Original post by DANNY SCHREIBER via Silicon Prairie news

Our four B2B Startup of the Year finalists have clients that range from city halls to NFL teams. But whether their users were analyzing a new city project or the most recent game film, these startups all took pages out of the right playbook, as each saw notable growth this past year.

At our inaugural Silicon Prairie Awards event on Aug. 30, one these four finalists will be crowned B2B Startup of the Year. In anticipation of that celebration, we’re providing overviews of the four contenders for each of our 12 Silicon Prairie Awards. The finalists — 48 in all — are the result of public nominations in July and input from our selection committee earlier this month.

A public vote will help determine the winners of the awards, so cast your ballot for the B2B Startup of the Year below, or visit the awards page to vote on all 12 categories.

Join us for the Silicon Prairie Awards: We have a fun night of community celebration planned for Aug. 30 at the Joslyn Art Museum in Omaha. Tickets still remain for the event, which includes an opening reception, keynote talk by TechStars founder and CEO David Cohen, awards ceremony and a closing party. Purchase your tickets today.

Meet the finalists

The B2B Startup of the Year hit milestones, evolved and might have even surprised a few people in a year of notable growth and advancements. (Italicized company descriptions below from company websites.)

Online video analysis and coaching tools that help teams at all levels, from youth to the NFL, win. (Lincoln, Neb.)

Hudl closed the past year like it opened it, purchasing its largest competitor in the high school football market. With that dominance, it became the subject of feature stories across the U.S., such as one in a South Carolina paper: “Coaches going hi-tech with film study these days“. Its coaches roster extended to the NHL and NBA, as well, as Hudl added the Redwings, Senators and Pacers. And it gave each of its clients new tools, releasing an iPhone and Android app. (More: Hudl blog, on SPN.)

LockPath helps companies of all sizes address the increasingly complex issues of regulatory compliance and risk management. (Overland Park, Kan.)

In September 2011, LockPath released the second version of the Keylight platform, its flagship product, which would help the company reach several milestones in the months to come. In April, LockPath was was one of 10 companies chosen to present at the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium’s Innovation Showcase. Over the past year, the company quadrupled revenues, made key hires and added partners McAfee and Qualys. Press coverage of LockPath, mainly by industry publications, provided consistent updates of its progress. (More:LockPath news, press releases and on SPN.)