah, we knew that coming in, but we knew that we were a good team as well,” Baker said. “Heck, we only had one loss all season. We’ve got a great group of kids that are very determined to win. We play very well as a team.”

The Tide looked like a 20-0 team during a second-set win to tie the match, as they turned to their biggest asset in 5-11 freshman middle hitter Anna Burke, who finished the evening with 19 kills.

The set featured nine ties until Pottsville took charge and moved in front 21-15. The Panthers, however, weren’t conceding and crept to within 24-23. Unfortunately for them, a non-forced error closed out the set and tied the match 1-1.

“I wasn’t too upset or too excited when they took that second set,” Maynard said. “We just had to keep pushing.”

It was looking bleak, though, when PV dropped the third set - especially after having held an 18-15 lead. The Tide ran off seven unanswered points, with freshman Rhyan Brennan starting things off with a kill. Two Panther errors and slams from Burke and Lainey Dusel put Pottsville ahead and seemingly in control.

But Panther Valley remained composed.

“You need to keep working, it was a crazy game,” McArdle said. “It’s a game of runs. We got our act together and kept pushing. We knew that we could come back. We did it a few times during the season, losing and needing to get the last three sets. We did it against Nativity, so we had that drive.”

In the crucial fourth set, a boost midway allowed PV to soar to a 21-14 lead. The Panthers could have crumbled when Pottsville worked its way back to a 23-22 advantage.

The tide, no pun intended, turned for Panther Valley on a soft kill by Vermillion to force a 23-23 tie. The two teams then exchanged points before two unforced errors by the Tide gave the win to Baker’s club and forced a fifth and final set.

“I wasn’t worried, we knew that we had to keep pushing,” Vermillion said. “I wasn’t nervous, not one bit. I felt comfortable even when we headed to the fifth set. It’s all about pushing.”

And in that final set, it was all about a will to win - which the Panthers did.

In the end, as it happens often, the underdog dug deeper.

ADDING IT UP … PV sophomore libero Breslin was on her game with 44 digs, four more than her superb effort against Nativity.

KILLING IT … McArdle registered 25 kills, 23 digs and eight assists. Orsulak registered 26 assists, nine kills and 28 digs. Pottsville’s Dusel picked up 16 kills and 27 assists, and Brennan had 11 kills and 11 digs.

SHE SAID IT … “PV’s a great team, they kept us out of (our) system. We gave up a lot of free balls, but it’s a credit to them,” Pottsville coach Marie Sherakas said.

COME BACK … “Tuesday was a very big thing for us,” said PV’s Baker. “We know being down that we can come back and win. These girls showed nothing but dedication and heart. And we won it!”