KALONA

Cool weather and a high chance of rain did not stop the Mid-Prairie girls golf team from beginning their season on a strong note against Regina.

 It was a home opener for the defending conference champs, as the Hawks began their season at the Kalona Golf Course against Regina in a River Valley Conference dual on March 25. 

Despite Regina not having enough golfers to field a team score, the Golden Hawks kept their competitive mindset intact, finishing with a score of 189.   

“The kids got off to a good start tonight at home today shooting a team score of 189 strokes. This is the best start the kids have had I believe since these seniors started their careers,” Mid-Prairie coach Tracy McArtor said. “Being only 13 shots off their school record 176 that they posted at the end of last year is exciting to see.”

The seniors McArtor is speaking about are Madi Davidson, Elliot Debler, Madison Witthoft, and Gabi Robertson. With a wealth of golfing experience gained from previous seasons it came as no surprise that three of these seniors were on top of the leaderboard in this conference dual

The top two spots were claimed by Robertson and Davidson. Robertson, named All-Region a year ago, posted a score of 42 and Davidson was the runner-up with a score of 45.  

“Gabi and Madi are picking up right where they left off last season,” coach McArtor said.

Grabbing third and fourth place was English and Debler respectively. English just finished under the half century mark, ending the dual with a score of 49. Debler was able to bounce back from a slow start to secure a score of 53.  

“Addison held it together even with some struggles with her driver and Elliott after a slow start really turned her round around on the last few holes,” coach McArtor said. 

This year Mid-Prairie’s roster consists of two freshmen and one of them, Olivia Swartzendruber, was able to finish in 5th place with a score of 55. The sixth-place spot belonged to Witthoft who ended with a score of 61. 

With hopes that the weather becomes a bit more friendly to golfers, next up for Mid-Prairie is home duals against West Branch on April 1 and against Washington on April 2

“This first night highlighted a few things to work on the rest of this week as we get ready for West Branch and Washington next week,’ coach McArtor said.