Xavier begins its bid for a fourth straight 5A-I state girls volleyball championship Tuesday night with a revamped lineup that has continued to win although more laboriously than earlier in the season.

Xavier (37-5) hosts No. 16 seed and Fiesta Region rival Red Mountain in its state  tourney opener. Xavier had to shuffle its lineup about six weeks ago when standout junior outside hitter Katarina Schulz was sidelined (and has been since) due to illness.

"Kat's probably missed about two-thirds of the season," Xavier coach Tim McHale said. "We've been fortunate with the depth we have to adjust. Abby Hornacek, Bridget Bohman and Brittany Rhodes have come in or moved around. They've done a nice job keeping things together for us."

Xavier prepared for state last week with three Fiesta Region matches, all requiring more than three games to decide. The Gators beat Red Mountain, 3-1, Desert Vista 3-1 and Hamilton 3-2.

The tournament's No. 2 seed, Gilbert High, opened the season with its top hitter, Macey Gardner, sidelined due to a hamstring injury. The Tigers found confidence and depth in Gardner's absence. They lost only one regular-season power-point match -- to Xavier.

Two other Fiesta Region teams that haven't been able to beat Xavier this year are No. 3 seed Hamilton (32-6) and No. 4 seed Desert Vista. If the Huskies and Thunder reach the semis, they likely will face Gilbert and Xavier, respectively, in the semis come Saturday.

The only schools outside of the top four seeds to beat a No. 1-4 seed this season are No. 10 Mountain Pointe and No. 8 Salpointe, which beat last month and in September, respectively.

The other first-round 5A-I state playoffs matchups Tuesday are No. 9 North at No. 8 Salpointe, No. 12 Desert Ridge at No. 5 Mountain Ridge, No. 13 Kofa at No. 4 Desert Vista, No. 14 Maryvale at No. 3 Hamilton, No. 11 Corona del Sol at No. 6 Basha, No. 10 Mountain Pointe at No. 7 Highland and No. 5 Chandler at No. 2 Gilbert.

Quarterfinal matches are set for  Thursday at 7 p.m. at the sites of the higher seed. Semis are Saturday at 4 and 6 p.m. at North Canyon High School. the 5A-I title game is Nov. 10 at 8 p.m. at Mesquite High School.