The Mid-Prairie Golden Hawk girls basketball team won their fifth in a row Saturday, topping the Bellevue Comets at the innagural River Valley Conference Girls Shoot Out at Cornell College in Mount Vernon 49-34. Mid-Prairie started the game on fire, running in the first 14 points and led 16-3 at the end of the first period. The Comets pulled within six late in the second, but the Hawks capitalized with late points to push the lead to 25-16 going to the locker room. It was another run to start the second half, as Mid-Prairie grew the lead as large as 19 before the teams traded baskets with reserves on the floor late. After the game, Golden Hawk head coach Danny Hershberger talked about his team’s hot start, three point shooting and what they have done well to remain unbeaten since Christmas. “Our girls did a great job of coming out and being aggressive on defense. We made it tough on them to get a good shot. We got a couple of turnovers. We were able to execute a set play for a lay up to start. The girls did a great job tonight executing the offense to find the openings against their zone and finishing their shots. It’s huge for us also to be able to hit some shots from the outside and open the floor up a little bit. It’s no secret that we like to go inside. Now we’re kicking it out and setting our feet. Maya Nonnenmann and Nora Pennington have really stepped up. Josie Greiner came off the bench and got going today. This win streak is a testament to our girls, their character and their attitude. We had a long layoff over break. The girls did a great job of coming to practice every day and getting better. Girls are translating practice work to the games. It really comes down to them, their effort and their focus. It’s really fun to watch.”

The Golden Hawks shot 33% from deep, hitting eight threes, pulled in 33 rebounds, had 18 steals and 11 assists while holding Bellevue star Ka’Lynn DeShaw, who is averaging a double double this year, to just two points and no field goals. Landry Pacha led the Golden Hawks with 12 points, Josie Greiner had nine on a trio of threes and Maya Nonnenmann eight. The Golden Hawks improve to 10-5 with the win and face Mount Pleasant Monday.