Pella Christian played some of their best soccer of the season Thursday night, but unfortunately it wasn’t quite enough to slow down Class 2A powerhouse Norwalk, as the Eagles fell in a hard-fought 1-0 match to the Warriors. Pella Christian boys head coach Josh Visser said he was incredibly proud of the effort his team put forth, particularly noting the strong play of goalkeeper Alek Vink, who notched 23 saves in the loss.

The Pella Christian boys are now 8-5 overall and play again tonight in the final game of a brutal four-game stretch this week against an equally challenging opponent: cross-town rival Pella High. The Little Dutch picked up a gritty 2-1 win against Norwalk on Tuesday night.