The Mid-Prairie softball team finished the regular season scoring seven unanswered runs in a 10-5 win over Washington on Wednesday. 

Mid-Prairie trailed 4-1 after three innings, but eventually finished the game with 10 runs on 22 hits. Golden Hawk second baseman Dawsyn Miller was 3-for-4 with three runs scored in the senior night victory. 

“It’s just never giving up,” Miller said about the comeback. “We didn't hesitate for a second. We just really got the bats rolling and we were able to hold them on defense.”

Mid-Prairie finishes the season with a three-game winning streak. Tuesday’s 8-0 win over Bellevue guaranteed the Golden Hawks the program’s first winning season since 2015.

Senior Brittany Kinsinger, who was 2-for-3 with a walk, said the team just needs to stay confident to keep winning in the postseason next week. 

“I think it's just keeping our heads high and knowing that we can actually make it to state,” she said. “We can run to state.”

The Golden Hawks’ streak of five consecutive state tournament appearances ended in 2015, followed by six straight seasons with a losing record. Mid-Prairie's first-year head coach Amy Hartsock-Williams was pleased with the contributions of Miller and Kinsinger, who helped snap that streak with a 16-12 regular season. 

“These two seniors have been tremendous leaders on and off the field,” she said. “They are all about ‘team first’ and ‘me last.’ And they have been great leaders. I can't say enough about how they've led the team.”

Mid-Prairie trailed 5-3 in the fifth inning when Molly Yoder, Miller, and Gabi Roberston all singled to load the bases with one out. A strikeout brought Miller’s sister, Sophie, to the plate for a critical at bat with two outs. 

The Golden Hawk eighth grader took a ball and then fouled one off before driving the ball into the outfield to give Mid-Prairie its first lead of the game with a 3-RBI triple. 

“I was so happy for her,” said Dawsyn, who scored from second base on Sophie’s hit. “She’s had a lot of good hits this year, and I've just been so proud of her.”

Sophie has hit .313 with 17 RBIs this season, with a batting average of .370 in conference play. She made one start at second base before taking over at catcher for an injured Hannah Sellers, who was an RVC South Team all-conference selection as a freshman last year. 

“It's been amazing playing with her,” Dawsyn said about her sister. “It was a once in a lifetime opportunity. And I'm so grateful that we were able to spend time together and play. It’s a huge deal to me, and it was a lot of fun.”

Freshman Sydney Knebel also came through with a key two-out hit in the previous inning, when Mid-Prairie still trailed 4-1. 

Dawysn Miller and Robertson led off the inning with back-to-back singles, but a pair of fly outs put the pressure on Knebel, who fell behind 0-2 in the count before delivering a clutch two-run single. 

“That's huge for an eighth grader and a freshman to come through in those big situations,” Hartsock-Williams said. “But they've been really seeing the ball well, so I'm not surprised that they did it, because they've been doing that the last half of the season.”

Knebel was also the winning pitcher, and ended the game with her eighth strikeout. 

Hartsock-Williams said Knebel pitched well, especially considering it was her third start in three days.

“She worked ahead on the batters and spun the pitches real well,” she said. “So she did great.”

Knebel finished 3-for-4 at the plate with three RBIs. She doubled three times and drove in five runs the previous night at Coe College. She also had a stellar performance in the circle, striking out 15 batters in the 3-hit shutout. 

Robertson was 4-for-5 and scored three times for the Golden Hawks on Wednesday. Molly Yoder was 3-for-4 with a triple in the regular season finale.

The Golden Hawks (16-12) open the postseason at No. 11 Chariton (18-4) on Wednesday, July 6. The winner will likely face No. 3 Williamsburg in the regional semifinal on Saturday.