HARLAN, Iowa — When your mother has coached more than 700 varsity volleyball matches, you really don’t have a choice in the matter.

“This is what I live and die for,’’ IKM-Manning junior setter Ashley Lage said.

A year ago, the daughter of Wolves coach Kathy Lage suited but saw no court time in Cedar Rapids as the Wolves eventually lost in the Class 2-A state semifinals. She’ll be in the center of the action this year, as IKM-Manning outlasted Underwood 26-24, 25-22, 20-25, 25-21 Tuesday in a 2-A regional final at Harlan Community High School.

One year after graduating seven of its nine regulars, including its top three hitters, state No. 9 IKM-Manning (33-5) is back at state in its second year of whole-grade sharing. Lage also took Manning to the 1-A state tournament in 2006 and 2007.

The Wolves will meet No. 2 Western Christian at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 12, at the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids. Western has won seven of the past eight 2-A state titles.

“In August, we set our theme as, ‘Believe all is possible,’’’ Kathy Lage said. “I sat down and talked to the whole team, nine through 12, about that. There were definitely two or three people who were, ‘Yes, we’re going to be there.’ There were some going, ‘Well, we probably could.’ And there were some like, ‘Are you crazy?’’’

In front of a reporter-estimated turnout of 800, it took a supreme effort by the western Iowa No. 1 Wolves (Class 2-A/1-A). Although it dropped a pair of heartbreakers in the first two sets, WI No. 3 Underwood (26-10) regrouped and nearly extended the match to a fifth set.

All of the Eagles’ eight seniors were in the regular rotation.

“We couldn’t ask for more, we just would have liked to have had one more match,’’ Underwood coach Heath Telleen said. “That would have been the perfect ending to it.’’

After dropping two tight sets to open the match, Underwood climbed back in the third. Senior Carlie Mander slammed six kills and senior Holly Darrington added four as the Eagles scored five of the final six points to send it to a fourth set.

Underwood led 17-15 in the fourth, but the Wolves put together a key 5-0 run to go up 20-17. Liz Halbur, a 5-foot-9 sophomore, came to life for the Wolves in that stretch, collecting a kill, a solo block and a block assist. She had five of her team-high 10 kills in the fourth set.

Underwood drew no closer than two points the rest of the way. Senior Shelby Hansen’s kill gave the Wolves their first match point at 24-21, and Hansen and Liz Halbur teamed for a block to end it.

The Wolves again displayed remarkable hitting balance. They have six girls averaging between 1.3 and 2.0 kills per set, and following Liz Halbur in the kill column were seniors Ashley Hagedorn and Becky Halbur with nine each, freshman Kaylee Blake with eight, junior Alex Halbur with seven and Hansen with five.

“The third game, I think we were like, ‘OK, we have it,’ and then we sometimes space off and then it just happens to slip away,’’ Ashley Lage said. “But the fourth game we were like, ‘We’re not going five.’ . . . I wanted to make it happen for our seniors because they mean so much to us.’’

Underwood led 20-14 in set one and 14-8 in set two, but couldn’t close either one. The opener featured six lead changes and was tied at 23 and 24 before kills by Hagedorn and Becky Halbur gave the set to IKM-Manning.

In set two, IKM-Manning rallied from a 20-19 deficit, and Alex Halbur’s crosscourt kill gave the Wolves a two-set cushion.

But it was far from over.

Mander led Underwood with a match-high 19 kills, and was followed by seniors Holly Darrington (10), Alyx Rowe (8) and Anna Minear (7).

“If we did a World Series kind of thing, I think it would go seven games,’’ Kathy Lage said.

Underwood (26-10).................24 22 25 21

IKM-Manning (33-5)...................26 25 20 25

U (kills-aces-blocks): Brooke Darrington 0-0-0, Anna Minear 7-0-2, Holly Darrington 10-0-1, Lacey Madsen 0-3-0, Brooke Johnson 0-0-0, Alyx Rowe 8-0-0, Carlie Mander 19-0-2, Lindsay Campin 5-3-2.

IKM-M (kills-aces-blocks): Ashley Lage 3-1-0, Tember Schechinger 0-0-0, Liz Halbur 10-0-4, Courtney Eischeid 0-1-0, Shelby Hansen 5-2-0, Ashley Hagedorn 9-2-2, Kaylee Blake 8-0-4, Becky Halbur 9-1-6, Alex Halbur 7-1-0.

Set assists: U, Johnson 44; IKM-M, Lage 21, Eischeid 18, B. Halbur 2, L. Halbur 1.