Tompkins set a goal for themselves back in August.

Before the season started, the Tompkins players set a goal for themselves.

The players and coaches knew how talented of a team they had, and knew that if everything came together properly, they could be as good as anyone in the state.

The Falcons had confidence in themselves and they told themselves they wanted to accomplish one thing this year, make it to state.

Tompkins has strived to reach that goal all year and everything came down to Saturday, when the Falcons met Cinco Ranch in the Class 6A-Region III Final, as for the second time in three years, Region III had an All-Katy ISD regional final to decide who would go to state.

And just like they have all season, Tompkins took care of business, sweeping Cinco Ranch three sets to zero, 25-20, 25-22, 25-18 to advance to the state tournament for the first time in school history.

“The kids have just worked so hard to get here,” said Tompkins head coach Allison Merrell. “They have been driven by that goal all year long and they set the tone August 1^st when they said they wanted to get to state. It’s just so great to see them accomplish it.”

Tompkins knew it would be a test to face Cinco Ranch for a third time, but the Falcons found a way to battle through it and secure a sweep.

The first set was back and forth, until Tompkins started to pull away towards the end, Cinco made a minor comeback but Tompkins was able to hold on and go ahead.

“We just wanted to come in strong, we didn’t want to be cocky or overconfident because we knew Cinco Ranch is a really tough opponent,” said senior outside hitter Tendai Titley. “We focused on all the little things we could because we know them and they know us really well. We know their offense they run, their main hitters and things like that so we just stayed smart and paid attention to the game itself, and thankfully we got the win.”

The second set went the same as the first, as Tompkins again gained the lead before a Cinco Ranch comeback made things closer to the end, but Tompkins was still able to go up two sets to zero, and Tompkins held off rallies from the Cougars in the third set as they secured the sweep without letting things get close.

“We just bring a really good mentality to every game, this team shakes off mistakes better than any I’ve been a part of,” said junior outside hitter Skylar Skrabanek. “We have that mistake but then we move on and fix it. And we have such a good energy, we picked it up and we really play for one another.”

It’s the Falcons first ever trip to the state tournament, and for them to come all this way and accomplish their goals means everything to the players and coaches.

“I can’t even put it into words right now,” Merrell said. “It’s been a dream for a really long time, it’s been a dream of mine and a dream of theirs and these kids, they’re just really special.”

The Falcons will play either at 5 p.m. or 7 p.m. Friday at the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland in the state semifinal, with the winner moving on to Saturday’s state final.

“It feels amazing, I knew we could do it but I’m still in shock that we have gotten this far,” Skrabnek said. “But we put in all the hard work to come this far, I’m proud of us and I’m just excited to get the chance to keep going.”