DENVER | First match and last match, Grandview couldn’t find a way to stop Doherty in the 2012 volleyball season.
Not that any other team could.
The high-powered Spartans finished off a perfect 29-0 season with a 25-17, 25-14, 25-15 victory over the Wolves in the Class 5A state championship match Saturday night at the Denver Coliseum, dealing them a three-set defeat as they did when the teams opened the season against each other on Aug. 31.
Doherty’s size at the net, shot selection and scrappy defense came to the forefront at the right times as it claimed its first state championship since 2003, when the Spartans also defeated Grandview and coach Patty Childress. Doherty coach Tara Hittle was a player on that 2003 team.
Childress — whose team came into t coached in her eighth championship match with Grandview and fell to 3-5 all-time, including three straight defeats after three wins in a four-year span from 2004-2007.
The Wolves could be contenders next season, as they graduate only player — middle blocker Cat Denney — from the roster.
Grandview advanced to the state championship match by avenging its 2011 title match loss to Chaparral, as the Wolves downed the Wolverines in four sets in the semifinals.
To make the semifinals, Grandview won pool play matches against Heritage and rival Eaglecrest.
Reach Sports Editor Courtney Oakes at sports@aurorasentinel.com or 303-750-7555
CLASS 5A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH
No. 1 Doherty def. No. 7 Grandview 25-17, 25-14, 25-15
