There are some common threads with great teams, but the one trait that might be the hardest to combat as the opposition is relentlessness.

While there is still time to find out whether or not Xavier is truly a great team – being ranked No. 5 in the nation by MaxPreps might be a clue as well – there is no questioning its relentlessness.

It was on full display Thursday night at Corona del Sol when the Gators swept the highly anticipated match, 25-16, 25-14 and 25-23 in 6A Central Region action.

Whether it’s the multitude of players – starters or off the bench - who can take over at times, contribute at vital moments, the continued pursuit of wayward ball on a third and final attempt or never giving into a deficit, the Gators separate themselves from opponents.

“I know I can rely on them,” Xavier junior outside hitter Tessa Larkin said. “It makes my job so much easier. We’re not a one-player team that can’t have a good night if that player’s off.”

That was clearly the case against Corona when the Gators (27-6, 4-0 Central) easily dispatched the Aztecs, which is ranked No. 31 in the nation by MaxPreps.

Larkin, who came in with a team-leading 283 kills, took the lead in the early portion of set one and then came up big in the third set after Corona del Sol took its only lead of more than a point at 6-0 only to watch the all-state player get four straight kills to tie at it 6-all.

But she was backed by senior Allison Dunnion taking away Corona del Sol’s inside attack with block defense, sophomore Annnabelle Ross providing offense and defense and freshman Sahmone Wadsworth crushing swings from the outside in the final two sets.

Then there’s the Mattea Saunders bruise-inducing performance at libero and Selah O’Connor controlling the offense.

Put all their names and abilities together and it spells RELENTLESS.

“This is who we are,” said Xavier coach Lamar-Renee Bryant, who graduated from Corona in 1995. “We have a lot of options, and we continue to come at you from a lot of ways. We have to against a good team like Corona. We know them and they know us. We’re going to have to play again them in a few weeks and they will be ready to play us.”

The Aztecs (28-4, 3-1) started well as the first set was tied at 6 before Xavier took control the rest of the match.

Senior Hayden Conner did her part, while junior Kinsley Zebatto and Paige Nenaber did their best to stave off the Gators, but it wasn’t enough this time around.

“We have to pass well and be more efficient,” Aztec coach Ben Maxfield. “They were efficient, and we can be – just not tonight. We just weren’t scoring.”

It was the first time the two programs met since last year’s state championship match won by Xavier, and it is likely the first of three this year with another region match up coming up Oct. 28 and a likely meeting in the postseason destined to happen somewhere along the line.

“We can compete with them,” Conner said. “We weren’t at our best tonight. There was lot of hype, or pressure, coming into this and it might have got to us, but we know how good we are, and this was just one match.”

It was a match where the Gators kept the pressure on and never let up even in the third set even when Corona raced out to a six-point lead and even moreso when Xavier trailed 19-18 before pulling away.  

“It was an away match, and they have a really good student section, so getting that first one set the tone,” Larkin said. “The third set gave us confidence for the next time. We were down and they had momentum, but we stuck it out and kept coming at them.”