Mount Ayr sports year in review
PROTECTED CONTENT
If you’re a current subscriber, log in below. If you would like to subscribe, please click the subscribe tab above.
Username and Password Help
Please enter your email and we will send your username and password to you.
It’s hard to believe we are headed into 2020, but here we are on December 26. Let’s look back at Mount Ayr sports through 2019.
January
Just beginning the new year, the Raiders and Raiderettes were coming out of winter break in January. The Raider basketball team was sitting at 5-2, while the Raiderettes were even at 4-4.
Myles Greene would break his own record for assists in a game at 15 against Clarke, breaking his previous record.
The Mount Ayr wrestlers won the Battle of the Border trophy as well.
Further into January, Mount Ayr hosted the Ron Scott Duals, with Harlan taking top honors.
Myles Greene set another school record in assists, for career assists. The previous record, held by Jaren Ricker for 18 years, was set at 298 by Greene.
Closing out the first month of 2019, the Raiderettes improved from 4-4 to 11-6, while the Raiders went on a 9 game win streak to improve to 14-2.
The wrestling squad placed sixth at the Quad State Classic.
February
Starting out the month of February, Raiderette head coach Thad Streit received his 200th career win, defeating Interstate-35 67-38.
Three Raider wrestlers competed at sectionals, advancing was Bryce Shaha, Josh Cox and Trae Ehlen. Those three would go on to punch their tickets to State.
The Mount Ayr bowling team placed third at the Pride of Iowa meet in Lenox before placing third at the Panther Invite in Creston.
February would mark the end of winter sports for Mount Ayr, with the three wrestlers closing up their seasons at State with no placers.
The Raiderettes, who had battled all season fell to Central Decatur and the Raiders traveled to Des Moines Christian who ended their season in a close 61-47 contest.
March
March brought Spring sports into our view after a harsh winter.
The Raider track team kicked things off at Northwest Missouri State University before heading to Iowa State University for the High School Classic.
The Raiderette track team headed to Northwest Missouri State University to kick off their season in late March.
April
Mount Ayr golf got underway to begin April as the Raiderettes took their first meet win of the season.
The Raider track team took their first meet win in Afton.
Closing out April, the Raiders qualified their 4×100 team to the Drake Relays while their Raiderette counterparts were taking yet another win in Corydon.
The Raiderette golfers were making waves on the links, improving to 8-0 on the season, while the Raider golf team was 10-0.
May
Opening May, Raider track won the Pride of Iowa with multiple first place finishes, while the Raiderette tracksters finished second the Pride of Iowa and the Raider golfers took first in the Pride of Iowa.
At the track State Qualifying Meet, the Raiders qualified seven events, while the Raiderettes struggled and only advanced two.
Golf closed on the Raiders after a controversial ending in Shenandoah. The Raiders placed third and failed to advance anyone to State.
The Raiderette golf team just missed a State appearance, placing sixth and not sending any individuals.
Mount Ayr track teams competed on the Blue Oval at Drake University at the State Meet in which the Raiders broke four records, some of which were held by the Class 1A State Champions from Mount Ayr closing out May.
June
June came with plenty of rain accompanying it which did not bode well for the baseball and softball teams.
By week two of the summer sports season, neither the Raiders nor Raiderettes had any game experience in.
By the time the rain had subsided, the Raiderettes were 5-0, while the Raiders were trying to break even.
Plenty of rescheduled games were caught up at the end of June taking the Raiderettes on a lengthy road trip.
The Raiders were sitting just above .500 at 5-4 on the season.
Closing out June saw some more controversy, with the Southeast Warren softball team having to forfeit all their wins, which helped the Raiderettes improve to 12-3.
July
After battling the summer heat for two days, the Raiderettes played through their own tournament to take first place after a gruelling battle with Lenox.
The Raiders improved to 9-5 on their season ahead of districct play.
The Raiderettes were on an unprecedented and unrivaled path through July after a shaky start to June. The Raiderettes were undefeated in the Pride of Iowa, a feat that would be the first POI championship since 1996 for the sluggers.
The Raiders battled Nodaway Valley 11 innings to take a 3-2 win over the Wovlerines.
The Raiderettes continued making the headlines, this time with a win over West Monona. The Raiderettes would go on to stun the Spartans who were ranked fourth overall, by a score of 9-0 to make their bid for the State Tournament for the first time in 25 years.
Ending the month of July, the Raiderettes won in the first round of State against Beckman Catholic to cement the girls as the best performing softball team in school history.
Unfortunately, the Raiders fell to Van Meter to end their season.
August
August began as a happy one for Mount Ayr sports fans as the Raiderettes ended their season in Fort Dodge. The Raiderettes fell to North Linn (eventual State Tournament champs) and would go on to compete against East Marshall, the team who knocked them out of the tournament 25 years earlier. The Raiderettes defeated East Marshall to take third place overall in the State Tournament.
August would close out with football, volleyball and cross country underway.
September
September had the Raiderette volleyball team staying busy, one week playing nine matches in five days.The Raiders were on a roll, being 4-0 midway through the season.
October
In October, the Raiders won their homecoming against West Central Valley, while the Raiderettes continued looking for ways to win on the court.
Mount Ayr cross country continued to make headway, improving times and places on the courses they were running.
By the end of October, football coaches Delwyn Showalter and Derek Lambert surpassed Joe McNiel as the winningest coaches in Mount Ayr history.
The Raiders would go on to defeat Adair Casey – Guthrie Center for a playoff bid and Isaac Timmerman would go on to run at State Cross Country.
November
The Raider football season would come to a close when they traveled north to face South Central Calhoun. The Raiders fell 56-17.
Isaac Timmerman placed 38th at State Cross Country in his final appearance as a senior.
By the end of November, basketball had started and is off to a good start headed into December. The Raiders are currently 5-0, while the Raiderettes are 5-1 headed into the break and the new year.
