Niwot overcome by Thompson Valley 50-7

The Niwot High School football team is now 3 - 2 on the season, but unlike last week's win over Battle Mountain, the Cougars were the team on the short end of a lopsided score. Niwot lost 50-7 in a game that was filled with both offensive and defensive struggles.

Niwot started the game receiving the kickoff, but a dropped kick return put the ball inside of the Cougars' own 10 yard-line. It didn't get much better as the offense went three and out and had to punt from their own 10 yard-line. While Matthew Hansen's punt traveled over 40 yards, crossing the midfield line, it ended up being returned by the Eagles to the Niwot 20.

It didn't take long for the Eagles to score, as their third play was a 12-yard touchdown run. In spite of a second muffed return, Niwot's second drive started coming along better. The Cougars started stringing together some first downs, including a 43-yard run that put them inside the Thompson Valley 10 yard-line, but the play was called back due to a holding call.

Niwot fumbled the ball away on the very next play. Thompson Valley took advantage of the miscue, and after a long run, the Eagles connected through the air for a 23-yard touchdown, making the score 14-0.

Niwot ended the first quarter with a 4-yard run, and as the second quarter started, Niwot's troubles caught up to them as they struggled to move the ball again, missing a first down by a couple of inches. The Eagles took advantage of this change of possession, and strung together some long passes and short runs, capping the drive off with a 14-yard passing touchdown.

Down 21-0, Niwot needed a miracle to get back into the game, and a miracle is what they got, as Chad Volf connected with Mats Lehan for a 95-yard catch and a run that fell just short of a touchdown. Volf ran it in on the next play, making the score 21-7 with less than a minute left in half.

It looked like Niwot was getting back in the game as the Cougars' success continued on the other side of the ball when they held the Eagles to a three-and-out. But Niwot's offense didn't get anything going, giving Thompson Valley the ball back with time for only a couple of plays before the end of the first half. As it turned out, the Eagles only needed two plays as they scored on a 50-yard catch and run, putting them up 29-7 with a two-point conversion.

Starting the second half, the Eagles only needed one play to score, as they connected through the air for a 75-yard touchdown. Niwot's offense again struggled, going three-and-out, giving the ball right back to Thompson Valley, which strung together multiple 10-plus yard plays, scoring on an 11-yard passing touchdown, making it a 43-7 game.

Niwot put together a bit of a drive on its next possession, including back-to-back catches for 14 yards from Volf to senior tight end Raiden Stahly. But the drive came to an end when running back Jesus Rosas was stopped just short of a first down. It took just one play for the Eagles to put more points on the board, running the ball 29 yards for another touchdown, ending the third quarter up 50-7.

Following the touchdown which gave the Eagles more than a 40-point lead, the game clock switched to a running clock. When Niwot failed to get the ball rolling on their eighth and final drive of the game, Thompson Valley didn't have a hard time draining the game clock, ending the game on a turnover of downs.

Niwot may have struggled during the game, but there were some solid performances for the Cougars. Middle linebacker Nico Kemp had a good performance, as he held onto his title as the lead tackler in the league. Wide receiver Mats Lehan had over 100 yards receiving, and running back Hayden Shaw had a solid game on the ground.

The Cougars' next game is against Frederick High School at Cadet Stadium at 7 p.m. on Friday Oct. 7th.