Photo Courtesy of Jeff Yoder
The No. 9 Mid-Prairie Golden Hawk football team saw their season draw to a close Friday night in the quarterfinal round of the Class 2A playoffs, falling to No. 2, undefeated, Prairie City Monroe 41-0 on the road. The night started with a Mid-Prairie drive covering 36 yards on 13 plays before ending at the PCM 43. The Mustangs took over and went 75 yards on 13 plays with their light speed hurry-up, capped by a Gavin Van Gorp one yard dive to go up 7-0, the only points in the first quarter. After a Golden Hawk three and out next trip, the Mustangs marched again, 11 plays, 46-yards, and Adrien Robbins did the honors with a nine yard TD run, to double the PCM lead at 14-0. Mid-Prairie mounted their best scoring chance of the night right before half, driving to the Mustang red zone before stalling at the six, leaving the score 14-0 at intermission.
Strong defensive play continued after the break as the Hawks dug in to stay in the game. The high powered PCM attack broke through on their third possession of the third, scoring the last three times they had the ball to close the night. Van Gorp ended a nine play, 75 yard drive with his second scoring run, a seven yarder, then doubled down on the next PCM possession, a three play, 25 yard push with a 25 yard scoring sprint to make it 28-0. Following a Robbins 40 yard pick six on defense to stretch the lead to 34-0, Shay Burns capped the scoring with a 46 yard TD romp. Following the game, Golden Hawk head coach Daren Lambert talked about the key moments and stats in the contest, his seniors and this year’s accomplishments.
Lambert, said, “(PCM) is very similar to what they were last year. They are very big up front, great running back, very good quarterback and athletes around the perimeter. There’s a reason they haven’t lost a game. The score isn’t going to show how close it was at certain points tonight. They can score quickly, especially when we have to give them some short fields. Tempo was big for them, they’re a no-huddle team. Our defense responded. Once they get settled in they do a tremendous job. They really kept us in it. I’m proud of their effort and fight. PCM is the biggest team that we have seen and they have great athletes. We tried some new formations, different pass combos and sustained some drives, but when you get closer to the end zone things get tougher. When you have success (like this season), and you see how close you can get, you’re one round closer than last year, those young guys get a taste of it, and that can propel you into the next season. We’re excited with where we got but we’re still going to be hungry. Kaden (Kos) on both sides of the ball. He did a tremendous job blocking. Hudson (Ehrenfelt) had to fight for tough yards. Brady (Weber) an ultimate competitor, had to take some big hits, extending plays. For the offensive and defensive lines, it was a tough night. They kept getting back up and fighting. Cobi Hershberger, Conner Wiles, had big hits tonight. The fight these guys showed, the adversity they faced at the beginning of the year, so many kids would have folded, and they did the opposite. They went out, won a district undefeated and got to the quarterfinals. Proud to lead that group. Their years are going to be on the banner. They fought. Back-to-back years with a State trophy that’s going to become the norm. That’s what we want the program to be and what it has been.”
Mid-Prairie was outgained 395-206 on the night, including 326-75 on the ground. PCM had the games only takeaway. The Mustangs were led by Burns with 22 carries for 179 yards and a touchdown. Van Gorp had three rushing scores and Robbins added a rushing score and pick six. Brady Weber led the Golden Hawks at 22 of 29 throwing for 131 yards and an interception. Hudson Ehrenfelt had 20 touches for 71 yards. Cobi Hershberger had five catches for 30 yards. Kaden Kos’s 12 tackles led the defense. The Mustangs move on to the UNI-Dome for the sixth time in school history and first since 2020 and will play Saturday against No. 3 Spirit Lake. The Hawks finish at 7-4, with their first district title and quarterfinals appearance since 2008. They say goodbye to 14 seniors including Shay Myers, Brady Weber, Ace Peck, Landry Gingerich, Cobi Hershberger, Keegan Bauwens, Blake Swart, Traevin Gugel, Conner Wiles, Landon Kos, Dylan Humphrey, Burke Berry, Quinn Callahan and Tatem Telfer.