It took late into the night, but the long hours were worth it for the East Limestone volleyball team, as the Indians captured the Class 5A, Area 16 championship with a thrilling 3-2 win over Madison Academy in the tournament final.

The Indians (26-4) will now advance to the Class 5A North Super Regional tournament and play West Point at 10:15 a.m. Thursday at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville. The top four teams in the super regional will advance to the state tournament in Birmingham.

East Limestone swept the two regular-season meetings with Madison Academy this year, but they all were tough matches, so Indians coach Nicole Eslick knew Monday night’s championship game was going to be tough.

“We knew coming into this game it was going to be a battle,” Eslick said. “The first time we played them it went four sets and the second time it went five sets. Madison Academy is a great team, so we knew we were going to have to fight for the win.”

The two teams split the first two sets, with East Limestone winning the first set 25-20 and Madison Academy coming back to win the second set 25-10. East Limestone then won the third set 25-15, but Madison Academy kept the match alive by winning the fourth set 25-22.

That set up the tie-breaking fifth set, which the Indians won 15-7 to win the area championship.

Kiara Robinson led the team with eight kills, 39 assists and 17 digs. Jenny Renfroe had 14 kills, 22 digs and five blocks, while Anna Lucas had 19 kills and 26 blocks. All three of those players are seniors, and Eslick gave them credit for delivering East Limestone its first area championship in several years.

“We have not won area in years, so I am so happy for my seniors,” she said. “They are a great group and deserve this win. Jenny Renfroe played smart and aggressive at the net, and Kiara Robinson played great and put the ball where it needed to be. Good teams have great leaders, and Kiara is that leader for our team. Anna Lucas is a great player but in this game she stepped up her game to a whole new level.”

Earlier in the day, East Limestone defeated Ardmore 3-0 in the tournament semifinal to clinch their spot in the super regional tournament. The top two finishers from each area tournament advance to the super regional.

East Limestone defeated Ardmore 25-21 in the first set, 25-10 in the second set, and closed out the match with a 25-23 win in the third set.

Lucas had 15 kills and 16 digs, while Renfroe had 15 kills and 15 digs and Robinson had eight kills, 30 assists and seven digs.