Denver, and its 10 seniors, return to the Class 2A volleyball final

CORALVILLE — For the Denver Cyclones, it was just another night in the North Iowa Cedar League.

And with such a familiar opponent, Game 5 was not an appealing proposition.

“The longer the match went, the more nervous we were going to feel,” Coach Jamie Johnson said.

Grace Mullihan kept it from becoming a true nail-biter, putting away the final two kills to clinch the top-ranked Cyclones’ four-set win over No. 4 Grundy Center in a Class 2A semifinal at the state volleyball tournament.

Set scores were 25-16, 25-17, 19-25 and 26-24.

“We all depended on each other; we’ve been in these moments,” Grace’s twin, Bailey Mullihan said after the reigning-champion Cyclones (49-1) returned to the 2A final.

Denver will face No. 3 Hinton (30-2) for the crown at 4:45 Thursday afternoon.

It will be a departure from the first two rounds, in which the Cyclones played their sisters from the NICL (first Wapsie Valley, then Grundy Center).

“They definitely have some tough hitters,” Mullihan said of the Blackhawks. “This will be the final (match) for 10 of us seniors, so we’re going to take the moment.”

Grundy Center (36-10) presented a challenge in the form of junior Ryanne Brubaker, who is listed at 6-foot-8.

“We do have a 6-4 basketball coach who comes in and blocks against us,” Mullihan said.

Brubaker had 14 kills, but Denver made up for that with balance. Bailey Mullihan and Adeana Murch put down 15 kills apiece, Grace Mullihan added 12 and Channing Johnson provided 11 kills to go with 43 assists.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com