5A/4A Volleyball Coach of the Year: David Barkley of Cheyenne Mountain

David Barkley wakes up from time to time and asks himself the same question:

“Did we really do that?”

Barkley is referring to Cheyenne Mountain’s run to its fifth consecutive 4A state championship, with lingering questions of who would emerge on the outside coupled with big shoes to fill after three all-state players had graduated.

The Indians struggled at times and didn’t go undefeated, as they did in 2009 and 2011. Heck, they even lost a league match for the first time in nearly a decade, falling to Lewis-Palmer in an epic, five-game classic.

That loss prepared Cheyenne Mountain for its eventual rematch with Lewis-Palmer in the 4A state final. When it looked as if the Rangers had taken control, ahead 19-8 in the third set, the Indians dug deep and created an indelible mark on Barkley’s nine-year career at the school.

“That comeback defined the program,” said Barkley, who watched his team rally for a 27-25 win in that third set, then close out Lewis-Palmer in the fourth. “Of the five state championships, this by far was the toughest. I can’t tell you how proud I am to have been part of that.”