DATE: Wednesday, November 12, 1997          TAG: 9711120680

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C5   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY BRIAN J. FRENCH, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH                    LENGTH:   43 lines

SALEM GIRLS GAIN STATE VOLLEYBALL SEMIFINALS EXTENDED TO FIVE GAMES, SUN DEVILS OUST CLOVER HILL; WOODBRIDGE IS NEXT.

With state girls volleyball tournament matches played in a best-of-five format, and Salem having spent the entire season playing best-of-three matches, fatigue should have been a primary concern for the Sun Devils against Central Region runner-up Clover Hill Tuesday night.

Maybe not. Salem probably played its best in the fifth game of the match to win 16-14, 13-15, 15-10, 8-15, 15-10. The Sun Devils face Northern champion Woodbridge Friday in the state semifinals at Atlee High School.

``When you put their backs against the wall, they get nasty,'' Salem coach Owen Dixon said of his players. ``Put us in a deciding game, and we'll win.''

``I didn't think that much about fatigue or being tired,'' added Jenny Harmon, who finished with 32 kills and 11 blocks. ``I was thinking about how I didn't want my high school career to end like this. The adrenaline kept us going.''

Even by five-set standards, this match was epic in length (2 hours, 33 minutes).

The Sun Devils broke it open in that fifth game, scoring seven straight points to take a 13-5 lead and holding on to eliminate the Cavaliers, who had played five-set matches throughout their regular season.

The first game set the stage for the match, lasting 50 minutes and with neither team holding a distinct advantage until Renee Dorko's lateral spike ended the game.

It went this way for most of the match, with both teams exchanging games. Salem finished the third game on a 9-0 run, with Clover Hill responding by taking nine of the last 10 points in the fourth game.

Jacquelyn Costa set 54 assists, and Trish Callen served 20 points. Jen Blair, a back-row substitute, got five of her match-high eight aces in the final two sets.

``(Playing the extra two sets) wasn't a big deal,'' Blair said. ``I actually felt a little stronger in the last two games. I don't think it bothered us.''

In other quarterfinal matches, Eastern runner-up Tallwood lost to Mills Godwin 11-15, 15-3, 15-8, 15-12, Woodbridge defeated Broad Run and undefeated Cave Spring beat Park View.

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