"I was getting the boo birds...I just loved that"
The book: Cornfields to Gold Medals is with the publisher (Triumph Books) and is on schedule for release in the Spring of 2023.
Under Don Showalter, the Mid-Prairie Golden Hawks won eight Eastern Iowa Hawkeye Conference Championships. The 1985-86 squad (Showalter’s second season at MP) went undefeated (14-0) in conference play to secure the conference title. They also captured a district championship in the postseason, before losing a sub-state game to finish 19-3.
The talented team started 6-4 senior forward, Brain Bender; 6-5 senior center, Neill Griffith; on the wing, Coach Showalter’s youngest brother, junior, Dennis Showalter; and the dynamic backcourt of seniors, Lonnie Yoder and Pat Woodburn. Yoder led the team as a coach on the floor, a traditional pass-first point guard and Woodburn led with his will to win. “Pat had one speed,” shared Yoder. “He played as hard in practice as he did in the games. He could go and go and never get tired.” Woodburn also had a temper, aggravated by his hyper-competitive nature. “Pat played like his head was on fire,” recalls Dave Schlabaugh, an assistant coach at Mid-Prairie during Woodburn’s prep career.
The 1985-86 Golden Hawks are discussed in the book but the short passage below did not make the final cut, due to word limits set by the publisher. For short scenes or stories that do not make the final cut, we will share them in the newsletter up to the release of the book. The following passage highlights two rivalry wins for the Golden Hawks during the 1985-86 season, en route to an unbeaten conference record.
Woodburn noticed Yoder hesitate with his dribble, feign a slight head nod, and then explode towards the basket; a move he knew too well from the hundreds of one on one battles the two had on the Kalona playground. Without hesitation and in what may have looked like a choreographed move between the two friends, Woodburn relocated beyond the arc, at the perfect angle to receive a Yoder drive and kick-out pass for a spot-up three-point shot. It all seemed perfect: the angle, the timing of the pass, and an open three-point look. Woodburn received the ball in rhythm from Yoder and gathered himself for the shot. He rose into his jump shot. This was routine, a habit honed from hours of practice. He released the ball, letting his follow-through dangle in the air as the ball drifted towards the rim. The ball never made it. An airball.
The Solon High Spartan faithful rained boos and chorused a few verses of “air ball” as Woody and his teammates hustled back on defense. The Spartan’s home gym could get hot. The tiny gym held a few hundred fans and could pass for an elementary school gym that seconded as a cafeteria at noon. The fans, just a row back, were on top of the players and coaches. Spectators lined the sideline, creeping into the baseline corners. The tight space meant the fans could touch the athletes physically. They didn’t but their words did and Woody was hearing it. “I’m getting the boo birds,” recalls Woodburn. “I just loved that – eaten’ it up.”
Woodburn fed on the excitement of the arena; he played with an edge. An approach that fueled his defensive energy but left him vulnerable to frustration on the offensive end. The Spartans jumped to an early 11 to 6 lead and Showalter could tell his senior guard seemed frustrated with his shot. “Woody,” hollered Showalter at the next dead ball. “Bring it in and shoot it off the boards and then take it back out.”
“Every time it worked,” remembers Woodburn. “I can still hear him saying, ‘bring it in and put it off the square.’” Woodburn finished with 23 points in a Golden Hawk 64-60 victory, ending Solon’s six-game winning streak.
A couple of days later, Mid-Prairie found themselves at conference foe, Mount Vernon. A sluggish first half left Showalter irritated at his underperforming team. “At halftime, Coach Show came in and lit us up,” recalls Woodburn. “He was usually calm and collected. Never a screamer. When he did we deserved it and it always worked. We came out of that halftime and tore them apart. I don’t think they got the ball across half-court on the first five possessions.” Mid-Prairie outscored Mount Vernon 43-21 in the second half for an 85-54 victory.[i] While a victory over Washington provided county bragging rights, a win over Solon or Mount Vernon counted in conference play. For Showalter, Eastern Iowa Hawkeye Conference games allowed him to revisit old rivalries from his prep days, switching from physical battles on the court to strategic battles from the coaching box.
[i] Highland Whips Pekin, Iowa City Press-Citizen, Wednesday, January 12, 1986.
Great post - can't wait for the book to come out!