Niwot bats come alive at Berthoud Invitational

Behind sophomore Anne Booth and her 10 RBIs, Niwot won three out of four games at the Berthoud Invitational softball tournament, held Sept. 10-11 in Loveland. With the wins, Niwot improved to 7-7 on the year, with nine games left in the 2021 season.

The tournament got off to an inauspicious start for the Cougars on Friday, as they struggled to score runs against Windsor, despite amassing 10 hits, resulting in an 11-4 loss. Booth was responsible for two of those, and senior Ayva McComas also had a pair, as well as two RBIs. Booth also started as pitcher, and gave up seven hits in four innings, allowing five runs. Senior Jasmine Aldama replaced her in the fifth, and allowed another six runs.

The offense started to show signs of life against Montezuma-Cortez, including a seven-run second inning sparked by another Booth hit that led to a 9-7 win. She would go on to add another hit and two RBIs. McComas also had her second multi-hit game of the day, plus an additional four RBIs. Other Niwot hitters included Autumn Rutherford with two hits, and senior Hannah Bassett, junior Zoie Chociej, and sophomore Jenna Hobson with one each. Chociej was also impressive in the field at second base, with two crucial stops that kept the Panthers from scoring.

"She looks super dirty and she's going to have to pre-soak those pants a lot, which is a good thing," head coach Bobby Matthews said of Chociej's diving plays. "She's been working very, very hard this season, and she's done a great job getting on base. I couldn't be more proud of her."

Day two of the tournament was when Niwot's offense really found its groove. In the early game against Greeley West, the Cougars went 15 for 30 at the plate, with three extra base hits. Once again, Booth was the top hitter, with three hits and five RBIs. All told, nine Cougars tallied a hit against the Spartans, including Aldama, who batted in three runs in the third. Niwot went on to win 15-2 in a rule-shortened four-inning game.

Booth and the Cougars picked up where they left off in the next game, a 16-6 victory over Skyline. In her first at-bat, the sophomore hit a long fly ball to left field that went over the fence for a home run, which was good for two runs. She later added another hit and an RBI, bringing her weekend total to nine and 10, and boosting her season batting average to .489. Aldama also had three hits against the Falcons, while Chociej, McComas and Rutherford had two each, as did freshman Julia Philofsky.