Student-Athlete of the Week: Micah Sheats

In his final stretch at Niwot High, the dreaded senioritis has eluded pitcher/outfielder Micah Sheats on the baseball diamond.

His two-way talent shined on May 22 when he pitched a six-inning shutout and hit a home run during a 12-0 mercy-rule victory at Thompson Valley.

The performance was nothing new as Sheats owns an over .300 batting average in 52 career games through May 30. As a freshman in 2018, Sheats hit .311 and played in all 23 of Niwot's games. He followed that season up with a team-leading 10 extra-base hits as a sophomore.

With a degree now in hand, Sheats will soon venture to Lewiston, Maine to play baseball at Bates College.

Sheats attributed his success to his teammates, which include nine other seniors, for vitalizing his senior season.

"All my recent success has definitely been a credit to my teammates," Sheats said. "We've had trouble with our defense this year but as of recent they've really been picking it up, both on offense and defense. To have basically an entire roster of seniors that we've been growing up with and playing together, it's essentially a brotherhood."

Sheats added that leading by example is how he hopes to develop and lead his younger teammates.

Even though Niwot holds a 2-8 record through May 30, Sheats believes the Cougars' camaraderie will produce a few more wins as summer arrives.

"We haven't had a super successful season up to this point, but as we've shown, we're starting to turn it around," Sheats said. "I'm really hopeful for the next five games. Regardless, we're going to have a great time playing them because we're out of school and it's summer."

Before being promoted in 2017, head coach Adam Strah taught physical education at Niwot Elementary where he met the then third-grader Sheats. "I probably tied his shoes at some point," Strah joked.

About a decade later, Strah has now watched Sheats develop into a four-year varsity starter with a college career on the horizon.

"He brings a lot of gifts to our team," Strah said. "I think he's going to continue that on to the next level as well."

Sheats, who is a member of Niwot's National Honor Society, said he is looking forward to the academic side of college in addition to playing baseball. He is interested in studying economics at Bates.

"I'm looking forward to that academic rigor," Sheats said. "I'm super stoked to see what it has to offer. I'm also excited for baseball. I was recently in contact with the team and they want to win."