The second biggest story in Mid-Prairie sports from the last year sends us to Fort Dodge and the 2023 Class 2A State Cross Country Championships.

The Golden Hawk boys and girls cross country teams put together another dominant season. The Golden Hawk girls won the River Valley Conference team title with 49 points and placed the entire varsity lineup on All-Conference teams with spots in the top 30. They were led by Danielle Hostetler as RVC runner-up, Greta Sieren eighth, Abby Fleming 11^th, Brooklyn Stutzman 12^th, Phoebe Shetler 16^th, Kendal Landstrum 19^th and Annika Poll 26^th. The Golden Hawk boys were third with their team score of 85 points, led by individual River Valley champ Emmett Swartzentruber with his blistering time of 16:31. He was followed by All-Conferencers Preston Yutzy in fourth and Max Swartzentruber 16^th. Jesse Stultz was 31^st, Jacob Donaldson 33^rd, Daniel Rodgers 35^th and Thomas Flynn 42^nd.

At the State Qualifier meet at Williamsburg, the top ranked Golden Hawk girls won the team championship with 29 points. Hostetler won the individual championship in 19:09, making it four titles in four tries. She was followed by Stutzman fourth, Sieren fifth, Landstrum 10^th, Fleming 13^th, Shetler 14^th and Poll 18^th. The Golden Hawk boys qualified third as a team with 74 points. Emmett Swartzentruber led the pack with a championship time of 16:12. He was followed by Yutzy seventh, Max Swartzentruber 19^th, Yoder 20^th, Stultz 27^th, Rodgers 29^th and Donaldson 32^nd.

At State, the Mid-Prairie boys were 10^th in the team standings with 122 points, but it was Emmett Swartzentruber’s show. He won the 2A individual title with a time of 15:51. His championship is the first ever for the Golden Hawk boys program and marks the eighth straight season that a Mid-Prairie runner has won the individual 2A championship. Other Golden Hawk runners included Yutzy 39^th, Yoder 86^th, Max Swartzentruber 95^th, Stultz 100^th, Rodgers 114^th and Donaldson 116^th.

The Golden Hawk girls were fourth in the 2A team standings with 122 points. Hostetler closed our her career with her fourth straight All-State performance, leading the team in fifth with a time of 18:55. Other Mid-Prairie runners included Stutzman 37^th, Fleming 43^rd, Sieren 45^th, Landstrum 51^st, Shetler 53^rd and Poll 93^rd.

Head coach Jeremy Meyers was named Girls Class 2A At-Large Coach of the Year by the Iowa Association of Track Coaches. Our Mid-Prairie countdown concludes tomorrow with the biggest story in Golden Hawk sports from last year.