SOLON

Solon, the top-ranked girls basketball team in Class 3A, delivered a humbling night to Mid-Prairie on Dec. 21.

And the Spartans gave the Golden Hawks something to shoot for.

“It’s good to see that kind of effort it takes to be that good of a team,” Mid-Prairie head coach Danny Hershberger said. “It’s something that we’ve got to learn a little bit, how hard you have to play all the time, how hard you’ve got to compete to be the type of team that Solon is.”

Solon senior guard Callie Levin, who is the third-leading scorer in 3A, scored a game-high 22 points in the Spartans’ 72-29 victory.

After a sluggish start, Solon scored 18 of the game’s first 20 points and cruised to its ninth victory in 10 games.

Junior forwards Callie Huber and Brylee Gearhart each scored eight points for Mid-Prairie, which lost to Solon for the fourth straight time.

Solon, which averages more than 58 points a game and wins by an average of more than 20 points a game, put on an offensive and defensive clinic. Even a Mid-Prairie possession in its backcourt was a target for the Spartans. On the Golden Hawks’ opening possession, Levin charged in, stole the ball and went in for a game-opening lay-up.

Levin and senior forward Anna Quillin each had a game-high 7 steals, combining for 14 of the Spartans’ 27. Mid-Prairie senior guard Nora Pennington had the Golden Hawks’ only steal of the game.

“They’ve got really good players,” Hershberger said. “Not just Levin, but their other players are really good, too. Makes it a challenge sometimes.”

Solon’s only loss thus far was to Clear Creek Amana, the No. 2-ranked team in Class 4A and a 2023 state quarterfinalist. The Spartans are not the highest-scoring team in their conference, the WaMaC-East, because neighboring Mount Vernon, ranked No. 2 in 3A, is scoring more than 68 points a game and winning by more than 31.

Halley Miller added 13 points for Solon and Quillin scored 11.

Solon’s defense created 31 Mid-Prairie turnovers while having only 6 turnovers itself, shut out one Mid-Prairie starter and held starting freshman Brooklyn Schneider and starting sophomore Katelyn Harland to just three shots combined.

“It’s good for some of our younger players to kind of see that, kind of experience that at the varsity level,” Hershberger said. “It’s an experience thing. You’ve got to kind of get used to that. You’ve got to get ready for that, get comfortable being defended that way.”

Jovi Evans, a Mid-Prairie sophomore guard, did not play due to a knee injury.

The Golden Hawks (6-3) host 14^th-ranked Williamsburg (5-3) on Jan. 8, then play at Iowa City Regina (7-2), the No. 3-ranked team in 2A, on Jan. 9. They also play at Maquoketa on Jan. 6.

GAME STATS

SOLON 72, MID-PRAIRIE 29

Mid-Prairie  4    8    8   9  --  29

Solon          23  31  10   8  --  72

Mid-Prairie scoring: Brylee Gearhart 8, Callie Huber 8, Brooklyn Schneider 4, Harper Pacha 4, Katelyn Harland 3, Myli Hershberger 2.

Solon scoring: Callie Levin 22, Halley Miller 13, Anna Quillin 11, Laeni Hinkle 7, Gable Knight 5, Kobi Lietz 4, Mia Stahle 3, Laney Johnson 3, Jerzey Haluska 2, Maddyn Gates 2.

Mid-Prairie rebounding leaders: Huber 9, Gearhart 6, Pacha 5.

Solon rebounding leaders: Levin 8, Quillin 8.