There are two ways, both equally valid, of looking at Bethlehem Academy’s exhausting 30-28, 24-26, 25-23, 25-19 victory over Ada-Borup in the Class 1A semifinals.

A half-empty person might wonder why the top-seeded Cardinals continue to make life more difficult for themselves than needed. Friday, they fought off seven set points before emerging with a first-set victory.

“Yeah, we’ve been making things pretty tough on ourselves,” said junior outside hitter Jessie Mathews. “That’s not in the plan.”

Or the focus could be on the top-seeded Cardinals’ resilience, winning two of the first three sets by two points before a relatively easy fourth-set victory. All on the heels of back-to-back five set victories just to reach Friday’s semifinals.

“I think you can say we’re determined,” said Mathews, who finished with 16 kills and 25 digs. “Good teams know how to come back.”

Either way, the Cardinals will not only be playing for their fifth Class 1A championship since 2003 Saturday, they’ll put on a good sow while doing it.

“We like to entertain,” said junior Maddie Borwege, who led the team with 20 kills. “Nothing is easy at the state tournament, but we always expect to win.”