The second biggest story for Mid-Prairie athletics from the recent academic year takes us to the track, and specifically the blue oval at Drake Stadium in Des Moines.

The Mid-Prairie girls continued their dominance in 2021 after a year off due to COVID in 2020. They won the team championship at the River Valley Conference meet with 136 points, topping Northeast Goose Lake by 46 and won six event conference titles. To qualify for the state track meet, the Golden Hawks rolled through the competition at Eddyville-Blakesburg, winning the district title with 177 points over second place Williamsburg with 143. The Golden Hawks won six district event championships, auto-qualified athletes in 13 different events and had multiple qualifiers in three events. When it came to defending their state title in Des Moines, Mid-Prairie left nothing to chance, posting 61 team points to claim the 2A title over Northeast who finished with 49.

Mid-Prairie had three state championship events including freshman Danielle Hostetler winning the 1500 in 4:55.09 and the 3000 in 10:25.26. She was also a part of the state champion distance medley team along with Maddie Edgington, Tabitha Evans and Amber Swart that finished in 4:10.42. Other top finishes for the Hawks at state included Mitzi Evans runner up in the 800, third in the 400, the 4×100 team of Edgington, Amara Jones, Alyssa McDowell and Swart third, fourth for Sydney Yoder in the 3000, Mitzi Evans fourth in the 200, Hostetler eighth in the 800, Sydney Yoder ninth in the 1500, Tori Boyse 11th in the discus, the 4×200 team of Edgington, Jones, McDowell and Swart 11th, Ella Groenewold 12th in the high jump, the shuttle hurdle team of Jones, Sidney Davis, Emily Schlabach and Behla Schmidt 12th, Boyse 13th in the shot put, the 4×800 team of Jaden Yoder, Annika Poll, Ana Fleming and Sydney Yoder 18th and the sprint medley team of Edgington, McDowell, Swart and Mitzi Evans were 21st.

The Golden Hawk boys also had a big season on the track. They were fifth at the River Valley Conference meet. At Eddyville-Blakesburg they claimed the team district title. The Hawks put up 111 points, beating second place Davis County’s score of 99. Mid-Prairie won two event titles at districts including Cain Brown tying his dad’s Mid-Prairie school high jump record of 6’6″. The Hawks had eight auto-qualifier events.

At state, the Golden Hawks finished 40th with four points. Top finishes for Mid-Prairie in Des Moines included Thaddeus Shetler seventh in the 1600, Cain Brown eighth in the high jump, Jamison Stutzman eighth in the two-mile and 10th in the 800, 14th for the 4×200 relay of Latchem, Cavanagh, Thomas and Brown, 16th for the 4×800 relay of Chandler Hershberger, Thaddeus Shetler, Ben Meader and Jamison Stutzman, 17th for the Golden Hawk shuttle hurdley relay of Latchem, Luke Albright, Kaden Meader and Brown, 18th for the distance medley of Nathan Quinby, Carter Harmsen, Cavanagh and Shetler, 19th for the 4×100 of Quinby, Cavanagh, Latchem and Brown and 24th for Josh Wallington in the shot put.