Out in Leftfield

TRACK

Elise Cranny (Niwot), a junior at Stanford University, ran in the 1500 Meters at the 2016 Olympic Track and Field Team Trials, in Eugene, OR, July 7-8. The top three runners in each event qualified for the Team USA for the Rio Olympics. Cranny made the semi-finals, but fell short of making the finals of the event. She was back in Colorado after finishing second in the 1500 Meters at the NCAA finals, missing first place by .004 seconds with a time of 4:09.54. It was the closest finish in the history of the event.

Valerie Allman (Silver Creek), a junior at Stanford University, advanced to the finals in the discus at the 2016 Olympic Track and Field Team Trials with a throw of 191 feet 9 inches on July 1. Her performance put her in seventh place overall, with 12 athletes qualifying for the finals. The next day Allman posted her best throw at 193-8, which gave her a sixth-place finish, less than four feet from qualifying for the Olympic team. Allman finished third in the NCAA finals on June 11 with her personal best throw of 201-6.

Dana Maydew (Niwot) ran her best time of the season for Clemson at the LSU Alumni Gold meet April 23rd. Maydew, a sophomore, won the B section of the 800 Meters with a time of 2:13.34. Maydew also ran the 800M at the ACC Championships May 13-15, finishing 29th overall.

Lorne Jenkins (Niwot) had a strong season for Campbell University, making it to the NCAA Division 1 East Preliminary Round in both the Triple Jump and as a member of the 400 Meter Relay. Jenkins finished third in the Triple Jump (50’ 4.5”) at the Big South Outdoor Track & Field Championships May 10-12, and fourth in the Long Jump (24’1.75”), both of which were career personal records. The Campbell 400 Meter Relay won the event at the Big South meet with a time of 40.08. Earlier in the season Jenkins won both the Long Jump and Triple Jump at the Campbell University Invitational. His mark of 24’3” would have been a personal best, but was determined to be wind-aided.

Gabby Casey (Niwot) finished strong for Colorado Mesa University in the pole vault, placing fourth in the RMAC Championships May 6-8. Casey, a freshman, cleared the bar at 11’ 3” but was unable to make 12 feet.

SOFTBALL

Nickie Blue (Niwot) led the University of South Carolina pitching staff this spring with a 19-13 record and a 2.45 ERA. Her eight saves were also tops on the team. Blue struck out 129 in 211 innings and allowed only 177 hits. South Carolina’s season ended May 22 with a 2-1 loss to seventh-ranked Florida State in the Regionals finals. Blue started in the circle and pitched four innings of one-hit shutout softball, leaving with a 1-0 lead, but the bullpen gave up two runs, ending the season. South Carolina finished 38-23.

Shelby Keil (Silver Creek) hit .236 for the University of South Dakota while anchoring the infield at shortstop. Keil started all 53 games and was second on the team with 11 doubles. Her seven homers and 21 RBI’s were each third on the squad.

McKenna Kostelecky (Silver Creek) hit .352 for Dickinson State last spring, fifth best on the squad. She had two homeruns and 19 RBI’s, which was also fifth best on the team. Kostelecky primarily played first base for Dickinson State, which finished 46-12, losing in the third game of the double elimination NAIA championships.

Haille Weber (Silver Creek) and Cassie Jones (Silver Creek) had solid seasons for Western Nebraska Community College in Scottsbluff. Jones, an outfielder, hit .360 in 29 games, scoring 16 runs. Weber also played outfield and appeared in 66 games, hitting a team high .522 with 18 home runs, 114 RBI’s, and 104 runs scored. Her 18 homers were second on the team, while she led the squad in runs and RBI’s. Weber also legged out 31 doubles and 14 triples, both tops on the team. Western Nebraska finished with a record of 53-13. Weber was the Region IX Player of the Year, and also earned second team NJCAA All American honors.

SOCCER

Ben Braman (Niwot) and Alex Braman (Niwot), who play soccer for the St. Mary Gaels during the fall collegiate season, are spending the summer playing for the Colorado Rapids summer league.

GOLF

Cole Nygren (Alexander Dawson) of Niwot had the second-lowest average for the Cal-Poly Pomona golf team last season. Nygren finished with an average score of 72.6 with four top-10 finishes during the season’s tournaments. Nygren saved the best for last, finishing second in the Big West Conference Tournament May 2-4, shooting 74-70-69 for a total of 213 over the three days.

BASEBALL

David Bote, son of former NHS coach Bob Bote, has had a whirlwind summer in the Chicago Cubs organization. Bote began the year at high A Myrtle Beach in the Carolina League, then was promoted all the way up to the AAA Iowa Cubs, where he filled in admirably, hitting .364 in 12 games. Just three days before the Iowa Cubs were to come to Colorado Springs, Bote was sent back to Myrtle Beach, but three days later found himself at AA Tennessee, where he cooled off, hitting .200 in seven games. He’s now back at Myrtle Beach, where he leads the current roster in hitting with a .295 average in 23 games. He has primarily played third base, but has also seen time at second base and first base.

Pate Katechis (Niwot), a redshirt freshman, finished strong for the University of Nebraska Kearney, hitting .367 over his final 13 games to bring his season batting average to .304. He also posted 13 doubles, eight home runs and 42 RBI. His doubles and RBI totals were both second on the team, while his home run total was tied for third. Katechis played leftfield for the Lopers and batted cleanup in the final game May 7, with three hits in five at bats.

Tanner Kirkpatrick (Niwot) hit .421 in 12 games for the University of Nebraska Kearney. Kirkpatrick started four games, and served as the backup catcher as a redshirt freshman.

Connor Messinger (Niwot) had his senior season come to a premature end for the University of Nebraska Kearney. Messinger started 17 games at first base and was hitting .348 with 14 RBI’s when he broke his arm diving back into a base.

Greg Reynolds (Silver Creek) hit .284 for Colorado Mesa University last spring. Reynolds, a third baseman, started 28 games, scoring 10 runs with 13 RBI’s. On May 12, Reynolds went 2-4 at the plate against Adams State, scoring twice and adding two RBI’s.

Colt Olinger (Silver Creek) scored seven runs and drove in five more in limited action for Northeastern Junior College in Sterling. Olinger, a freshman, primarily served as a backup catcher.

HOCKEY

Michael Sdao of Niwot finished the hockey season with the Richmond Americans after a trade from the Birmingham Senators in the middle of the season. Sdao posted four assists in 12 games as a defenseman. Richmond is a farm team of the Buffalo Sabres of the NHL.

BASKETBALL

Justin Lee (Niwot) averaged 7.9 points per game as a guard for Johnson and Wales University last spring. Lee started 20 games and played in all except one of the team’s 31 games. He shot 44.5 percent from the field and his 43.8 percent mark from the 3-point line was second on the squad.