Zoë Lam is an ASU Cronkite School of Journalism student assigned to cover Perry High School for AZPreps365.com. 

GILBERT – In a nail-biting first-round playoff matchup on Thursday,  the Highland Hawks  outlasted the Perry Pumas in five sets (25-22, 25-22, 24-26, 15-25, 16-14) to advance to the quarterfinals. 

Perry, ranked 10th in the 6A volleyball rankings, refused to go down quietly after dropping the first two sets. The Pumas battled neck and neck with the Hawks through both frames, losing each by just three points. But in the third, something clicked, creating a switch in momentum.

Led by freshman Sophia Gregg, who finished with 22 kills, Perry fought back with intensity to take the set 26-24.

“We really went all out and wanted a win against (Highland) for our season not to be over,” Gregg said. “I thought we did really well until the last couple of points, but we tried our hardest.”

Gregg is accompanied on the court by her older sister, Ella, who is a junior this year.

The Pumas carried that momentum into the fourth set, dominating 25-15 behind Gregg’s relentless offense and Kaitlin James’ dominant presence at the net. Despite nursing a hip injury sustained in practice earlier this week, James was a defensive wall – blocking nearly everything that came her way and tallying 12 kills of her own. 

That set up a decisive fifth set. Perry jumped out to an early 4-1 lead but the seventh-ranked Hawks – powered by their Division 1 commits – Lila Ellsworth to Utah State and Isabella Stojkovic to Northwestern – proceeded to show their strength on every area of the court. 

Once Highland got rolling, they proved nearly unstoppable. But before the Hawks could pull away, the set turned into a tug-of-war that perfectly reflected the intensity of the entire match. 

The set was tied five times, even up until point 14. Each point carried more weight than the last until Highland finally broke through the last two points to a 16-14 victory to end the night.

Highland coach Tait Nelson celebrated his first playoff win with his team, noting that they have no plans of slowing down anytime soon.

“We just try to have the best energy and effort. It starts with our sideline,” Nelson said. “Our sideline is amazing at keeping energy and momentum on our side and that just pours into the court.

“No matter who we play next, we’re just going to control what we can control and keep doing what we do every match.”

Though the loss ended Perry’s season, the Pumas have plenty to build on. With just one senior graduating and a roster loaded with young talent, they’re positioned to return even stronger next year.

“At the beginning of this year, I didn’t know if this team would have the fight that they showed tonight,” Perry coach Andrew Yamashiro said. “We will return everybody, so we should be in that situation where we’re thinking, ‘Why can’t it be us?’”

Highland, now 21-2 overall and still undefeated in their region, will match up against the No. 2 Corona del Sol Aztecs on Monday at 6 p.m.