Student Athlete of the Week Mohi Bauer

Mohi Bauer accomplished quite a bit during his junior year at Niwot High School, both in the classroom and on the pitch.

Along with taking college-level math classes through Front Range Community College, he received a mid-season promotion to the varsity boys soccer team and ultimately played big minutes for the Cougars. His contributions as an offensive facilitator helped Niwot win seven of its final eight games, including two in the Class 4A state tournament.

"That was a cool experience, joining the team halfway through the season and being able to step up to play such a big role right away," Bauer said. "The change of pace from JV to varsity was pretty big, but I felt like I was able to adjust to that pretty well."

Bauer's shining moment came on Nov. 1 when he scored an insurance goal in Niwot's 4-2 second-round playoff win against rival Skyline High School.

"That was a huge conference booster," Bauer said of his first career postseason goal. "Even though it ended up happening with one minute left in the game, it sealed the game and felt really good for me personally. It made me feel like I could actually do this on the varsity team and contribute."

While Bauer hopes to score more often as a senior this fall, the forward/striker is mainly concerned with helping others look good. In short, the "technical" aspects of soccer come easy for Bauer, which makes sense considering his advanced background in mathematics.

"Usually, I'm the guy who's on the technical side trying to manage the game," Bauer said. "My decision-making is one of my main focuses. A lot of what I do is making movement to open up my teammates. Even though a lot of the time I'm not going to see the ball myself, [I'm] moving to bring defenders with me so my teammates can get open and get opportunities on goal."

So far this summer, Bauer has been busy attending Niwot's offseason workouts and spending time with his family. He and fellow rising seniors such as Ben Gabrielson, Aidan Carman, Leo Broteland, Malachi Gilmore, and Emerson Harper have also found time to train outside Niwot's team sessions.

Improving his leadership skills is another priority for Bauer this summer. Niwot's soccer program is welcoming in a large freshmen class, tasking Bauer and other older players with providing direction.

"It's a whole new thing, stepping into a leadership position," Bauer said. "I captained for one of the teams a few years back, but I haven't really done anything since. Mostly, it's modeling drills and trying always to be loud because obviously, they're freshmen. They're new to all this. They're going to be shy. I'm trying to make sure everything is clear to them, introducing myself to them, trying to get their names, and making them fully comfortable with the program so they want to keep coming to the workouts and get ready for the season."

Heading into his final year at Niwot, Bauer has begun thinking about life after high school.

"I think I'll continue to play soccer in college if there's an opportunity, but it's not my main focus," Bauer said. "My main focus is still on academics. I'm looking at computer science and engineering."