Dreams could be realized tonight for the Mid-Prairie Golden Hawk boys and girls track teams when they travel to Eddyville-Blakesburg high school for their Class 2A state qualifier track meet. The Mid-Prairie ladies have won the last three contested Class 2A state track titles, including a 61 point performance in Des Moines a season ago. Their first step to defending the crown is tonight at the state qualifier. They won this meet a season ago at the same location with a total of 177 points, beating Williamsburg’s 143. In 2021, they won six event titles and auto-qualified athletes in 13 different events, including multiple qualifiers in three events. Entering Thursday’s action, the Golden Hawk girls are second in the Class 2A team power rankings, and first at this meet, according to Iowa Varsity Bound, seven points behind top school New Hampton and 98 points in front of third place Williamsburg. Mid-Prairie has nine events ranked in the top 10 in Class 2A for performance marks this season, including five ranked No. 1. The Golden Hawks hold the best times this year in 2A in the 400m with Mitzi Evans in 56.98 seconds, the 1500 with Danielle Hostetler at 4:41.71, the 3000 with Hostetler at 10:23.59, the sprint medley with the team of Madeline Schrader, Amara Jones, Tabitha and Mitzi Evans in 1:48.97 and the distance medley in 4:12.72 with the team of Schrader, Jones, Mitzi Evans and Hostetler. Other top 10 events include Mitzi Evans second in the 200, fourth in the 800, Hostetler fifth in the 800, Sydney Yoder fourth in the 1500, Yoder third and Abby Fleming seventh in the 3000, sixth for the 4×400 team of Schrader, Hostetler, Tabitha and Mitzi Evans and seventh for the 4×100 team of Emma Lueck, Alyssa McDowell, Tabitha and Mitzi Evans.
The rest of the field on the girls side has a combined five top 10 events between the 10 schools, four of those from host EBF, the other from Louisa-Muscatine.
The Golden Hawk boys are back in Eddyville to defend their meet title tonight. The Hawks won it a year ago with 111 points and captured a pair of event championships including Cain Brown in the high jump and the 4×200 team. According to the Class 2A team power rankings, the Golden Hawk boys are 20th in the state and third of those at tonight’s meet. Mid-Prairie has seven events ranked in the top 10 in Class 2A for performance marks this season. Golden Hawk Jayden Stafford is there three times including a pair of top spots in the state. His times in the wheelchair 100 and 200 lead the state at 19.78 and 36.89 seconds respectively. His time in the wheelchair 400 is second in 2A. Thaddeus Shetler is also in the top 10 twice with his time in the 3200 ranking fifth, 800 sixth, and 1600 eighth. Cain Brown is fourth in 2A for his top mark in the high jump. The rest of the field Mid-Prairie will compete against tonight has a combined 11 top 10 events with the Mediapolis 4×400 team the lone No. 1.
Joining the Golden Hawk girls and boys tonight are Albia, Cardinal, Centerville, Central Decatur, Central Lee, Chariton, Davis County, Louisa-Muscatine, Mediapolis, Van Buren and the home Rockets. All event winners, runners-up and the next best eight performances across Iowa qualify for the state meet. Action starts at 4p.m. and continues into the evening at Eddyville-Blakesburg high school.