(Matt Mathewes/MVPSportsPics.com)
DENVER — At a stage of the state tournament where there is always doubt on who will advance, Grandview decided to erase that doubt early on.
Mission accomplished. With a 60-27 win over Regis Jesuit in the Class 5A Final 4, the Wolves will play in Saturday’s state championship game, the first title game in program history.
“I think I was a little bit nervous just because of that reason that we’ve never made it past the Final 4 at Grandview,” senior guard Michaela Onyenwere said. “I’ve been here three times and never made it past so maybe I was a little bit nervous. I’m glad we pulled it out.”
The UCLA commit was her usual self, going for 23 points, 10 of which came in the first half.
It was a slow start offensively for both teams, but it was Allyah Marlett who knocked down a 3-pointer to give Grandview a 4-3 lead, its first of the game. And the Wolves never looked back.
The Raiders finished the first quarter without making a field goal, only mustering three points off free throws.
“I thought we defended well,” Grandview coach Josh Ulitzky said. “We had to work on the other end, but hold our opponent to a single digit is a good quarter.”
Things only got worse as sophomore Francesca Belibi picked up her third foul less than a minute into the second quarter.
“That was the game,” Regis Jesuit coach Carl Mattei said. “As soon as Fran is not able to play right away, the whole feel, the whole belief is gone.”
The Wolves were able to take advantage. On top of Onyenwere’s ability to control the flow of a game, Leilah Vigil was able to dominate inside.
Of her 14 points, she also scored 10 in the first half.
“I’m a 5-foot-8, but I play like I’m 6-foot-4,” Vigil said. “I’m always going to go into the game with a good mindset. No matter how big they are, I’m going to force them to foul me.”
Grandview shot just under 31 percent from the field in that time while the Raiders on shot 21.
With Belbi back in the game for the start of the second half, the Raiders were more competitive, but were still far outmatched. The sophomore didn’t score her first points of the half until early in the fourth quarter and by that time, the game was well in hand for the Wolves.
Freshman point guard Jada Moore paced the Raiders offense with eight points, but the team overall wasn’t able to get any rhythm.
The Wolves now have a chance to to come away with a state title that many felt they were going to be in the running for last year.
But a 69-67 loss to ThunderRidge in last year’s Final 4 torpedoed those hopes.
When they take the floor on Saturday, they hope the lessons from that semifinal will carry them into the school record books as the first girls basketball team to raise a championship banner.
All they have to do until then is stay mentally focused.
“I don’t think that’s an issue,” Ulitzky said. “They’re very focused on what potentially lies ahead.”