The Jets celebrate a point well-earned in their MHSAA Division 4 Region 25 semifinal game against the Red Devils on Tuesday in the Baraga Gym. (Eddie O’Neill/Daily Mining Gazette)

BARAGA — The Jeffers Jets came from behind to win sets four and five and a regional semifinal volleyball match on Tuesday against the Ironwood Red Devils. The Jets won the first set 25-22, lost the second and third sets, 15-25 and 24-26, respectively and won the last two sets 25-20 and 15-4.

With the win, the Jets will take on Crystal Falls-Forest Park for the Michigan High School Athletic Association’s (MHSAA) Division 4 Region 25 championship Thursday at Forest Park. First serve is set for 7 p.m.

“Tonight’s win was the culmination of lots of hard work by these girls,” said Jets coach Rachel Sondgerath. “We had much more confidence tonight than when we first played them early on in the season.”

The Red Devils won that first meeting, 3-0, and the Jets saw what needed to be done if they were to meet again.

“We watched film on that first game, and we saw our mistakes and learned from them,” Sondgerath said. “What won tonight’s game was our kills – putting the ball on the floor.”

In that respect, the Jets had some big swingers. Kaeda Rajala led the pack with 11 kills. Sara Johnson had nine. Hanna Larson had eight and Mia Nordstrom had seven.

The quartet scored more than half of the points the Jets needed to win their three sets. None of the set victories came easily. It was quite literally a back-and-forth battle the whole match.

In the opener, the Jets jumped out to a 16-8 lead with Nordstrom at the line, however, the Red Devils weren’t going down easily. Savannah Hannu served up some strong balls, and it was a three-point game at 23-20 and 24-21. The Jets though were able to hold on to cinch the win.

Despite being tied at three, seven and eight, the Jets could not grasp a lead as the second set progressed. An 18-12 lead for Ironwood turned into a set win, evening the match.

Momentum was with the Red Devils as the teams headed into the third. Ironwood pushed out to a 5-2 lead. However, with Kangas at the line, the Jets tied it at five and the set would be tied six more times, including at 20-20. With Carli Wiitala at the line, the Jets took their first lead at 21-20, extending it to two, 23-21, before things were tied again at 24. The Red Devils then won two points in a row and the took a 2-1 match lead.

“That was our best set (the third),” said Red Devils’ coach Lisa Fechter. “The girls just kept battling. I have some seasoned senior girls, and they came through in that set.”

In the fourth, the two teams volleyed to a 10-10 tie and again at 14 and 15, but then the Jets’ Wiitala came to the line and posted a run of six to make it 23-17. With a victory, the Jets forced a tiebreaker set.

Interestingly, while the Red Devils had lots of senior experience in their lineup, they had no fifth-set games this year. The Jets, on the other hand, had a couple, and according to Sondgerath, that do-or-die experience made the difference on Tuesday night.

“These girls are no strangers to pressure,” she said. “We have had three games going to five sets this year. We’ve had that battle-back experience and have learned to play against a team’s weakness.”

As this final set got under way, there wasn’t much battling needed for the Jets. Johnson posted a 7-0 run to open the fifth, and there was no turning back. With Kangas back at the line minutes later, the Jets notched final point for the set, and match, victory.

“If you would have told me at the start of this year that we would be playing for a regional title (this week), I wouldn’t have believed you,” said Sondgerath. “But this team is resilient. They are a tight-knit group of girls and have worked hard and have proven me wrong.”

Other games

The Calumet Copper Kings will move on as well to the Division 3 Region 17 final game Thursday as they defeated Bark River-Harris in straight sets Tuesday (25-10, 25-11, and 25-14).

Helen Beiring led the way with 18 kills and 16 digs. Allie Bjorn had 10 kills and five blocks. Maddie Torola added six kills and Jackie Kiilunen earned five. Laina Karineimi racked up 36 assists in the match.

Calumet will play Elk Rapids at Manistique High School. The match will start at 6 p.m.