Niwot girls basketball secures first win at Skyline

The Niwot girls basketball team is winless no more.

Following an 0-9 start to the Niwot High School girls basketball season, head coach Jon Hill's Cougars rallied late in the game to beat the Skyline Falcons on Jan. 14, marking the program's first victory since last February.

The celebration that ensued following the 42-39 win was special for a team that had maintained both its confidence and work ethic throughout a difficult stretch.

"We've been doing a lot of the right things and the results just aren't there, being a particularly young team," Hill said. "To see the effort that we put in - we had two of our best practices over the last two practices - and it translates directly into the game. The girls felt that excitement of what they've been working towards all year."

Everything clicked for Niwot in the second quarter as the Cougars outscored Skyline 18-5, and entered halftime with a10-point lead on the road. Sophomore point guard Rose Pacheco scored five of her team-high 10 points and Cat Omer, another second-year player, followed with four points in that quarter.

Although up 31-20 late in the third quarter, Niwot allowed its 5A/4A Longs Peak League rival a 13-0 run giving Skyline a two-point lead with under seven minutes remaining.

"We really do have to work on our third-quarter woes, that has plagued us all year," Hill said. "We're going to have to evaluate that as a staff to figure out what we can do to come out of halftime."

Fortunately for Niwot, Pacheco hit a trio of clutch free throws and both Ella Zechman and Evelyn Melis scored field goals to regain the lead. Senior Tiffany Yie then delivered a defensive dagger by intercepting a Skyline pass in the waning seconds, allowing Hill a much-needed sigh of relief.

"We didn't stray away from being positive with each other, coming together," Hill said. "I talk a lot about when something goes wrong, we've got to pick a teammate up. We can't be the one to isolate them, walk away from them. We've got to go get them, love them up - and that's what we did for the first time all year. When things were at their absolute worst, we continued to stay together and I had confidence they would be where they needed to be."

Junior Molly Slupik, who helped Niwot record a season-high 16 offensive rebounds, hopes her team can use the win as motivation moving forward.

"I'm super excited," Slupik said. "I think we can carry this confidence into our next few games this week, and hopefully that'll help us go in with our heads high."

Earlier in the week, Niwot lost to both Class 4A Thompson Valley (78-21 on Jan. 10) and Class 5A Frederick (75-10 on Jan. 12).

Hill's Cougars head up to Mountain View High School next on Jan. 17 before hosting Fort Morgan on Jan. 19.