Defeat was not in Cherry Creek’s destiny this season.

The Bruins began as the No. 1-ranked team in Class 5A volleyball and finished it without a misstep Saturday by winning the state title at the Denver Coliseum. Cherry Creek became the third consecutive team from the Centennial League to be a 31-0 champion.

Cherry Creek did it by knocking off defending champion Grandview (27-4), which accomplished the same feat last season. Eaglecrest went undefeated two seasons ago.

Although the Bruins’ victory was expected, the pasting they handed Grandview was not. Cherry Creek outlasted the Wolves in an extremely intense first set, but dominated Grandview in the final two for a 28-26, 25-11, 25-11 victory.

Grandview had a couple of chances to win the first set, but made three consecutive hitting errors to lose a tough one. The Wolves didn’t look the same thereafter, while Creek continued merrily on its way.

“Once we went on a run, you could see they started to break down,” said Bruins senior Gabi Dewberrry, a 5-foot-8 senior headed to Fullerton State.

Ferocious blocking from middles Sam Peters and Andi Weber, keyed the win, plus 15 kills from Carrie Baird and extreme athleticism with a find touch from setter/outside hitter Dewberry.

“Our middles were doing such a fantastic job,” Baird said. “They were working so hard and so excited, so confident about it. Our pin blockers were really getting up, being aggressive, looking at the hitters and all that. It really helped out our defense.”

The championship was Creek’s fifth, all on Sally Moos-coached teams, but the first one that finished undefeated.

Grandview, which had lost in four sets to Cherry Creek during league play, actually looked like the more successful team early on. The Wolves got eight kills from outside hitter Sarah Van Goethem in the first set, plus four more and a block from 6-4 middle Erica Denney.

But a block of Denney by Weber tied the score at 26 and sent the Bruins on a three-point run to a win.

“It kind of took the wind out of their sails, to fight that hard and not get the win,” said Patty Childress of Grandview, last season’s All-Colorado coach of the year. “I really thought that we’d come back and continue to fight. It’s a little disappointing, but I just think overall for this team to get this far, with the roller-coaster season we had, I’m pretty pleased.”

Denney is only a junior, but a big-time hitter who has played on a couple U.S. national teams for her age group. She finished with nine kills, second to Van Goethem’s 11 for Grandview, but also got stopped a few times, as Peters and Weber each came up with five blocks.

“The first time I played her, I was intimidated by her,” Weber admitted. “I was scared. I told myself, ‘I can do it. I can do it.’ And I blocked her. I could do it.”

Peters, a 6-2 senior who will play for Santa Clara University, also contributed plenty of offense. She finished with eight kills, five helping the Bruins to stay alive in the first set and served up three aces.

But the Bruins’ best was Baird, the News’ Most Valuable Player for the tournament.

“Grandview is such a great team and they have so much experience at the state tournament,” Baird said. “They really feed off emotion and they were excited to be here. But we knew if we just kept fighting, we could be successful.”

Baird and Dewberry urged the Bruins along after winning the first set, saying that Grandview had come back in their earlier match. Baird thought Creek was careful not to rely on a Wolves letdown after losing the first set Saturday.

“It can feel like that, but you know volleyball – anything can happen,” she said. “We were more focused on our side of the net and recreating that same level of play.”

Grandview faced off against Highlands Ranch in the semifinals and was helped out greatly by senior right side hitter Tori Svalberg. She had 13 kills against Falcons, but the Bruins’ block was far better and the 6-footer was held to five kills in the championship match.

Morgan Gradishar, a clutch hitter for the Wolves Friday, also was held to five against Creek.

Cherry Creek was pushed by Rampart in its semifinal, losing its first set of the tournament. But the Bruins, came back to win a 25-20, 25-12, 21-25, 25-17 decision, not quite as easy as Grandview’s 25-22, 25-17, 25-21 win in the crossover.

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