Niwot baseball posts blowout win

Gale-force winds helped propel the Niwot Cougars to their first victory of the season April 7 with a 21-3 win over Berthoud.

Coach Ken Rosales, in his first season at the helm, picked up his first victory after seven losses, several of the heart-wrenching variety (10-9, 1-0, and 6-5). But after a slow start in the first inning against Berthoud, which ended with the Cougars down 1-0, the bats came to life and Niwot, with the help of eight Berthoud errors, scored seven, six and eight runs in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th innings, respectively.

Overall the Cougars had 15 hits in the 4-inning contest, called due to the mercy rule. Spencer Olson, Walt Van Riper and Brock Rothstein had three hits each, and Rothstein, Jack Brooker and Jed Kilpatrick drove in three runs each.

Rothstein, a sophomore, went the distance on the mound to notch the victory, allowing three runs on five hits.