DENVER — With 6 minutes, 25 seconds left in a gritty Class 3A boys basketball championship game, Aspen senior Shae Korpela ascended for a two-handed dunk that sent his teammates — and the Skiers’ legion of fans — into a frenzy.
Korpela did just enough to clear the rim and power the ball through the cylinder.
It was only fitting.
Had Korpela converted the dunk with any more ease, it really wouldn’t have been indicative of what it took for him and his teammates to hoist the program’s first state championship Saturday night at the University of Denver’s Hamilton Gymnasium.
With nothing short of a yeoman’s effort, third-seeded Aspen prevailed in a defensive struggle against No. 5 Centauri, 50-40.
“That’s the work ethic,” Skiers coach Cory Parker said. “Every single one of these boys has proven themselves. I’m so proud of them. We have gone through so much this year, personally, as a team. … This has just been a storybook season for this team.”
While the Falcons ended their 24-2 campaign just short of the program’s first state title, Aspen capped its flawless season with a 27-0 record, making school history as the first boys hoops state champion in Skiers history.
And though there was still plenty of work left to be done after Korpela’s rim-rattling dunk — which put Aspen up 37-27 — that big basket was certainly the beginning of the end for Centauri.
“When I dunked, that’s what got us energized on defense, that’s what got the whole crowd, the whole gym energized,” said Korpela, who scored a team-high 18 points. “(Dunks) energize all of us.”
Though the defensive-minded affair certainly wasn’t the most aesthetically pleasing of games, Parker and his boys really wouldn’t have had it any other way.
Even after jumping out to a 7-0 lead in the first quarter and holding the Falcons scoreless for the first six minutes, the Skiers had to work for every advantage they gained in the nip-and-tuck affair.
“That was one of our Achilles’ heels to start the season was: can we keep up with physical, well-disciplined, well-coached teams,” Parker said. “We got tested a couple times in our conference. But, not until the state tournament did we really find out where we were on that grit level, that toughness level and that resilience level.”
And now Aspen can reap the rewards of its hard work and perseverance, as it will forever be ingrained in school history.
“We’ve all grown up playing together; we knew we were going to be a special group,” Korpela said. “We’ve had chemistry since kindergarten. … This is as special as it gets. We’re going to hang the first banner on the wall. And, I’m going to remember this for the rest of my life.”