Since last season, when Grandview girls basketball ran the table to its first state title, the formula for beating the Wolves has remained steadfast. It requires continuous haymakers, not occasional bursts; it takes four full quarters of physical basketball, plus a knockout blow, in order to take them down.
In Thursday’s Class 5A Final Four at the Denver Coliseum, Fossil Ridge came out with the energy and, it appeared, the will to stick to that formula in order to pull off the upset.
But Grandview did as Grandview does, leveraging physicality, depth and transition scoring to overcome a slow start and beat the Sabercats, 54-38, to advance to face No. 6 Regis Jesuit in the championship on Saturday.
It was the Sabercats who went up early, jumping out to a 7-2 lead amid uncharacteristic Grandview turnovers and poor shot selection. But the Wolves responded with a 10-3 run to close to first with a 14-12 lead and the momentum.
And when Fossil Ridge senior captain Katey Guzman had to be helped off the floor early in the second quarter with an ankle injury — she did not return — Grandview used her absence to cut down on Fossil Ridge’s effectiveness from long distance and take a 30-23 lead into the half.
In the third, Grandview dominated the glass and padded its advantage as senior Leilah Vigil (16 points), junior Alisha Davis (11) and freshman Addison O’Grady (nine) capitalized on plenty of second-chance opportunities.
Meanwhile, the Sabercats couldn’t get anything going on offense, going cold from the perimeter while also having an array of inside attempts blocked by Vigil and O’Grady. Fossil Ridge was paced by 13 points from junior point guard Ashley Steffeck.
The Centennial League champion, No. 4-seeded Wolves improve to 24-3, while the No. 8 Sabercats finish 20-6.
