Andalusia’s girls varsity volleyball advanced to play in the Class 4A sub-state tournament Saturday, finishing as the No. 4 seed at the Class 4A Regional A tournament in Andalusia.

The Lady Bulldogs will hit the road to play at 4 p.m. against the Lady Panthers, who finished as the No. 1 seed in the Regional B tournament.

Andalusia earned its spot in the sub-state tournament by defeating Saraland 3-1 (26-24, 22-25, 25-16, 25-11) in the opening match of the day.

“I thought it was a real emotional game,” AHS coach Angie Grimes said about the first match. “It was good to get it over with.”

Then, the Lady Bulldogs fell to St. James in the semifinals 3-1 (13-25, 26-24, 12-25, 15-25); and Alabama Christian Academy 3-0 (18-25, 19-25, 14-25) in the consolation round.

In the championship match, UMS-Wright defeated the Lady Trojans 3-1 to claim the tournament title.

Andalusia’s trek to its fourth place finish didn’t come easy for the Lady Bulldogs.

In the first match of the day against Saraland, the Lady Bulldogs had to overcome some adversity when the Lady Spartans won the second game 25-22.

But Andalusia came away with the victory and a berth at the sub-state tournament.

The semifinal match against St. James was the complete opposite. St. James took the one-game lead, and with a kill by Shi’Amber Townsend, the Lady Bulldogs tied the match up one game each.

The Lady Trojans bounced back to win the third and fourth games to advance to the championship match.

Grimes said the girls could’ve played a better match against St. James.

“I just didn’t think we played to our full potential,” she said. “We’ve got to overcome that. I talked to the girls a lot (Monday) that when you play in tournaments like that, and you’re going from one game to the next, you’ve got to carry the momentum.

“That’s what it’s about,” she said. “If you have it, it speaks volumes.”

After falling to St. James, Andalusia couldn’t get anything going against Alabama Christian Academy in the consolation round.

Andalusia started the first two games in the lead, but Alabama Christian powered back in the middle to take the sweep.

The following are the statistics from each match:

• Andalusia vs. Saraland

A.C. Riley led in assists with 42 and had five aces; Shi’Amber Townsend contributed with 15 aces, 16 attacks and 15 kills; Alison Daniels had 11 kills, nine blocks and three aces; and Erica Staley had three aces.

• Andalusia vs. St. James

Riley had 40 assists; Ellie Pollock had eight service points; Megan Pugh had nine service points and two aces; Townsend had seven service points, 11 attacks, seven tips and seven kills; Daniels had two aces, seven attacks and 10 blocks.

• Andalusia vs. Alabama Christian

Riley led in assists with 62; Pollock had 24 digs; Townsend had 15 assists, six attacks, seven tips and eight kills; and Staley contributed with five kills and 11 blocks.