EBEN JUNCTION — It was a fight to the finish here Thursday night as Superior Central outlasted a determined Big Bay de Noc volleyball team 3-1 (18-25, 25-23, 26-24, 25-23).

Although the Cougars led most of this non-conference match, the Black Bears didn’t let them off the hook easily.

Superior Central senior Kate McGee opened the third set with an eight-point service run.

Following a passing error, the Cougars got a sideout and extended their lead to 12-1 on a service ace by junior Marissa Strohm.

The Cougars led 17-5 following a Big Bay defensive error.

After a sideout, junior Caragan Thill served for nine consecutive points, helping the Black Bears climb within 17-14.

Following an exchange of sideouts, the Cougars surged to a 23-16 advantage on little bit of miscommunication by the Black Bears.

The Black Bears answered with an eight-point run, taking a 24-23 lead on an ace by sophomore Payton Pederson.

Superior Central got a sideout on a service error, then regained the lead on an ace by junior Marissa Strohm and secured that set on a Black Bears’ hitting miscue.

“They’ve come a long way,” Cougars’ coach Kris Bray said. “We knew it was going to be hard. They had a couple good servers that allowed them to catch. I’m happy with the way the girls played. They also played well. I thought it was a very competitive match on both sides.”

In the fourth set, a kill by sophomore Peyton Adams gave the Cougars a 16-9 advantage.

Big Bay then got a sideout on a kill by Pederson, who followed with a five-point service run to bring the Black Bears within 16-15.

Superior Central gained a 22-18 cushion on back-to-back aces by sophomore Peyton Smith.

The Black Bears tied the score at 23 on a Cougars’ hitting miscue.

Moments later, the Cougars sealed the verdict on a kill by Adams.

“We’ve developed some mental toughness and made them work as hard as we had to work,” Big Bay coach Angie Carley. “We really focused on going back to the fundamentals. Caragan is a driving force in general. She’s a good defensive player and is not afraid to get up and hit the ball. As a whole, we’ve come a long way.”

The Cougars took an 8-2 lead in the opener before the Black Bears trimmed their deficit to 8-5 on a hitting error.

Superior Central led 11-7 following a hitting miscue by Big Bay before it rallied to tie the score at 14 on back-to-back hitting errors by the Cougars.

A kill by Stuer gave the Cougars an 18-16 lead prior to Thill closing that set with an eight-point run.

“Kylie is strong,” Bray said. “She has probably grown about six inches since last year and has come a long way. She had a good night at the net.”

The Cougars gained a 17-9 cushion in the second set prior to a kill by Pederson for a sideout.

Big Bay shaved its deficit to 17-13 on a kill by Pederson, then rallied for a 19-18 lead on a hitting miscue by the Cougars.

A kill by Stuer provided the Cougars with a 24-19 cushion before the Black Bears got within a point on an ace by senior Lila Morris.

The Cougars, however, didn’t allow the Black Bears to gain the upper hand, pulling even at a set apiece.

Thill hit five aces to go with six kills, two blocks and seven digs. Pederson added five aces and six digs. Peterson contributed three aces, eight assists and four digs and freshman Destiny Bleau was Big Bay’s defensive leader with 12 digs. Senior Tatum Harvey had eight digs.

Superior Central visits Rapid River Tuesday. Big Bay, which concluded its regular season, travels to Munising for its Division 4 district opener at Munising in early November.

“I wish districts started next week,” Carley said. “Although, I think we have momentum going into the district. We held our own with them the first time which gives us hope for the district.”

Big Bay de Noc — Thill (five aces, six kills, two blocks, seven digs); Pederson (five aces, six digs); Peterson (three aces, eight assists, four digs); Morris (two aces, one block, one assist, one dig); Bleau (three kills, one block, 12 digs); Harvey (eight digs).