TYLER, Texas – The Laredo Palominos had bested the top-ranked Blinn Buccaneers on two occasions this season, but when it mattered most, the Bucs battled to a four-set victory.

Blinn's 23-25, 26-24, 25-17, 25-16 victory here Sunday afternoon clinched a spot in the Region XIV Conference championship game and earned the team a berth to the NJCAA Division I National Championship in Casper, Wyo., Nov. 21-23.

Coming out of the loser's bracket, Blinn (33-3) must win back-to-back games against the No. 2-ranked Lady Apaches. Follow the game live here.

A chance to play for the conference championship wouldn't have been possible without the win against Laredo.

Blinn dominated the final two sets after Laredo (24-7) rallied to a first-set victory and nearly pulled it off again in the second set. But the Bucs' depth helped the team prevail.

Bruna Evangelista and Rachel Sharp combined for double-digit kills, and Trinity Alualu, Crystal Young, Rebecca Reeve and Evely Macedo posted double-digit digs to shut down the Laredo's offense.

That defense, mixed in with a front line that combined for 17 blocks, never allowed Laredo to find any sort of rhythm in the later sets. The Bucs held the Palominos to a -.051 hitting percentage in the fourth set.

After two sets of Laredo sticking around, Blinn snatched the momentum early in the third after the team sparked an 8-0 run to take a commanding 8-2 lead. The only time the Bucs trailed after that point was 1-0 to start the fourth set.

Laredo knocked Blinn to the tournament loser's bracket in the second round with a five-set win despite trailing the match 2-0. It was the second time of the season the Palominos rallied to beat the Bucs after trailing two sets to none.

But with their season on the line, the Bucs won when it mattered most.