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NHS Football

Niwot’s football team finished 1-9, but coach Ron Tesone was proud of his players.  “It was really a struggle,” Tesone said, “with all the adversity and injuries.  Our seniors really stuck together and played together to the end.  They showed great heart. I’m really proud of them for that.”

After beginning the season with a lopsided win over Adams City, the Cougars lost one game in overtime, then lost to Greeley West after leading in the last two minutes.  “We had our chances early in the season,” Tesone said.  “We should have won the overtime game, we should have beaten Greeley West.  The second half of the season, we had to play really young kids, including a lot of sophomores.

The Cougars had only two players with significant varsity experience to start the season.  Next year should be a different story.  “Now there’s a little bit of experience,” Tesone said.  “Hopefully we can be a little bigger and a little stronger.”  The Cougars have a dozen lettermen coming back. 

Due to injuries and a lack of numbers, Niwot was only able to field a varsity team and a C team, coached by NHS grads David Ross and Mitch Nissen.  The C team finished with a record of 4-6, and played a couple of JV opponents.  The C team won its last game late in the fourth quarter against Broomfield, ending the season on a high note. “I hope they can stay together,” Tesone said, speaking of the large freshman class. 

“Some of them will be vying for varsity spots next fall.  Hopefully we’ll have three teams next year.” 
Three Cougars were named to the Northern League All-Conference squad, all on defense.  Xandon Sigafoos at linebacker, Erik Bengston and cornerback, and Ryan Schuler at safety were named to the first team. “They all have a chance to play at the next level,” Tesone said.  “Several D2 schools have shown interest.  Tanner Smith, who tore his ACL at the end of the year, may have a chance as a receiver.”

Three other players made Honorable Mention All-Conference, including linebacker Nick Stager, running back Dillon Manzanares, and offensive tackle Roy Turner.  Stager and Manzanares will return next season to anchor the squad. 

Turner suffered a major concussion toward the end of the season.  “Roy is drastically improved,” Tesone said.  Another senior, Mitch Eustler, returned to action late in the season after recovering from a brain tumor.  “Mitch had a clean MRI last week,” Tesone said.  “Now he has to return every three months from now on.  Mitch and his whole family got to go to the Bahamas through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and stayed at the Atlantis Hotel.” 

Tesone and his staff handed out several awards at the post-season banquet.  Sophomore quarterback Nate Merriman was named Outstanding Offensive Back, Turner and Landon Nolting were named Outstanding Offensive Linemen, Manzanares was named Offensive MVP, Bengston was named Outstanding Defensive Back, Richard Burton was named Outstanding Defensive Lineman, Stager was named Outstanding Linebacker, Sigafoos was named Defensive MVP, and Schuler was named Team MVP.   

Other awards included Outstanding Special Teams Player – Tanner Smith and Chad Pasma, Iron Man Award – Nate Shipley, Hang Tough Award – Nate Edwards, Coach’s Choice Award – Collin Downs, Co-Captain Award – Sigafoos and Eutsler, Sledgehammer Award – Schuler, and Outstanding Team Manager – Amy Northup. 

NHS Boys Basketball

Niwot finished up its pre-conference schedule with a 5-2 record, capped by a dominating win in the Prairie View Tournament.  The Cougars beat Ridgeview by 40 points and Brighton by 50 points before beating host Prairie View, 65-38. The championship game was closer than indicated as the halftime score was tied at 20.  “We came out and took over the second half,” Coach Travis Maron said.  “We played really, really well.” 

“We have good balance,” Maron said, noting that Andy Wegleitner, Alex Kicera and Sam Forrer were leading the way.  “We’re not relying too heavily on any one guy.  We’re trusting each other and reaping the success.” 

Niwot has had its share of adversity in the early season, with injuries and eligibility issues.  “We’ve only had our full eight for one game,” Maron said.  The Cougars fielded their top eight players for the first time in the opening game of the tournament, but point guard James Hong went down with an injury. 

Freshman Alex Kinnison moved up to the varsity to fill in, joining Michael Ogez, Cody Heinman, Taylor Kloepfer and Henry Sebesta in the rotation.  Kinnison was described by Maron as “a good defender, and a good rebounder.” Maron said, “At 6’1”, he’s a strong, physical kid. He’s steady and doesn’t make mistakes. He’s real coachable.”

The Cougars face a tough conference schedule when they return from the break.

NHS Girls Basketball

The Niwot girls took second in the Prairie View Tournament, but Coach Clark Burton was not pleased.  The Cougars started off winning their first game of the tournament, 62-32 over Thomas Jefferson, and followed with a 53-42 win over Prairie View.  But in the title game, Niwot came up short, losing to Golden, 58-24. 

“I’m not sure what team showed up today,” Burton said, commenting about the championship game loss.  “When we’re good, we’re very very good.  We’re fun to watch and can play with just about anybody.  But when we’re bad, we’re terrible.  If we can correct that, we can be a good team at the end of the year.” 
The Cougars carry a 2-4 record into the break, but the losses include an opening game loss to 4-time defending state champion Broomfield, as well as four Class 5A teams. 

“Kelsey Blessing has been playing well on the offensive end of the court,” Burton said. “She’s been our leading scorer in several games and really understands the offense.  Lea Gralewski has been shooting the ball very well.” 

Burton also noted that Kelsey Traxinger was playing very well on defense for the Cougars.  Burton has primarily used a rotation of seven or eight players, including point guard Katy Hedlund, post player Janae Larsen, wing Amy Keschl and post player Sara Bishop.  A few others have also seen varsity action.  Senior Casey McPherson remains out with an injury, and hopes to be back soon after the break.  The Cougars will open against cross-town rival Silver Creek in January after only two days of practice. 

Burton, in his first year as head coach, has had few surprises, but noted that “things take longer than what you think.”   He said, “We’ve had great support from the school, from the assistant coaches, and from the parents.  We’ve had a great turnout for the games, and parents are stepping up to help out where needed.”

Burton, who served as an assistant for Terri Ward for the past three seasons, has not made a lot of changes to the offense or defense.  But some of the changes he has tried to make are taking longer than he anticipated. 

“It’s mostly a matter of style and intensity, getting them to go after loose balls, making rebounding a priority, cutting down on turnovers.”  Burton continued, “In the past, the attitude was, ‘They’re just high school kids,’ and changing that attitude has been difficult.  They’re also learning how they fit into the team.  It takes awhile to get kids to buy into the changes.  The season didn’t start out quite like we had hoped, but we’re still in a position to achieve all of our goals.”

NHS Wrestling

Niwot ended December at the Old Chicago Northern Colorado Christmas Tournament at the University of Northern Colorado, where junior Nick Stager placed sixth at 145 pounds. Stager, who began the tournament with a 14-4 record, won his first match by a 4-2 decision, then pinned a Boulder wrestler in 1:08.  He followed with a 14-7 decision over a Greeley West wrestler before losing to a Centennial wrestler when he was pinned at 3:28.  Stager lost the fifth place match to a wrestler from Discovery Canyon by pin at 1:49.  The Cougars finished in 45th place overall with 37 points. 

Coach Scott Sanchez noted that freshman Jesse Slepicka went 2-2 in the tournament at 112 pounds, and sophomore Christian Ramirez went 2-2 at 119 pounds.  “We’re just so young,” Sanchez said.  “We’re wrestling pretty well.” Ramirez has been a pleasant surprise.  “He’s been wrestling really well,” Sanchez said. “He was on JV at the beginning of the season.  This was his first week on varsity.  He’s being more aggressive.” 

Freshman Marcus Cano has also been wrestling well at 125 pounds.  Heavyweight Landon Nolting was out for the UNC tournament but is expected back after the break.  “We’re not a huge squad,” Sanchez said, noting that there was no one else to wrestle at heavyweight with Nolting out.

“We’re getting ready for our tournament on the eighth (of January),” Sanchez said. “We’re just trying to get these guys better.”  Niwot will host the BVI, with 15 teams from all classes competing, including most of the schools in the St. Vrain Valley School District and the Boulder Valley School District.

NHS Girls Swimming

“We had a pretty quiet December, with only three meets,” Coach Sarah Heller said.  “We won a dual against Mountain View and several of our swimmers qualified for state.”  Among the early state qualifiers were Kaley Wheless in the 50 Freestyle and 100 Freestyle, Zoie Jordan in the 50 Freestyle and Caroline Joyce in the 100 Butterfly. 

Two relay teams also qualified for state.  The 200 Medley Relay team of Melissa McCaddon, Hannah Driscoll, Wheless and Joyce qualified, as did the 200 Freestyle Relay team of Joyce, Wheless, Jordan and Kylie Fischer. 

“Kylie Pillard was close in the 100 Freestye,” Heller said.  “Hannah Driscoll was close in the 100 Breaststroke, and both Cate Rose and Melissa McCaddon were close in the 500 Freestyle.  Everyone swam well across the board.  It was a great showing by the entire team.”  Diver Ariel Mosier also won against Mountain View, which is the only time she has been able to dive all season. 

Niwot traveled to Estes Park for the Estes Sprint, where each swimmer swims 50 yards of every stroke, as well as a 100-yard Individual Medley.  Wheless and Elise Cranny both placed individually in the top 16 swimmers, and the Cougars took second as a team. 

The Cougars also swam at the League Relays at Thompson Valley, where each event is a relay.  “It’s just a fun event,” Heller said.  “We swam a JV-Varsity squad and they had a lot of fun.”

Heller noted that Wheless, Jordan and Joyce are off to a great start, and others are coming around.  “Kylie Fischer just had pins taken out of her ankle from an injury last year,” Heller noted. 

“Our freshmen are doing very well,” Heller said, noting the performances of Pillard, Driscoll, Cranny, Rose and Lauren Fitzgibbons.  The Cougars come back from the break with a dual at Greeley Central, followed by the All-City Meet among Longmont schools on Jan. 6.  “We have two meets a week in January,” Heller said.