Longmont – Mike Hoog and his Skyline Falcons were more than happy to yield to Mother Nature on Saturday.
Their Class 4A District 4 championship game against Northern League and Boulder County rival Niwot was called after two full innings of play, with the visiting Cougars sporting a 6-2 lead at William A. Stephens Field.
“We need something to shake us up, because it’s not happening on the field right now,” said Hoog, a former standout at Niwot.
The game will resume today at noon, weather permitting. All playoff teams were given the option of Sunday play, thus waiving the Colorado High School Activities Association’s no-Sunday contact rule.
While it might be a blessing for the Falcons (15-5), the 21st-seeded Cougars aren’t necessarily viewing the stoppage as a curse.
“I’ll take the day we had,” Niwot coach Jason Lathrop said. “Hopefully, we’ll come out the same way we finished here, but I won’t trade that. I’m proud of these guys.”
As well he should. The Cougars got to Falcons starter Derrick Bleeker, with Alex Hart delivering the big blow in the top of the first. The senior drove a 2-2 pitch over the right-field fence for a three-run home run.
“I told them after (last Saturday’s) Broomfield game that if we put it all together and hit like that, we can beat anyone,” Lathrop said.
The offensive onslaught was a carryover of the first game Saturday for the Cougars (12-8), a 13-6 clubbing of No. 12 seed Pueblo South (12-6). Niwot belted four homers in that game, including two by burly first baseman Ben Packard. Packard went 4-for-5 with five RBIs against the Colts and had a double.
Skyline, the No. 5 seed, also fell behind early in its first game against Fountain-Fort Carson (12-8). The visiting Trojans put up a four-spot in the first inning against starter Cade Lehl.
The Falcons answered with three in the bottom of the first and ultimately grabbed the lead for good in the third inning when Matt Gonzales’ sacrifice fly drove in Mac Lundquist.
“It’s our standard M.O., come out and give up runs and then chip away,” Hoog said. “One of these days it’s going to bite us, and these guys will learn when you’re playing a good baseball team, they are going to score enough runs on their own. You don’t need to help them.”
CLASS 4A DISTRICT 4
GAME 1
SKYLINE 7, FOUNTAIN-FORT CARSON 5
Fountain-Fort Carson 410 000 0 – 5 3 4
Skyline 303 001 x – 7 7 3
Bunting, Wilson (5) and Hammill; Lehl, Linhardt (5), Zaruba (6) and Herman, Panega (7). W – Lehl (2-1). L – Bunting (2-3). Highlights – Zaruba, S, 2-for-4, 2B, run scored; Ganz, S, 2-for-3, 2 RBIs, SB; Lundquist, S, 1-for-1, 2 runs scored, RBI; Lozano, FFC, 1-for-3, SAC, run scored, 2 RBIs; Behan, FFC, 1-for-4, 2B; Cronin, FFC, 1-for-2, 2 runs scored, 2 SBs.
GAME 2
NIWOT 13, PUEBLO SOUTH 6
Niwot 310 400 5 – 13 13 1
Pueblo South 011 010 3 – 6 11 1
Hawley, Strufing (6), Haas (7) and LaBorde; Rodriguez, Ortiz (4) and Beauvais. W – Hawley (4-1). L – Rodriguez (4-2). HR – Packard, N, one on in first; Zufall, PS, solo in second; Hart, N, one on in fourth; O’Brien, N, one on in seventh; Packard, N, one on in seventh. Highlights – Packard, N, 4-for-5, 2B, 2 HRs, 2 runs scored, 5 RBIs; Soto, N, 2-for-2, 3 runs scored, RBI; LaBorde, N, 2-for-4, RBI; Zufall, PS, 3-for-4, 2B, HR, 4 RBIs; Montoya, PS, 2-for-3, run scored, 2 RBIs; Timme, PS, 2-for-3, 3B, run scored, SB.
