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Orem • Sporting only a fourth seed out of its region, Mountain View knew that technically it would be an underdog in every game it played on Thursday no matter what.

Salem Hills, on the other hand, was a second-seed — but still a decided underdog against tradition-rich Timpview.

At the end of the first day of the Class 4A state volleyball tournament, however, both teams had clinched spots in the semifinal round.

"Final four had been a goal of ours since the very beginning of the season," said Mountain View senior Janet Kalaniuvalu, after walloping 20 kills and six service aces in the Bruins' 23-25, 25-15, 25-21, 25-23 quarterfinal win over Box Elder.

"It's something that Mountain View hasn't been in for a long time, so we were really pushing together," Kalaniuvalu added. "Thinking of places we could go, things we could do, if we played together."

The Bruins started their day by ousting a No. 1 seed, Maple Mountain, in an opening-round match. In the quarters, Box Elder threatened to force the match to a fifth set when a push shot by Bees' outside Madeline Ewell evened the fourth at 23-23.

But a missed Box Elder shot was followed by an ace from Mountain View's Jalena Jackson to finish the contest.

"I thought the girls played awesome, I thought they came hungry for wins," said Mountain View's first-year head coach Jaicee Roden, who previously coached at Corner Canyon for two years.

It'll be Roden's old team that the Bruins will face in the semifinal round as Corner Canyon, winners of Region 7 and one of the four No. 1 seeds in the 4A draw, beat Bonneville 25-16, 25-15, 19-25, 25-21 to get into Saturday's semis.

"They've got the mental game now. It's been coming together all year, but our big region win over Skyridge kind of solidified that for us," Corner Canyon coach Mindy Wilder said.

Skyridge had the day's toughest task in facing defending state champion Bountiful and, in this case, the favorite prevailed without much ado as the Braves pounced on the first-year school with a 25-20, 25-16, 25-23 victory.

Bountiful's opponent on Saturday, on the other hand, wasn't expected to be there.

Salem Hills' first match was against Timpview, Class 4A runner-up a year ago, but the Skyhawks roared back from a 2-0 set deficit and, later, from trailing 13-7 in the fifth.

After the hard-fought opening-round win, Salem Hills then beat back Woods Cross 25-21, 24-26, 25-16, 25-13 to claim its spot as one of the last four survivors.

"Obviously, with a five-set hard match like that [against Timpview], it was hard to come back with as much energy as we had before," said Salem Hills senior Meagan Trainor, who led the Skyhawks with 15 kills in the quarterfinal win. "But we came back and fought hard." —

Class 4A State Volleyball

Opening Round

Skyridge def. Wasatch 25-19, 25-12, 25-21

Bountiful def. Judge Memorial 25-9, 25-8, 25-18

Woods Cross def. Skyline 15-25, 25-22, 25-18, 25-17

Salem Hills def. Timpview 19-25, 19-25, 26-24, 25-20, 16-14

Bonneville def. Olympus 25-17, 25-15, 25-21

Corner Canyon def. Springville 25-22, 25-16, 25-14

Mountain View def. Maple Mountain 25-15, 25-18, 25-21

Box Elder def. Murray 25-19, 25-23, 25-22

Quarterfinals

Bountiful def. Skyridge 25-20, 25-16, 25-23

Salem Hills def. Woods Cross 25-21, 24-26, 25-16, 25-13

Corner Canyon def. Bonneville 25-16, 25-15, 19-25, 25-21

Mountain View def. Box Elder 23-25, 25-15, 25-21, 25-23

Schedule

Saturday at Utah Valley University

Semifinals

Bountiful vs. Salem Hills, 10:30 a.m.

Corner Canyon vs. Mountain View, 12:30 p.m.

Championship

Semifinal winners, 5:30 p.m.