The fourth set stood 19-17, with Natick on the verge of letting Hopkinton force a fifth.
Then Brooke Barnett happened.
The senior middle creatively terminated 4 points with three kills and a block, outscoring the No. 21 Hillers the rest of the way, as the No. 12 Redhawks (13-5) finished off a 3-1 victory in the first round of the Division 1 tournament. They’ll head to No. 5 Franklin, the defending champ, in the second round.
“Our energy was a bit off when we lost one set against them,” said Barnett, who finished with 11 kills and 5 blocks. “If you make a mistake, we just dance after and try to shake it off and have fun because volleyball’s just really about having fun and playing with your friends.”
Natick took the first set, 25-18, but needed a 9-2 run to win the second, 25-23. Hopkinton (13-7) used an 11-2 run to win a 25-17 third set, and started the fourth up 10-5 before the Redhawks clawed back.
“I kept on telling the girls, at every stoppage, anything can happen, anything can happen, anything can happen,” said Natick coach Bob Harless. “Especially in the tournament. Especially when they have eight seniors fighting for their careers. You really have to play clean or a team in a tournament, a good team like Hopkinton, will come up and steal one from you, and they almost did tonight.”
Senior Meghan Pole bashed 10 kills, junior Lily Chung dished 29 assists, and junior Kayla Dunlap compiled seven kills and two blocks in a match where the net battles were crucial.
“We do really well when the ball is close to the net,” Dunlap said. “Having it close to the net, it gave us an advantage, so we were able to put it away easier and come back.”
Division 1
Andover 3, Lexington 0 — Freshman Kiki Wright fired 13 kills, senior Ella Durant added 11, and senior Tina Zheng netted 26 assists for the No. 6 Golden Warriors (16-5) in a first-round win over No. 27 Lexington (10-9).
Brookline 3, North Andover 0 — Molly Tipton (14 kills, 4 blocks), Noga Naveh (13 kills, 18 digs, 5 aces), and Cori Cenac (9 kills) powered the No. 2 Warriors (18-1) past No. 31 North Andover (9-13). Mia Jones (4 kills, 5 digs, 2 aces), Marlo Sacks (16 digs), and Anna Dror (3 kills, 2 blocks) contributed.
Franklin 3, Springfield Central 0 — Junior Emerson Delleo led with 10 kills and freshman Marley Lindenmeyer added seven for the No. 5 Panthers (19-2) in their first-round win over No. 28 Springfield Central (17-3).
Lincoln-Sudbury 3, Wachusett 2 — Lizzie Adolfsson (24 kills) and Amelie Andrews (10 blocks, 5 kills) powered the No. 18 Warriors (12-6) over No. 15 Wachusett (17-4), winning via reverse sweep and overcoming 12-3 and 14-9 deficits in the fifth set to clinch a spot in the second round.
Needham 3, Plymouth North 0 — Sophmore Gabby Kuper delivered nine kills for the No. 9 Rockets (13-7) in a first-round victory over No. 24 Plymouth North (13-8).
Division 2
Barnstable 3, Silver Lake 1 — Senior Bella Magalhaes fired off a season-high 22 kills, senior Ava Johnston delivered 16, and sophomore Maddy Campbell dished out 42 assists for the No. 5 Red Hawks (17-5) in a first-round win over No. 28 Silver Lake Regional (9-12).
Dartmouth 3, Marblehead 0 — Junior Hailey Moreira (12 kills), senior Lindsey Barber (16 assists), and freshman Addison Tieu (15 assists, 12 digs) powered the No. 14 Indians (13-7) past No. 19 Marblehead (13-6) in the first round.
Melrose 3, Westwood 0 — Junior Sadie Smith delivered 21 digs, 10 assists, and 8 kills for the No. 3 Red Hawks (17-4) in a first-round victory over No. 30 Westwood (8-12).
Division 3
Hanover 3, Greater New Bedford 1 — Junior Kalie Ronzio (nine kills, three aces) and senior Sadie Chadwick (32 assists) powered the No. 15 Hawks (12-9) over No. 18 Greater New Bedford (12-9) in the first round.
Lynnfield 3, St. Mary’s 0 — Senior Audrey Manning (14 kills, 13 assists) reached 1,000 career assists and sophomore Erica Manning added 11 kills and eight digs for the No. 3 Pioneers (20-1) in their first-round victory over No. 35 St. Mary’s (11-11).
Medfield 3, Belchertown 1 — Kiley Weafer (10 kills, 13 digs), Jordan Sanderson (12 kills), and Connie Hillenmeyer (9 kills, 2 blocks) led the No. 16 Warriors (10-11) to a first-round win over No. 17 Belchertown (12-7).
Newburyport 3, Greater Lowell 0 — Seniors Gabby Vigeant (11 kills, three aces) netted her 500th career kill, and Eloise LeDuc (eight kills) helped the fifth-seeded Clippers (18-3) to a first-round win over No. 37 Greater Lowell (12-10).
Division 4
Greater Lawrence 3, Northeast 0 — Senior Jaydalise Davila delivered 10 kills and three aces, and senior Asmeily Anziani orchestrated the offense with 16 assists to lead the No. 4 Reggies (18-2) to a first-round win over No. 29 Northeast (15-5).
Ipswich 3, Mystic Valley 0 — Sophomore Jade Deacon delivered 18 kills and four blocks and sophomore Elliott Sinausky added 25 assists for the No. 11 Tigers (11-10) in their first-round victory over No. 22 Mystic Valley (11-8).
Division 5
Calvary Chapel 3, Salem Academy 0 — Colbie Adams delivered 11 kills and 10 aces and Riley Hanlon added 17 assists for the No. 3 Cougars (19-2) in their first-round triumph over No. 35 Salem Charter (12-10).
Cape Cod Tech 3, Abby Kelley Foster 2 — Lia Marie Adames De Jesus delivered nine kills and Lilly Mullin netted 12 assists for the No. 32 Crusaders (5-15) in a preliminary-round win over No. 33 Abby Kelley Foster (12-7).
St. John Paul II 3, Mohawk Trail 0 — Lola Our (7 kills, 6 aces, 3 digs), Kiara Miller (4 aces, 3 kills, 2 digs), Zlata Alioshka (18 assists, 2 kills, 3 digs), and Caitlin McGrail (6 kills, 5 digs) powered the No. 4 Lions (14-3) to the first-round victory over No. 29 Mohawk Trail (7-13).
Whitinsville Christian 3, Hopedale 0 — Julia Monteiro delivered 22 service points, 18 assists, and 5 aces and Mia Besong netted five blocks and four kills for the No. 12 Crusaders (10-11) in their first-round win over No. 21 Hopedale (5-16).
Correspondent Tony Gleason contributed to this story.
AJ Traub can be reached at aj.traub@globe.com. Follow him on X @aj_traub and Instagram @ajt37.