For all of the points and rallies and spectacular defensive plays, Heritage Christian’s five-set victory over Underwood came down to something as simple as a rotation.

Trailing 11-9 in the fifth set, Heritage’s 6-2 middle blocker Bella Lien moved into the front row. Suddenly, the most imposing hitter in the match was right where the Eagles’ needed her.

“Bella, in terms of kills and blocks, is just a dominant presence,” Heritage coach Tom Fuglestad said.

Lien came through with four kills to give momentum back to Heritage and the No. 4 seeded Eagles held on to defeat an Underwood team that answered nearly every challenge thrown at it.

“When Lien rotated to the front, that was tough,” Underwood coach Diane Ross said.

Heritage lost the first game 25-20, but fought back to win the next two sets by identical 25-21 scores. The Eagles held a 22-16 lead in the fourth set, but Underwood tightened up its defense and rallied to win 25-23.

Heritage again took the lead in the fifth set, but Underwood (28-5) never wilted and went on a 4-1 run to take an 11-9 lead. “I thought we were going to come back and win it,” Ross said.

Heritage setter Maddy Torve admitted that there were times when Underwood’s resiliency was frustrating.

“There were points when they were picking everything up,” said Torve, who finished with 40 set assists and 14 kills. “But we couldn’t think about that. We had to keep fighting, not worry about their side and do our jobs as best we can.”

Lien had 24 kills for Heritage Christian (26-10), which advanced to the semifinals for the second consecutive year.

JIM PAULSEN