Salpointe's quest to earn a top-four seed in the state playoffs was bolstered by a 3-0 win over Tucson on Thursday night. Teams seeded in the top four have a chance to host two matches in the playoffs depending, of course, on a victory in the opening round.

The Lancers came in ranked fourth in the AIA/MaxPreps seeding formula while Tucson was hanging on to a 14th seed after dropping a match at Catalina Foothills on Tuesday night.

Tucson (9-5 in division, 3-3 in section) is part of a group of Division II teams battling for the last few at-large bids. That group includes No. 15 Seton Catholic,  No. 17 Cienega, No. 18 Ironwood and No. 19 Catalina Foothills.

No. 16 Rincon/University is already guaranteed a playoff spot after claiming the Section I title on Tuesday night.

The AIA Volleyball Bracket Show will be streamed live on Friday at noon at azpreps365.com.

Tucson took control of the first set early and built an 8-3 lead thanks to the play of Florida-bound Mia Sokolowski but Carly Lowry came up with eight kills and a block to turn the tide to win it 25-19. At one point, Lowry put down four kills in a row and she followed that up with a block.

Like Sokolowski, Lowry was also highly recruited and she committed to San Francisco.

Allie Weaver came up big for Salpointe in the second set and helped put distance between Salpointe and Tucson thanks to her play in the middle for the 25-15 win.

"I just knew we had to work hard as a team tonight to prepare for the state tournament," Weaver said. "This team has the best chemistry I have experienced at Salpointe," the senior added.

"I think it shows on the court and we will fight together no matter what."

That "fight" was evident in the third set after Sokolowski paced the Badgers to a 16-10 lead but Salpointe went on a 15-3 run the rest of the way to earn the 25-19 win.

Sokolowski may have played her last match for Tucson but she cemented her place as one of the best in Southern Arizona.

"We are going to wait it out to see of we have a shot at the playoffs," Sokolowski explained. "But my time here has been really good. I have played with great athletes like Carly (Trueman), Summer (Avery) and Bailey (Gin). I was happy to be a part of it."

Trueman plays for Utah and Avery for San Jose State while Gin is graduating along with Sokolowski. Well, almost.

Sokolowski will be a December graduate and will report to Florida during the winter break. Florida has had some of the top recruiting classes in the nation in the last three years and she looks to be a part of that trend.

At 6 feet 4 inches, Sokolowski has inherited athletic genes from her mother and her father. Her mom played volleyball in college and her dad played professional basketball for 15 years.

Notre Dam Prep is projected to be the top seed in D-II with Millenium on target to claim the No. 2 spot.