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Two playoff games in, they look like the same old Falcons.

After taking the first two games of the match, host and second-seed Poolesville (15-1) dropped the next two to No. 3 Century, then came back to take a thrilling fifth set for a 25-23, 25-22, 21-25, 22-25, 15-11 win Wednesday in a 2A West Region semifinal.

Entering the game, Poolesville had dropped only four games in its past 11 matches.

"I keep telling the girls: at this point in the season, it's not your technical skills," said head coach Fran Duvall. "It's, can you tactically play the game? Can you keep your mind relaxed enough to use your skills?"

The theme for the first three games was constant: back-and-forth until the middle of the set, when one team would begin to pull away. The first game, the Falcons had trouble putting Century (12-4) away; the Knights fended off five consecutive set points before an infraction at the net finally closed it out for Poolesville.

"We came here to win the state title again," said senior captain Kelley Rosenberg. "We're going to work as hard as we can, and we'll be preparing tomorrow."

In the second game, a point for Century that would have brought it to 16-14 was taken away after the referees decided the Knights had four hits and awarded the point to Poolesville. Century closed the deficit to 24-22, but Alayna Hendrix sent a scorcher down the line that just nicked the paint for the set-winning point.

Once falling behind 17-11 in the third game, Poolesville was never able to recover and Century avoided the sweep with a 25-21 win. In the fourth, the Falcons came out with purpose and went up 10-2 and appeared to have the match well in hand.

But the Knights valiantly fought back to 15-13, tied the game at 16, then scored three of the next four points and stole the game from the Falcons, 25-22, forcing a fifth and deciding game.

It started well for the Knights, who quickly went up 3-1 on the seemingly deflated Falcons, but Poolesville fought back. Trailing 10-9 it rattled off five straight points to push the game to match-point. After losing the next point, Christine Antonsen's spike was too hot to handle, and it went out of bounds to give the Falcons the 15-11 win.

"We realized that this could be [our last game]," Rosenberg said, "and it came down to who wanted it more."

Poolesville tied with Francis Scott Key with the same record, and lost a coin flip for top seed, so it must travel to Carroll County for the 2A West Region final on Friday at 6 p.m.

"This is the point where you wish you won the coin flip," said Duvall. "But at this point in the season, you just have to beat whoever you play."