Niwot bats make a statement against Longmont

The Niwot baseball team snapped its five-game losing streak Thursday, April 27, with a convincing 11-1 road victory over crosstown rival Longmont. In a gaudy show of offense, the team went 14-for-30 at the plate with five extra-base hits. Nine Cougars hit safely on the day, including sophomore infielder Joey DesEnfants, who had his first multi-hit game since March. For head coach Craig McBride, it’s always good to beat the rival Trojans, even when there’s not much at stake.

“It was nice going into Longmont and getting that decisive win,” he said. “You don’t get to do that too often against them. They’re a quality program year in and year out, so that’s always a great win for us.”

As for his team’s performance, McBride was clearly pleased with the offensive effort, but was quick to single out pitcher Caleb Martinez for his role in lopsided victory. Martinez went the distance in the mercy-rule shortened six-inning contest, giving up just two hits while striking out six in his third win of the season.

“We hit the ball really well,” said McBride. “But mainly it was Caleb’s pitching that got us the win. He keeps us on track early in the game,” McBride said of the junior, who is fifth in the Northern League in ERA (2.00). “We got the momentum early, and kept the pressure on them all day.”

Some of that pressure came from some unexpected places in the Cougar lineup. DesEnfants, breaking out of a four-game slump, ended the day with three hits, two for extra-bases, and three RBI. Senior Jake Sims and freshman Cameron Hassert each had a hit and two RBI, while seniors Hunter Stephens and Trevor Green and junior Colton Goldfarb had a single apiece. Senior Skye Messinger was unusually quiet on the day, going 1-for-4 with a single.

Senior Joey Neve, meanwhile, extended his hitting streak to five games, going 3-for-3 with a double and an RBI. After a slow start to the season, the first baseman has nine hits in his last 15 at-bats, boosting his average to .273.

Senior Zach Kinnison also came up big for the Cougars on Thursday, with three RBI on two hits, including his first double since April 6. He has now hit safely in all but three games this season.

“Zach is a pleasant surprise,” said McBride of the outfielder who took last year off to deal with an injury. “We expected him to be a year behind, but he’s really done a great job for us.”

Thanks to a late spring snow storm, Niwot’s baseball season was extended, but just by a few days. The season finale, originally scheduled for April 29, was rescheduled to May 1.

4/27 — Niwot 11, Longmont 1

Trojans (8-7, 6-7) 000 010 - — 01 02 2

Cougars (7-11, 4-8) 020 044 - — 11 14 1

Hitting (ab-r-h-rbi) — Skye Messinger 4-0-1-0, Jake Sims 3-0-1-2, Trevor Green 3-0-1-0, Zach Kinnison 4-2-2-3, Cameron Hassert 2-1-1-2, Colton Goldfarb 4-1-1-0, Joey Neve 3-2-3-1, Joey DesEnfants 4-2-3-3, Hunter Stephens 3-2-1-0, Chandler Snead 0-1-0-0.

2B —DesEnfants (2), Kinnison, Neve, Sims SB — Kinnison (2), Messinger

Pitching (ip-h-r-er-bb-so) — Caleb Martinez 6-2-1-0-1-6