EPHRATA - The gymnasium was rocking in Ephrata Thursday night when the Tigers hosted the Ellensburg Bulldogs in a first round loser out CWAC District volleyball match.

Ephrata looking to advance to the second round and take on Selah Saturday, didn't disappoint as the Tigers won in three competitive sets (26-24, 25-13, 25-23).

"I thought the girls played awesome tonight," coach Britney Ratigan said. "We've really been working on attacking the net and working as one, and tonight we did just that."

The first game of the match saw the Tigers jump out to an early 4-1 lead, but the Bulldogs fought back to get within one point at 8-7. But Ephrata went on an 11-8 run to push the score to 19-15. Ellensburg, not to be outdone, battled back to close the gap to 23-20. A key time out by Ratigan gave the Tigers a chance to catch their breath and regroup. The teams fought to a 24-24 tie after the beak in action, but Ephrata scored the next two points to close the door on the Bulldogs to win the first set, 26-24.

"They came out ready to play," Ratigan said. "They really made us earn the game."

The second set of the match was not as close as Ephrata went up 12-4 and never looked back, taking the set 25-13.

The Tigers were hitting on all cylinders as the team got excellent work from their setter, striker and libero positions.

The third set of the match was a real barn burner as neither team led by more than four points. Ellensburg got out front 3-2, but the Tigers came back to tie the action 4-4. The teams were tied again at 12-12, but an 11-9 run by Ellensburg ran the score to 23-21, much to the dismay of the home crowd.

It looked as though the Bulldogs were going to win the set, but a determined Ephrata squad would have none of it as they came back to with the game and the match, 25-23.

"I am really proud of the way the girls battled back to win the third game," Ratigan said. "They showed a lot of character and took control at the end."

Kendra De Hoog led the charge for the Tigers with 13 kills and one block. Heidi Buchert added six kills and two aces, Stephanie Wulf spiked six kills, Sarah Pheasant contributed six kills and 23 assists, and Tessa Ratigan finished with 14 digs.

"Sarah did an outstanding job of running our offense and feeding our hitters," Ratigan said. "She was a huge contributor tonight and it was really exciting to see. This was big team win. Everyone did their part."

The win advances Ephrata to the second round of the tournament, where they will face the Selah Vikings in Selah Saturday. The match is set for 1 p.m.

"Selah is a scrappy team and likes to play an up tempo game," Ratigan said. "We'll need to work hard and shut down their hitters if we expect to win and move on."