Regis Groff makes school history by capturing 4A boys volleyball title

FOUNTAIN – More often than not, history is written by the winners.

And for the first time in school history, Regis Groff is a winner. The Fusion survived a tough first set and then maintained control to beat Pueblo South 30-28, 25-18, 25-19 to capture the first-ever Class 4A boys volleyball championship.

It’s also the first team state championship in Regis Groff history. And the volleyball team hopes this can be a beacon for the other programs to achieve their championship dreams.

“Every year out of all the sports, every program is getting better and better,” coach Oliver Thornton said. “It’s nice us getting here and putting in the work. We didn’t think we would ever make it this far, to the championship. I talks to how much our community supports us.”

And that support showed as the Fusion had to fight for every point in the first set. The Colts led much of the way, and even had set point locked in at 24-20. Having dropped just one set all state tournament, Regis Groff had no desire to drop another and just continued to fight until they secured the 30-28 win.

“I don’t want to give anybody points,” Fusion hitter Eamon McKim said. “I think it’s important to play respectfully and respectively is giving your and showing the other team everything that you have.”

McKim and Ian Simpson tied for a team-high 11 kills. Jayden Flores dished out 22 assists and Taichi Royal had 12. It caps a remarkable season for the Fusion that saw them go 26-3. Their losses were to Bear Creek, Cherokee Trail and Eaglecrest. It was only about 20 minutes after Regis Groff won state that Eaglecrest claimed the 5A title on the neighboring court.

The Fusion had beaten the Colts in the first match of the day on Saturday to earn a trip into the state title match. The Colts had to fight their way back through Severance to get another crack at the Fusion and in the early moments of the championship match, put them on their heels.

Some key kills from Brody Dunlap helped South build and maintain a lead through much of that first set, but it looked like fatigue eventually got the better of the Colts.

The Fusion rallied to tie the match at 24 and battled to secure the win, which made a significant difference moving forward.

“I think the energy is what solidified it,” Thornton said. “When we started catching up, it got quiet. They were very loud [early] and that kind of energy shift is what prompted our boys to start fighting. It got our crowd ramped up and I think that energy carried over on the court.”

It was a monumental day for boys volleyball overall as it was the first year that the sport was split into two classifications. Sixteen teams battled on two courts through three days at Trojan Arena.

And when all was said and done, two trophies were handed out to two first-time champions.