Longmont – Mike Harpe was in charge Tuesday against Skyline.
The Niwot pitcher showed off his arm, glove and bat as the third-ranked Cougars put a halt to what has been a disappointing week with an 8-2 Class 4A Northern League victory.
Harpe threw a four-hitter, turned dangerous rollers into put-outs and was 2-for-4 at the plate with a double and a triple as the two-time defending state champions snapped a two-game slide.
“It’s probably my best pitching performance I had this year,” said Harpe, who struck out eight.
The Cougars (9-5, 7-3 in league) did all their damage against Falcons starter Cade Lehl, who gave up eight runs on eight hits, including five doubles, before Nathan Ward relieved him with two outs in the fourth inning.
Harpe, center fielder Nick Saraceni and left fielder Alex Hart each had two hits as the Cougars won their fourth straight over their northern neighbors.
“I think more of his game is keeping the ball low and making batters chase,” Saraceni said of Lehl. “I think we kept our eyes on it a little more and stayed focused. Last year he shut us down.”
The Falcons (8-6-1, 6-5) lost their second straight in an up-and-down season, which has included wins over ranked opponents Broomfield and Mountain View and losses to Fort Lupton and Fort Morgan.
The Falcons misfired on three chances to climb back into Tuesday’s game.
Skyline loaded the bases with one out in the fourth but only got one run across. The Falcons had runners on second and third with one out in the fifth, but Harpe struck out Lehl and Cody Ganz to end the inning.
The Falcons loaded the bases again with one out in the sixth, but Harpe responded with a strike out before Shane Zaruba’s sacrifice fly to center field. The threat ended when the Cougars threw to second and got Derrick Bleeker for leaving the base early.
Tuesday’s game was the first matchup of two coaches who go back a few years. Skyline coach Mike Hoog graduated from Niwot in 1986 and played for current coaching legend Bob Bote.
Hoog said it was fun to be on the field again with Bote but wished the game had been closer so he could engage the veteran in some gamesmanship.
“I hate to lose at anything, but especially to Bob,” Hoog said. “It will eat at me for a while.”
Niwot 310 400 0 – 8 10 2
Skyline 000 101 0 – 2 4 2
Niwot – Saraceni cf 4-2-2-1, Olsen ss 3-1-1-1, Harpe p 4-0-2-0, Packard 1b 2-0-0-1, Hart lf 3-1-2-2, Lahman rf 3-0-1-1, Haas 3b 4-1-1-0, Boveri 2b 3-0-0-0, Hawley c 3-0-1-1, Pickerell cr 0-2-0-0, Carpenter cr 0-1-0-0. Totals 29-6-10-7.
Skyline – Zaruba cf 2-0-0-1, Hall 2b 4-0-1-0, Ward 3b-rp 4-0-1-0, Lehl sp-lf 4-1-0-0, Ganz ss 3-0-1-0, Lundquist 1b 0-1-0-0, Bleeker lf-3b 3-0-1-0, Knapton dh 2-0-0-1, Tart rf 0-0-0-0, Olson c 3-0-0-0. Totals 25-2-4-2.
E – Hawley, Olsen; Lehl, Lundquist. LOB – Niwot 7, Skyline 7. SB – Saraceni, Pickerell. CS – Lahman. 2B – Saraceni 2, Lahman, Olsen, Harpe, Hawley; Hall, Ward. 3B – Harpe. SAC – Packard; Zaruba.
Batteries – Harpe and Hawley; Lehl, Ward (4) and Olson. W – Harpe (4-1). L – Lehl. HBP – Hawley (by Lehl in second); Lahman (by Ward in fifth); Hart (by Ward in seventh); Lundquist (by Harpe in second); Lundquist (by Harpe in sixth); Knapton (by Harpe in sixth). WP- Lehl 3.
