JACKSON TWP — In a battle of heavyweights, Seneca Valley landed the knockout punch.

The Raiders boys volleyball team settled Tuesday night's Section 2 showdown with North Allegheny by defeating the Tigers in the fifth and deciding game.

SV's win came by scores of 25-22, 12-25, 25-17, 20-25 and 15-10.

If the Raiders beat Butler Thursday, they are guaranteed at least a share of the section title.

"Our first goal was to win the section," said junior defensive specialist Doug Coyne. "With this win, we're almost there."

It was the first loss of the season for North Allegheny (11-1, 10-1), and SV avenged a 3-2 loss to the Tigers April 15.

Tuesday night's fifth game was tied at six when Coyne stepped behind the service line. By the time he left, the Raiders were up 10-7 and their lead wasn't threatened again.

A kill by SV's Nate Steele returned possession to the Raiders, and when North Allegheny did get the ball back, it trailed 14-8.

After two service points, Evan Buysee's third serve sailed out of bounds, ending the match.

"We always tell the guys to focus on what we do well," said Raiders coach Dan Mountain. "Our strength is the fact that we're taller, we can hit and block harder than most teams.

"We pushed NA back on their heels a bit in that fifth game," he added.

For Tigers coach Dan Schall, his team simply lacked the intensity it needed to win a fifth game in a hostile environment.

"(The Raiders) came out like Ali and we came out like Frazier," he said. "They came out swinging and we were tentative. That was epitomized by three offspeed shots into the net by our guys. You're not going to win like that."

The Tigers were up to the challenge of extending the match in the fourth game, as they prevailed by five points to even the contest at two games apiece.

Mike Krepp led the way with seven kills for the Tigers in the fourth game.

"We had some good runs, but weren't consistent," said Schall. "And we certainly didn't play well in the fifth game."

Seneca Valley (13-2, 10-1) quickly got the upper hand by winning the first game. The Raiders prevailed after facing deficits of 7-4, 9-5, and 12-7.

The final three points came on Nick Shaffer's serve and the senior contributed an ace toward the victory.

"I was a little nervous about Game 1," said Mountain. "We hadn't played in front of a big crowd like this and I didn't know how we'd react to it.

"We did a good job of coming back after struggling earlier in that first game," added Mountain.

The Tigers answered with a dominating 13-point win in the second game. But behind strong play by Nate Hayden and Brad Parrish, SV won the third game for a 2-1 lead.

Steele led SV with 15 kills, while Tim Buresh and Brian Tevis each had eight for the Tigers.