Niwot baseball closes regular season on six-game winning streak

Earlier this month, Niwot High School baseball head coach Ken Rosales admitted that his team would need a perfect final two weeks of the regular season to potentially qualify for state regionals. Well, six wins later, the Cougars have done everything in their power to make things interesting.

Requiring a top-32 spot to make regionals, Niwot stood No. 31 in the Class 4A Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) Selection and Seeding Index as of Sunday, May 12. That is not a final ranking, however, as other Class 4A teams had yet to close their regular seasons.

After losing eight straight games during April, Rosales' squad rebounded nicely by winning its next six contests, closing the regular season at 12-10 (9-9 Class 4A Longs Peak League).

"I told them six games ago, I said, 'It's on you guys. We need to win six games. We need to do our part in order (to reach the) postseason, so let's do our part,'" Rosales said. "They fought and fought. This is where we're at. We're a dangerous team right now because we're playing really well."

Niwot's final week of the regular season began with a 4-2 home win against Fort Morgan High School on Tuesday, May 7. Starting pitcher Kaige Kennedy, a junior, didn't allow any earned runs in four innings pitched, and freshman Jack O'Hara threw three scoreless innings to seal the victory. At the plate, senior Brock Rothstein and juniors Arlo Richards and Charlie Shaw each knocked in one run.

Hosting Northridge High School two days later, Niwot's offense exploded in an 11-4 win over the Grizzlies. Nine different Cougars had at least one hit, including Rothstein with a team-high three knocks.

"We've changed our hitting to where in practice, we're working (toward) more hard ground balls and picking a spot," Rothstein said. "Before, I feel we were trying to win the game on one hit. I said, 'We need base runners first, so we need to work on hitting the ball hard on the ground.' That's what's been working."

Rothstein, Sergio Pimentel, Bo Gardner, and Johnny Wu played in their final regular season home game and were each honored as part of Niwot's Senior Day.

"I love those guys," Pimentel said. "Brock, he's one of the leaders. He's been a great leader this season so far. Bo, he just started playing baseball this year. He's always there doing his part and he's cool. And Johnny's always there, too. They're just great teammates."

In the Cougars' final regular season game, they delivered a 5-2 win at Northridge on Saturday, May 11. Rothstein and junior Haden Shaw each had two hits, but Niwot was ultimately led by its pitching. O'Hara, who was throwing to fellow freshman Preston Peterson behind the plate, allowed two earned runs across five innings and earned his first varsity win. "His (O'Hara's) curveball has been working really well," Rosales said.

If the Cougars qualify for regionals, they'll play away from home for the second straight season.