According to folkore, it's not how many times you get knocked down but how many times you get back up.

For the UMSL Tritons, falling to Lewis twice this season was necessary in order to overtake the giant when it mattered most.

The Tritons fell to Lewis in five sets just a few weeks ago for the GLVC championship, so there was a little extra juice in Thursday's NCAA regional quarterfinal match at Ferris State.

The Tritons battled back all night, took the necessary leads in each set, outlasting the 11-time conference champion in ... yes, you guessed it ... five sets.

Lewis took the opening set, 25-21, but UMSL roared back to take the second and third sets before Lewis bested the Tritons in the fourth set, forcing the 15-point fifth.

"I think the biggest difference in tonight's match with the previous two was our grit and determination at key points towards the end of the sets," head coach Ryan Young said. "We did a nice job of staying relaxed in tight situations and we won three sets by two points, which sometimes that doesn't go our way.  I thought offensively we did a good job of getting kills from the outside, middle, and right side tonight."

In the decider, the Tritons trailed just once, owning multiple three-point leads en route to the win.

The match included more than 19 lead changes and 50 ties: living up to the 4th-versus-5th-seed billing.

Kills: Charlotte Richards finished with 20, Olivia Klank added 15, and Karlyn Hannewald had 12.

Aces: Richards (5), Kaileen Herman (2), Paige Yoder (2).

Blocks: Mya Elliott (3), Herman (3), Hannewald (1).

Assists: Herman (51), Megan Woll (3), Lauren Vandenburg (3).

Digs: Woll (43), Lexie Rang (29), Richards (22).

The Tritons now face host Ferris State (No. 1 seed) at 6:30 p.m. CST Friday in the regional semifinals.