The St. Albert Saintes used some big runs to take control of the Class 1A Region 2 Final against Riverside on Tuesday night at Tri-Center High School. The Saintes came away with a 3-0 victory 25-19, 25-7, 25-19 and will head to the State tournament for the fourth time in five years.

The Bulldogs got off to a nice start on the night with a 5-1 lead to begin the opening set. It was a good back and forth battle for much of that set until St. Albert used a five point run to go ahead 18-16. Riverside got the next two to tie it up, but the Saintes ripped off 4 straight and 3 straight to seal the win.

The second set went a little differently. After a 3-3 start, the Saintes went on a 12 point rally to grab control of the set and moved on to a 25-7 victory.

The third set was largely a back and forth affair with 11 ties before St. Albert grabbed momentum with a 10 point run. The Bulldogs fought hard to the end but the Saintes ultimately won the match with a 25-19 set 3 score.

St. Albert Head Coach Angie Lantz said her team played with great confidence across the board.

St. Albert missed out on a trip to state last year with a five set loss in the Regional Final but made it to the Semifinals in 2016 and 2017. Coach Lantz said the girls were motivated to get back to the State Tournament.

The Saintes will play in the Quarterfinals on Wednesday evening at the US Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids.