SACRAMENTO, Calif. – It was fitting that the two teams that battled for championships last season would have another tight contest Thursday. But St. Francis turned the result around in winning a close five-set match with defending state champion Granite Bay Thursday night, posting a five-set win.

“I am really proud of how they played,” said Head Coach Alynn Wright. “I told them great teams learn how to win when they are not playing well. It was not one of our better matches. I am not going to take anything away from Granite Bay. They played well. We had a lot of unforced errors. But they pulled it out.”

St. Francis won by scores of 22-25, 25-21, 21-25, 26-24, 15-13. The Troubadours showed their depth on their roster in the contest with several players coming off the bench to provide sparks.

“I was proud of the kids that came off the bench and contributed,” said Wright. “I was really pleased with that tonight. It was a good team win.”

St. Francis (9-2) was playing their third match in as many nights and on the heels of the exciting win over rival and Sacramento Bee No. 1-ranked Christian Brothers on Wednesday. Granite Bay came into the contest as the No. 2 team in the poll and jumped out with a win in the first set 22-25.

The Troubadours bounced back twice to tie the match at one and two sets, forcing a deciding fifth set.

“It has been a long week,” said senior Anna Donald, a UC Davis commit. “But it showed we can compete with these really good teams. It shows we are a team to beat this season.”

In the fifth set, the Troubadours got several key plays down the stretch when the Grizzlies looked like they were going to take the road contest. Granite Bay beat St. Francis three times last season including wins in the section and Nor Cal finals.

“I definitely struggled at certain points at the beginning but at the end I kinda realized how bad we all wanted to win,” said senior Kylie Green, who has committed to UC Irvine. “I think it helps coming off of the Oak Ridge loss (in the Foundation Game) and we were all a little shaky. This game really boosted our confidence and really showed us and everyone else we are going to be a good team.”

Leading 14-13, Donald closed the game with a service ace.

 “Anna has been struggling a bit with her serve and it was a great way to end the match,” said Wright.

Donald could not be happier with the result, admitting her service struggles and the irony that the ball was in her hands at that key moment.

“I have been struggling with my serve all week,” said Donald. “So the fact it came down to me at that point was just perfect. I took a deep breath and I actually don’t remember what was going through my head. I just served it.”

The Troubadours closed out the impressive week beaming with confidence after posting the back-to-back important wins.

 “I feel really good and I am glad that we pulled through,” said Green. “It shows that we work really well together and are really strong as a team.”

The JV team came from behind to defeat Granite Bay in three by the scores of 20-25, 25-19 and 15-11, while the freshmen posted a straight set win over the Grizzlies.