Monday was busy for the Mid-Prairie Golden Hawk baseball and softball teams as they traveled to West Branch for a pair of doubleheaders. The No. 3 ranked Golden Hawk baseball team broke out the brooms on the Bears, winning game one 9-7 and taking the second contest 13-3 in five innings. The opener was back and forth with Mid-Prairie taking a 1-0 lead in the first, West Branch countered with one in the second to tie the game. The Hawks put up three runs in the third to go up 4-1 only to see West Branch come back with one in the bottom to make it 4-2. Another three runs in the fifth gave Mid-Prairie their biggest lead of the game at 7-2, but the Bears would not go away, scoring four times in the bottom half to get back within 7-6, but Mid-Prairie got an insurance run in each of the sixth and seventh innings and enough pitching to close out the win. Individually, the Hawks were led by Kayden Reinier with three hits. Aidan Rath, Keegan Gingerich and Cain Brown all had an RBI. Gingerich was the winning pitcher, working four and a third innings allowing four hits, five runs, walking three and striking out five.

In the nightcap it was all Hawks from the opening pitch. Mid-Prairie built a 10-0 lead in the third with two runs in the first, a seven run, 12 hitter second inning and another run in the third. West Branch got on the board with two in the third, only to see Mid-Prairie score three times in the fifth. The Bears could must just one run in the home half, seeing the game end early. Golden Hawk head coach Kyle Mullet spoke after the game about what has spurred the Hawks six game winning streak. “We have been eliminating errors. I love how we have been hitting the ball and putting up runs. We have a big emphasis in the program about not giving up at bats, battling when we get two strikes, we are doing all of those things right now.”

Mid-Prairie pounded out 15 hits in the game, led by Karson Grout and Rath each with four hits. Rath drove in three, including a two run homer, Grout drove in a pair. Collin Miller went the distance on the mound, allowing just two hits and striking out seven. The Golden Hawks are now 10-2 on the year.

The Mid-Prairie softball team was on the wrong end of a pair of walk-offs, dropping both ends of a doubleheader to the Bears by 4-3 and 14-13. In the first game, West Branch put up three runs in the second with Mid-Prairie answering back with one in the top of the third. Things would stay that way until the seventh when the Hawks rallied with Madeline Schrader reaching on an error to open the frame, Myah Lugar doubled her in to pull the Hawks within one and Landry Pacha delivered a sac fly to tie the game at three. In the bottom of the seventh, West Branch won on a pair of Mid-Prairie miscues on the final play. Katelyn Schneider had two hits, Lugar and Pacha had RBI. Lugar took the loss in the circle, going six and a third giving up 13 hits, four runs and striking out three. In the second game, Mid-Prairie couldn’t hold an extra inning lead, up 13-11 going to the bottom of the eighth, the Bears scored three times for their second walk off win of the night. The Hawks had 20 hits in the contest. Brittany Kinsinger drove in four on three hits, Schneider and Dakota Mitchell each knocked in two. Dawsyn Miller took the loss in the circle, working five and a third innings, giving up seven hits, four runs and striking out two. After being swept, Mid-Prairie is now 3-15 on the year and is in Mt. Pleasant tonight.