Spanish Springs did not lead once during the first two games of Tuesday night's prep volleyball battle at Reed, but luckily for the Cougars, it's the first team to three games.

The Purple and Teal dug deep down and pulled off a remarkable comeback, winning the High Desert League clash between Rail City rivals 20-25, 16-25, 25-20, 25-15, 15-9.

By winning the first two games Tuesday, the Raiders had won five straight games over the Cougars this season thanks to a three-game sweep in the teams' first meeting this fall.

“We've had the best fan support that we've ever had home and away, and I almost felt bad for the crowd because we didn't give them anything to cheer for,” SSHS volleyball coach Frank Sandomenico said. “It was awesome. We stuck it through. I really think Reed plays smarter and harder than we do in general, and that's really frustrating.”

However, the two squads strangely flip flopped roles midway through the five-game match.

Spanish Springs snagged its first lead of the night in Game 3, 9-8. That lead was short-lived and it appeared Reed would still manage a three-game sweep.

But when the Cougars grabbed their second lead, 19-18, something felt different. The visitors got it to 20-18, forcing a Raiders timeout.

Reed stopped the 3-0 run to make it 20-19, but Spanish Springs scored five of the final six points of the game to stay alive. The Cougars picked up the game-winning point on an ace when no Raiders player went after the serve. The lack of effort and communication would haunt them in Game 4.

“Spanish Springs outplayed us the last part of the game, so they deserved it. They got the job done and we didn't,” Reed volleyball coach Kristen Flagtvedt said. “I thought the first two games of the match we played pretty well, but the third and fourth we relaxed too much, and Spanish Springs took advantage of it.”

Spanish Springs sophomore Callie Aberle fired up her team to start the fourth game. Aberle hammered down a kill to open the game and then came back with back-to-back blocks.

The Cougars weren't satisfied with a 3-0 start though, and after five more points in a row, it was 8-0 and the rout was on.

Reed (14-15, 6-4 HDL) was able to close the deficit to 12-8, but was only able to score seven more points in the game.

The Raiders looked to rebound in the fifth and final game, scoring the first point before Spanish Springs rallied for four straight points.

A string of three unanswered points left the Raiders in a 6-5 lead and the Cougs needed a timeout, leading to Spanish Springs' own 3-0 run to make it 8-6.

A Spanish Springs service error closed the gap to 9-8, but the Blue and Gold never knotted the score and Aberle ended the match with a cross-court kill, her team-high 10th of the match. She also had four of her team's 13 aces.

“It was awesome,” Sandomenico said. “I watched Reed play Reno on TV they were down 0-2, and I was amazed how they never gave up. When I was watching it, I was wishing we were more like that, and tonight we were. It was a big win. I'm happy for us.”

More importantly, the win allows Spanish Springs (12-15, 5-5 HDL) to control its own playoff destiny without relying on help from other league foes. If the Cougars beat North Valleys Thursday and McQueen Tuesday, they will be headed to the postseason.

Emily Meister added seven kills and seven blocks, while teammate Morgan Prince also had seven kills in the winning cause. Stacey Witt and Lyndsey Anderson contributed 22 and 13 assists respectively.

In the losing cause, Kendra Davis led the way with 14 kills, while Kyndal Comphel and Rachel LeSage had 14 and 13 assists. Reed only had seven aces.

The Raiders are off until next week when they host league-leading Reno Wednesday.