GRANITE FALLS — South Whidbey won just enough rallies and surged from behind in the fourth game to defeat Granite Falls 3-1.

The volleyball score looks lopsided in favor of the South Whidbey Falcons. The individual game tallies tell a different story — one of back-and-forth battles with late pushes: 26-24, 21-25, 25-21, 27-25.

“I’m happy and I’m glad we pulled through,” said Falcons senior outside hitter Linden Firethorne. “I think everyone’s probably kind of nervous and we’re just learning where we’re supposed to be.”

“Next game we’ll be more communicative,” she said.

Despite losing, Granite Falls head coach Jenn Coulson was thrilled with her senior-laden team’s performance.

“I couldn’t be happier with the way that they played,” said Coulson, in her first-year as the Tigers’ head coach. “I didn’t expect it to be so close, back and forth, like it was.

“It doesn’t feel like a loss. I’m so happy with the way they played I can’t complain at all.”

In the first game, senior setter Emily Houck scored the first point on a deep pass. Then South Whidbey was behind most of the initial set. The Falcons trailed by five points for a long stretch — from 3-8 until breaking the deficit at 9-13 — until senior outside hitter Linden Firethorne’s kill tied the game 16-16. Then she put the Falcons ahead on a serving ace, which seemed to jolt the Falcons into the lead.

South Whidbey gained a four-point advantage at 22-18 before Coulson called a timeout.

The breather worked as the home team went on a 5-to-1-point run to tie 23-23.

A net violation by South Whidbey put Granite Falls up 23-24 before Falcons senior libero Brittany Wood scored on a kill, an errant hit by the Tigers and another kill by Firethorne, who led the game with 14 and added four blocks, finished the game.

“Number 7 (Firethorne) — she’s an amazing hitter,” Coulson said. “She can play any of those front three spots and get some amazing hits in. She’s so tall she just puts it right down and it’s hard for us to get to it.”

Momentum swung South Whidbey’s way from there to a 15-8 lead in the next game, though it didn’t last.

Falcons junior hitter Hannah Calderwood stopped a four-point run with a kill at 18-15. Another small surge by Granite Falls and the score was 19-18 when South Whidbey head coach Mandy Jones called a timeout.

The teams traded points — 19-19, 20-19, 20-20 — until the Tigers led 20-23 and Jones called another timeout, which proved to be futile as the home team won 21-25.

The Falcons had a similar flow in the third game.

South Whidbey senior Justina Mackie-Timmermann scored two aces to lead 2-0 and spark a 10-4 lead before Coulson called a timeout.

The veteran Falcons continued their attack and took a 16-9 lead on Firethorne’s kill. Then South Whidbey’s offense stagnated and Granite Falls seized its opportunity on a 6-to-1 run, trailing 17-15 after three consecutive Falcons errors and a timeout by Jones.

This time, the breather worked for South Whidbey.

Firethorne won a point at the net on a block to regain the lead 18-17 before they rolled to a 25-21 victory on an ace and a deep hit by Wood (17 digs, five kills, five aces).

Game four was the elimination round for Granite Falls, and the team played like it.

The Tigers took the lead on the first point and didn’t lose it until the Falcons tied 23-23 on sophomore Mackenzie Hezel’s tip (10 kills, 10 digs).

Jones substituted sophomore Meagan Longdon in to serve after a Tigers timeout. She stepped to the service line, bounced the ball a few times, spun it in her hands, tossed it, stepped to it and slapped it across the net for an ace and a 24-23 lead.

The Falcons’ elation was short-lived.

On the next point, Tigers senior outside hitter Peyton Spencer had one of her team-high 12 kills to again tie the score. Then her teammate, sophomore libero Kamryn Curry, served into the net.

Wood’s serve went out of bounds, revitalizing the Tigers, until Firethorne’s kill and Mackie-Timmermann’s ace sealed the match for South Whidbey.

“It’s a good warm-up for the season,” Firethorne said. “We’re pretty evenly matched. The rallies proved we need more stamina to pull through.”

South Whidbey plays its first home game Tuesday, Sept. 13 against Sultan, which lost 0-3 to King’s on Thursday night.