Colette Smith is mobbed by her teammates after her win gave Warsaw a tennis regional championship Wednesday night.

CULVER – Warsaw’s Colette Smith had a couple of tests in the classroom on Wednesday.

The stellar student-athlete though saved her biggest ace of the season for the tennis court Wednesday night.

Sophomore Smith played the role of the Energizer Bunny to perfection as she just kept going and going and going for the Tigers.

In the end, her will to win kept the season going for her team.

Smith’s dramatic, epic, instant classic three-set win over  junior Ashley Harrell at No. 2 singles clinched a 3-2 Warsaw win and the title of the Culver Academy Regional at the gorgeous Gable Tennis Complex.

Smith outlasted Harrell 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (7-5) in a tension filled battle of heart and guts on both sides of the net that took just over four hours to complete.

Colette Smith hits a return for the Tigers.

Smith’s heroics gives Warsaw its first regional crown since 2005 and the program’s 10th overall. The Tigers, now 11-5, will face No. 4 South Bend St. Joseph (16-2) on Saturday at noon back at Culver Academy for a semistate clash. St. Joe blanked LaPorte 5-0 Wednesday night to win the LaPorte Regional for the second straight year. The winner of Saturday’s match earns a spot in the quarterfinal round at the State Finals on June 3 at Center Grove High School in Greenwood.

The Tigers avenged a 4-1 regular-season loss to the Pilgrims from back on April 19 to sideline the defending regional champions. Smith was the lone winner in that NLC affair as she topped Harrell 6-3, 7-5. Warsaw also dropped a 4-1 final to Plymouth in the regional semifinals a year ago.

Smith, who put in a late night of studying Tuesday night after Warsaw blanked Manchester 5-0 in the regional semifinal, trailed 2-0 in the third set. She rallied to tie it at 2-2 before Harrell went up 3-2. Smith then came right back to win the next three games to go up 5-3 before Harrell answered to win the next three games to lead 6-5. Smith then broke serve to force the tiebreaker. She was up 3-0 after a trio of Harrell miscues in the tiebreaker before it was 3-2. Smith then built her lead to 6-2 before Harrell won the next three points to make it 6-5. A shot that sailed out ended the back-and-forth nail biter.

The final match was played with long point after long point as Smith and Harrell traded shot after shot after shot. The two played with every eye on them as the other matches had been done for two hours by the time the No. 2 singles marathon came to a close. The third set of the deciding match itself took 1:31 to complete.

“I was nervous and it was really pressure-packed and crazy with everyone watching,” said Smith. “I just knew that I had to get to every ball. I knew how to beat her. Losing to them earlier this season and here last season in the regional was big motivation. That really motivated me to do it for the team. This was the most important match of the year.”

Smith, who was as cool as the other side of the pillow all night, is used to playing long matches. She earned the NLC Tournament title at No. 2 singles by outlasting Taylor Freedline of Elkhart Memorial in a three-set championship match on May 13 that took over three hours to finish.

Smith, who excels big time in the classroom, was the poster child for patience and perseverance in the clincher.

“I like playing long matches,” Smith admitted. “The longer they go, the more focused I get. I had couple of tests today, but this match was on my mind.”

“Tennis over school, at least for today, she added with a burst of laughter.

Liza Lewis had a huge win at No. 1 singles.

Warsaw took all three singles matches to earn the team title. Sophomore Ella Knight gave her team the first point with a 6-3, 6-1 win over  sophomore Cortni Cook at No. 3. After Plymouth took both doubles matches to make it 2-1, sophomore Liza Lewis topped junior Lanae Singleton 7-5, 7-5 at No. 1 singles.

“I’m just so proud of these kids,” said Warsaw coach Rick Orban, whose team won the program’s 16th straight sectional title last week. “We talked about losing to them 4-1 earlier in the season and none of our girls thought that should have happened. We also reminded them what it felt like to lose to them here in the regional last year.

“The girls came here to win tonight. Plymouth is a tough and talented team and so are we. We knew it was going to be tough and close and it can’t get much closer than it was.

“Our schedule is so tough and I’ve watched these kids mature this year. I believe in them and they just played a heck of a match tonight.

“With Lettie, the longer it went, the better I felt about her chances of winning. Mentally, she’s tough. She’s just extremely flexible with her game. That’s why she’s been so successful at No. 2 for us.”

Plymouth got wins from junior Kendall Dreibelbis and sophomore McKenzie Scheetz at No. 1 doubles and from senior Kayla Hoober and sophomore Leah Smith at No. 2. Dreibelbis and Scheetz topped sophomore Hannah Rice and junior Athena Schlitt 4-6, 6-0, 6-1. Hoober and Smith defeated senior Rosie Fleming and sophomore Grace Miller 6-3, 6-1.

Warsaw’s Rice suffered a lower leg injury in her doubles match. Orban said that he is “hopeful” that she will be able to play in the semistate on Saturday.

Plymouth closes out its season at 17-3.

Ella Knight posted a key win at No. 3 singles.

Grace Miller hits a backhand in doubles play.