Niwot girls basketball in first state tournament game since 2014

For the first time since 2014, the Niwot High School girls basketball team has qualified for the state tournament.

On Feb. 23, the Colorado High School Activities Association released its 40-team Class 5A girls state tournament bracket, and the Cougars earned the No. 34 seed. Niwot will visit No. 31 Aurora Central High School on Wednesday, Feb. 26, in a first-round "play-in" game.

After beginning the year 7-1, the Cougars finished their regular season at 10-13 (2-11 Granite Peaks League) with notable wins over Northglenn, Mountain Range, and Silver Creek high schools. While the Cougars largely struggled in league play, reaching the state tournament for the first time in over a decade marks a notable accomplishment for head coach Todd Trobaugh's program.

"It's another positive step forward in terms of building up a program that hasn't known a great deal of success in the last 20 years or more," Trobaugh said. "It's a process and you want to be able to stack positive bricks on top of a solid foundation. I think we're doing that now and going to the playoffs is a very important accomplishment in that overall process. You need successful milestones."

Niwot had won only nine games in the previous two seasons combined and experienced a head coaching change with Trobaugh taking over in 2023. Now state tournament-bound, Trobaugh gave praise to his seniors, including Hadie Adams, Madison Ackerman, Peyton Rhodes, Thalia Almaraz, and Jiselle Sales.

"These young women have been tremendously resilient, especially the seniors," Niwot's second-year head coach said. "There have been some tough times, but they have persevered through thick and thin. I'm thrilled by their growth as individuals and as a team. Watching them practice yesterday (Feb. 22), enjoying the moment and each other, was one of my bigger thrills as a coach. It's 180 degrees different from last year, and the student-athletes deserve the lion's share of the credit."

Freshmen Alaina Loomis and Alexis Austefjord also played key roles in helping Niwot reach the state tournament. Loomis averaged 9.4 points per game in the regular season while Austefjord tallied 6.1 points and 6.3 rebounds, according to MaxPreps.

Although Niwot's two star freshmen have only just begun their high school careers, Trobaugh wants all his players to appreciate the state bid.

"Playing high school sports is so unique," Trobaugh said. "Enjoy the experience. Savor the moment. There won't be a lot of opportunities like this in life, so take it all in."

Looking at Niwot's first-round opponent, the Aurora Central Trojans went 13-8 in the regular season and finished second (6-3) in the Class 5A/4A Colorado League.

"We have our work cut out for us," Trobaugh said of Aurora Central. "This is a good team. They have had a solid year and can be very tough at home. It will take a great team effort to come away with a victory."

The winner of Niwot-Aurora Central advances to face second-seeded Mead High School on Saturday, March 1.