All Local, All The Time
All Local, All The Time
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The wins have been few and far between for the youthful Niwot baseball team in 2019, but head coach Adam Strah said there have been definite signs of improvement down the stretch. Unfortunately, that wasn’t much in evidence in the Cougars’ 10-0 loss to Mountain View on April 27. The blowout capped off a hectic four-game stretch for the Cougars, who are still making up for early season weather postponements. The week started off on a promising note for the Cougars, with an 8-6 win over Ber...
The quadrennial summer Olympic Games brings millions of new athletes to gymnastics, and after the U.S. team’s dramatic finish in the 2008 Beijing games, one of those was then-elementary school student Erica Bortfeldt. Bortfeldt’s affinity for the sport has endured, and now, more than a decade later, the Niwot High senior competes for a club team based at Airborne Gymnastics in Longmont. On April 20, she captured the All-Around title in her division at the 2019 NCAA Youth Gymnastics Cha...
Niwot senior Nolan Johan was named Most Valuable Athlete for his outstanding individual performance at the 2019 Boulder County Track & Field Championships last weekend, but it was the first-ever BoCo team win for the Cougars that the hurdler was most eager to talk about in the aftermath. “I knew I had a really good day, so in the back of my head I knew maybe it was a possibility, but it wasn’t really my main focus,” he said of the MVA award, the first for a Niwot boy since 2013. “I was just re...
The Niwot track and field team turned in an historic performance at the Boulder County Championships (BoCo) meet last weekend, with the 10th straight title for the girls and the first-ever title for the Niwot boys. Niwot’s Taylor James and Nolan Johan were also crowned the meet’s Most Valuable Athletes for their high scoring individual performances....
The Niwot girls soccer team hasn’t had much to celebrate this season, so the Cougars’ 10-0 blowout over Greeley Central on April 18 was a much needed respite from this season’s dreary routine. “It was a good game to get the confidence back,” head coach Stephen Dimit said after the win, just their second in 2019. “The finishing was really good today. We actually finished some proper, nice goals today.” More than just “some.” In fact, six players scored on the day, and three had multiple goals, i...
The Niwot track and field team turned in an historic performance at the Boulder County Championships (BoCo) meet last weekend, and now head coach Maurice Henriques can cross a few more items off of the Cougars’ 2019 to-do list. “Our goal was to win this meet on both sides,” Henriques said at the 43rd annual event, held on April 20 at Everly-Montgomery Field. “And, it’s the first time in school’s history that’s happened and the first time for the boys to have a win at the Boulder County Champi...
Led by standouts Julia Solem and Halie Ostrom, the second-ranked Niwot girls golf team has been a top finisher in almost all of its league events so far this season, and now after a 12-stroke win at Centaurus on April 16, the Cougars are poised to win the Class 4A Northern League for the first time in years. “We had a good lead coming in, and I don’t think we gave up much ground, if any,” Niwot head coach Ed Weaver said following the round at Indian Peaks Golf Course in Lafayette. “I know th...
Niwot senior Laure Bourgin wasn’t sure what to expect when she took up golf a little over a year ago, but she wasn’t expecting to uncover a hidden talent. Now the senior is one of the rising stars on the emerging Niwot girls golf team and the sport she once thought of as “relatively interesting” has become a daily habit. “It’s time consuming, but unlike most sports, it’s—I don’t know—elegant, for lack of a better term. I just really like a sport where I can really hone a skill....Golf is on...
If the first half of the 2019 season is any indication, the undefeated Niwot girls tennis team will once again be a strong contender for the Class 4A state championship. But with some marquis challengers on the schedule heading into next month’s regional tournament, head coach Aimee Keronen knows her team will need to stay focused. “We’re right where we want to be right now,” she said after the Cougars’ shutout win over Greeley Central on April 4. “I think Cherry Creek will be a tough test...
South Korea native Jongwon “Jon” Lee came to the United States with his family five years ago, determined to soak up as much of the American experience as possible. Now a highly accomplished student and athlete at Niwot High, Lee’s schedule is almost always packed to the brim, and the busy senior wouldn’t have it any other way. “I want to try as many things as possible, which kind of put me in a situation where I’m having a hard time dealing with all the schedules I have,” he admitted. “Bu...
Boys volleyball is one of the fastest growing high school sports in America, and this spring it could be among the first new team sports to be sanctioned by the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) since 1999. On April 24, members of CHSAA’s Legislative Council will vote on whether to add boys volleyball, girls wrestling, and unified bowling to the list of “official” Colorado high school sports, which has been static since field hockey was sanctioned 20 years ago. So far, boys vol... Full story
After nearly two weeks of bad weather and snowy course conditions, the Niwot girls golf team finally made its 2019 debut on March 20 in Northern League Event #1 at the Olde Course. If the lengthy delay had any effect on Niwot golfers, it wasn’t evident in their play or their scores. In fact, it may even have been an advantage, as three Cougars set brand new career-best marks on the day, as Niwot cruised to the team title by 36 strokes. One of those new PRs was for junior Julia Solem, who c... Full story
Organizers of the 2019 Boulder Roubaix are shifting into high gear as the biennial tribute to the famed French bike race gets set to return to the area on Saturday, April 6. Modeled after the world's oldest single-day cycling competition, the local event may not have the legendary cobblestone-paved stretches of its grueling Parisian namesake, but that doesn't mean riders won't be tested by the partially-paved 18.7-mile course that winds through the hills of northern Boulder County. "It's a... Full story
Niwot head coach Aimee Keronen knows that it won’t be easy to defend the Class 4A state tennis title, but with eight returning starters plus a handful of talented newcomers, she knows it’s not exactly a longshot, either. “We’re still in a good position,” she said about the upcoming 2019 season. “We definitely have some holes we need to fill, but the girls are using it for motivation. They got that taste of winning and want it back.” Winning is just about all the Cougars did last season. Led b... Full story
For a second straight week, the Niwot track and field team found itself without a weekend venue after weather and field conditions forced a last minute cancellation, this time of the Windsor Invitational on March 16. Fortunately, the Cougars were able to find more than a dozen other teams in a similar predicament, and a local school in Longmont willing to play host, resulting in the NoCo Qualifier #1. Niwot won the team title on both the boys’ and girls’ sides handily, with Emrick Wells and Tay... Full story
The Niwot girls golf team found its way back to the Class 4A state tournament in 2018, and head coach Ed Weaver has every reason to believe that the Cougars are headed back there in 2019. With a mix of returning veterans, plus an influx of promising newcomers, Weaver said this season’s team has the depth to challenge the top teams in the league. “My goal is to win the conference, and qualify as a team for state,” Weaver said. “I’ve got two returning qualifiers, and we’ve got good representat... Full story
The Niwot track and field team lost a number of its top performers to graduation after last season, but Maurice Henriques isn’t fazed. In fact, the ninth-year head coach thinks the 2019 Cougars are poised for even more success, thanks in part to many of those departed stars. “I actually think we’re a better team this year than we were last year, as a complete team,” he said. “All of those girls are a year older, and the leadership that Mary [Gillett] and Mackenzie [Fidelak] passed down has been... Full story
The Niwot baseball team didn’t fare too well on the field in 2018, but second-year head coach Adam Strah is optimistic that some off-the-field improvements will help the Cougars get back on track in 2019. “I am excited to see this group put into action what we have been talking about this year,” he wrote in an email interview about the upcoming season. “We have focused on our team building, leadership, and culture. There is a lot of baseball talent on this team and it will be fun to watch t...
All soccer teams are inherently “goal-oriented,” so when third-year head coach Steve Dimit referred to the 2019 Niwot girls soccer team as such, it wasn’t the squad’s on-field play he had in mind. “They’re a team that’s really goal-oriented and very, very focused on making another run at the league title, and making the playoffs and having a really good experience this year,” Dimit said. “They’re just committed every day to making this a great season.” Of course, having a great season will depen...
Niwot sophomore Misha Barrett loves two things: playing basketball and “making the fans happy.” As shooting guard for the Silver Creek unified basketball team, Barrett gets a chance to do both. “I love going out there and showing people what I’ve got,” Barrett said, his enthusiasm for the sport evident. Barrett is one of a handful of Niwot special needs students who play for the Raptors unified team, which competes weekly throughout the district. In their final game of the season on Feb. 27,... Full story
Neither Niwot wrestler made it very far into his bracket at this year’s Class 4A Colorado Wrestling Championships, but first-time state qualifiers Daniel Torres and Jovani Lopez didn’t walk away from the Pepsi Center empty handed, according to head coach Bobby Matthews. “They both fought,” he said after Torres and Lopez were eliminated on day two of the tournament, held Feb. 21-23. “They never gave up in any match, and that’s huge….These guys now know what it takes to win here. As coaches, we’v... Full story
Niwot senior Natasha Ragland recently completed a course in Emergency Medical Services (EMS) training at nearby Front Range Community College, and while it didn’t change her future plans to become a doctor, she said it was life-changing experience nevertheless. “I took a lot away from the class. It was a lot of work and sometimes the work was very challenging, especially knowing what the emergency medical services deal with. And, it kind of gave me a new perspective on life.” Ragland first...
Dawson School's athletics program was recognized this month as one of the top in the state, across all sports and all divisions, the school recently announced. Mile High Sports magazine's annual prep sports report ranked Dawson Athletics #12 out of over 350 programs statewide. The ranking recognizes the breadth and success of Dawson athletics, as it looks across sports at state championship-level qualifying and appearances by both teams and individual athletes. In addition, Dawson was named #2...
The Niwot boys basketball team didn’t put many numbers in the W column down the stretch, but their series of narrow losses in the highly competitive Northern League made them a bubble team for the Class 4A post-season tournament going into the final week. Unfortunately, that bubble was broken by an 82-62 loss to Mountain View on Feb. 13 in the last game of the season. “They battled, but we just didn’t execute enough,” Niwot head coach Eric Hejl said. “We just couldn’t string together enough stop... Full story
On Feb. 11, Niwot High principal Eric Rauschkolb announced that the school has selected Loveland High’s Kevin Clark to replace outgoing assistant principal and athletic director Chase McBride, who is leaving for a position with the St. Vrain Valley School District at the end of the school year. “After an extensive search, we are pleased to inform you that a recommendation will be made to the Board of Education that Mr. Kevin Clark be hired as the new Assistant Principal and Athletic Dir...
Niwot will once again be represented at the Class 4A state wrestling championships, thanks to surprising performances by juniors Daniel Torres and Jovani Lopez at the Region 4 qualifying tournament, held Feb. 15-16 at Mead High School. “In this sport, it’s never over until it’s over,” Niwot head coach Bobby Matthews said after Torres won the tournament’s final match with just seconds left to claim a state qualifying berth in the 195 pound bracket. “These guys came from never really being in th... Full story
Niwot head basketball coach Terri Ward is still on the hunt for win number 301 after the Cougars’ mid-season resurgence turned out to be short-lived. After a tough 1o-point loss to rival Silver Creek on Feb. 7, Ward seemed especially frustrated at the team’s recent offensive struggles. “You can’t miss lay-ups and little baskets,” she said after Niwot fell 50-40 to the Raptors at home. “I bet we missed 20 points worth, at least. You can’t miss those in a game like this.” That wasn’t the only... Full story
The Niwot girls swim team just wrapped up its most successful season in years, and senior Hanna Luo is a big part of the reason why. In the Northern Conference championships on Feb. 2, she set personal records in the 200 individual medley and 100 butterfly and helped deliver an overwhelming Cougars victory. A week later, the versatile Luo’s impressive performance was a key factor in her team’s second place finish at the Class 4A State Swimming Championships, an experience she called “a super...
Friends, family members and former players gathered during halftime of the boys basketball game against Silver Creek on Feb. 7 to recognize longtime girls coach Terri Ward for her milestone 300th win and upcoming induction into the Colorado High School Activities Association Hall of Fame. “Leadership is about making others better as a result of their presence and making sure that that impact lasts in their absence,” Assistant CHSAA Commissioner Bert Borgmann said during a formal ann... Full story
The Niwot girls swim team took second overall at the 2019 Class 4A State Swim Championships, held Feb. 7-8 at the VMAC in Thornton. Freshman Mary Codevilla won Niwot's first individual title since 2003 in the 200 IM, and also took second in the 500 freestyle. Junior Abbie Shaw was second overall in the 200 freestyle and the 100 backstroke....
Codevilla and Shaw lead Cougars to 2nd overall The Niwot girls swim team kicked-off the final round of the 2019 Class 4A swim championships on Feb. 8 with a dramatic fourth-place finish in the 200-medley relay, and the surprises just kept coming. Over the next 11 events at the VMAC in Thornton, Cougar swimmers collected six top-three finishes and ended the night with what head coach Sarah Stamp called “the best surprise of all.” “We’ve been fourth before, but never gotten the hardware for run...
By his own admission, senior Marcus Chong is “not the most talkative person” on the Niwot boys basketball team, so when he received the 2019 SVVSD Sportsmanship Award on Jan. 30, he was a “little bit surprised.” For head coach Eric Hejl, however, the self-effacing guard was the natural choice for the honor. “Marcus is not really vocal, necessarily, but he’s a leader by example,” Hejl said. “He’s so consistent with it. He’s never said a word to an official, he’s there to help even opponents u... Full story
The Niwot wrestling team took on Northridge and Centaurus in a Northern Conference triangle dual on Jan. 31, falling to the Grizzlies 42-30 but then bouncing back for a 46-18 win against the Warriors...
With arch rival Silver Creek exiled to the newly formed Longs Peak League, Niwot’s commanding win at the 2019 Northern League Championships on Feb. 2 may not have been very dramatic, but that didn’t make it any less sweet for Cougar head coach Sarah Stamp. “This is our first time winning conference since I’ve been coaching, which is 10 years, so it’s super exciting,” she said afterwards. “We’ve come in second lots of years, but not first, so I’m super thrilled that we came out on top.” Niwot sw...
The road through the Northern Conference has been bumpy for the Niwot boys basketball team as of late, so head coach Eric Hejl was more relieved than anything after his team held on for a 58-55 victory at home over Thompson Valley on Jan. 30. “I don’t know if we could have handled another close loss,” he said. The night before, Niwot fell to Northridge 63-58 in overtime, and on Jan. 25, the Cougars fell 70-69 to Mountain View, despite a 46-point night from senior guard Thomas Bounds. “We’r... Full story
Like many high school wrestlers, junior Max Pechersewski followed his father’s footsteps into the sport. However, it took a bit of nudging to get him there. “During my freshman year, my parents wanted me to do a sport and I don’t really like basketball that much,” he said. “I knew my dad did wrestling, so I went out to try it. There were some supportive people that helped me find clubs, and I just kept going from there.” Pechersewski is now in his third year with the Niwot wrestling program, an...
Thanks to an extra week in this year’s competition schedule, Bobby Matthews and the Niwot wrestling team enjoyed a rare mid-season break, but were back in action with a triangular league meet against Silver Creek and Thompson Valley on Jan. 24, followed by the Diny Pickert Invitational at Berthoud HS on Jan. 26. At the tri, Niwot wrestlers Keith Hemmenway (160), Long Pham (182), Andrew Campos (195), Max Pecherzewski (126), and Matt Bitterman (132) won their contested matches against the R... Full story
The Niwot girls basketball team delivered a milestone win to head coach Terri Ward on Jan. 25, but it was their disciplined performance during the historic game that had her more excited afterwards. “I thought we played great,” she said after the Cougars cruised to a decisive 53-42 win over Mountain View, the 300th of the longtime coach’s storied career with her alma mater. “That was probably the first four full quarters that we’ve played this season, and that was really important. The good... Full story
It was another tough week for the Niwot boys basketball team, as they dropped two more conference games, one by a razor thin margin to a top-10 team and the other by double-digits to a very beatable arch-rival. For Cougar head coach Eric Hejl, the most difficult part may have been deciding which one was harder to take. “Greeley Central probably stings more because I feel like one little thing goes differently and we win that game,” he said after his team fell to Silver Creek by 12 points on Jan....
Niwot senior Kristi Vu became a swimmer by accident. Literally. “I started swimming as physical therapy for gymnastics,” she said. “And I just started to love it more and more. I finally quit gymnastics two years ago, because swimming was so much more fun.” ‘Fun’ is a word that Vu uses liberally to describe her time with the Niwot swim team. For example, she said it’s the main reason she’s specialized in sprints, in particular the 50-yard freestyle. “It’s just a fun race to swim,” she said. “I...
No one was happier than head coach Terri Ward when the Niwot girls snapped their five-game losing streak on Jan. 18 against Silver Creek. Down by six at halftime, the Cougars came back for a 38-35 win in overtime over the Raptors, thanks to some stepped-up defense and clutch free-throw shooting. However, Ward said afterwards that how her team won the game mattered less than why they won. “Our first half wasn’t great, and I pretty much went in and ripped them new faces,” she said. “I basical...
With a new name, time, location, and an extra team, this year’s annual rivalry meet between the Longmont-area girls swim and dive teams didn’t bear much resemblance to the traditional “All City” match-up. However, the final team standings were strangely familiar. For the fifth consecutive year, a loaded Silver Creek squad claimed the meet title, with 696 points, followed by Niwot (636) in second and Longmont (387) a distant third. Though it wasn’t the result she was hoping for, Niwot junior Ab...
On the strength of a handful of top-10 individual finishes, the Niwot girls swim and dive team amassed 192 team points to finish sixth overall at the 2019 Mustang Invitational, held at the VMAC on Jan. 12. Niwot freshman Mary Codevilla took first overall in the 200-yard IM with a time of 2 minutes, 11.05 seconds, while junior Abbie Shaw was third overall in the 100-yard freestyle (54.49) and seventh in the 50-yard race (25.19). Sophomore Emily Yie finished second in the 200-yard freestyle event... Full story
The Niwot boys basketball fell to 7-5 on the year after a promising start to the week ended in back-to-back blowout losses at the hands of conference foes Thompson Valley and Longmont. On Jan. 8, the Cougars opened Northern League play with a 66-50 win over Northridge, extending their winning streak to four games. Senior Tommy Bounds had a season-high 21 points on the night, while senior Dom Luthens was had 16 rebounds. The Cougars were uncharacteristically flat the next night, and struggled...
It would be easier to list the team sports that Niwot power forward Bitzy Archibald hasn’t tried at some point in her life, but the senior said she’s really a “pretty big nerd” at heart. “I think people picture a jock, but I’m always reading in the locker room,” she said. Archibald is a fan of sci-fi and thrillers, and recently completed “We Know It Was You” by Maggie Thrash. “I get a lot of jokes about that from the team.” What isn’t getting any jokes is Archibald’s play on the basketball court...
Niwot head basketball coach Terri Ward was visibly frustrated after her team’s single-point defeat by cross-town rival Longmont on Jan. 11. Up by double-digits late in the third quarter, the Cougars and their normally trustworthy defense yielded 13 straight points to the Trojans, turning what should have been a blowout win in regulation into a 47-46 heartbreaker in overtime. Afterwards, Ward said a shortage of “basketball IQ” played a role in their failure to hold the lead. “It’s hard when you... Full story
Calling her “one of the state’s top female sports ambassadors,” the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) announced on Jan. 8 that Niwot alum and longtime NHS coach Terri Ward is slated for induction as a member of the 30th Anniversary CHSAA Hall of Fame Class. Ward joins five other honorees in the 2018 class, and is the first Niwot coach or athlete to receive this recognition. She will be enshrined as a significant contributor, owing to both her storied coaching career and her d...
The wins were few and far between for the Niwot wrestling team in the early weeks of the 2018-19 season, but head coach Bobby Matthews sounded an optimistic tone following his team’s performance in the first weekend of the new year. Between Friday night’s dual against Longmont and Saturday’s annual Gary Daum Invitational, seven of his wrestlers posted a match win, which he said is one of several promising signs that the team is starting to turn around. “I’m definitely feeling much better th... Full story
11 ended on a high note for Niwot ninth-grader Jackson Foy, who beat out dozens of the state’s top U14 hockey goaltenders to win this year’s Colorado Avalanche Mini 1 on 1 Challenge. Foy survived two rounds of qualifying in December before reaching the finals, which were held at the Pepsi Center on Dec. 28. There, he outlasted two other competitors in the shootout style tournament and was crowned Colorado’s top U14 goalie. “It was amazing to play and win at the Pepsi Center,” Foy wrote in...
The Niwot girls basketball team fell to 3-6 on the season after dropping two of three games at the sixth annual Roughrider Shootout, held Jan. 3-5 at Roosevelt HS. Lack of offensive production continued to hamper the Cougars, who dropped games to D’Evelyn (53-33) and Grand Junction Central (35-31), but held on for an ugly 29-27 win over Steamboat Springs on Jan. 4. Afterwards, Niwot head coach Terri Ward was not in much of celebratory mood. “We can’t play even or below our competition, we have...
