An 8-1 run by Knoxville in the fourth quarter propelled the Panthers to a 51-48 win over Pella last night in girls basketball. The game was back and forth most of the way with neither team getting a ahold of the contest until late. Pella used a 7-3 run to start the third quarter but Knoxville closed with three quick points to hold the advantage by three heading into the final stanza of play. One key to the win for Knoxville was three points shooting especially by Meredith Cunningham, who splashed four from long range en route to a game high 17 points. Coach Jim Utiermarkt said the threes were key. Hall made a key basket in the fourth quarter that upped the lead to nine with less than two minutes remaining. She had 12 points on the night. Neither Coach Utiermarkt nor Pella Coach Jerrod Garland was pleased with the turnover category as both teams committed mistakes in the first half. Pella was led by Jessica Holterhaus who had 15 points followed by Jackie Sunderman’s 12. Knoxville improves to 4-5 on the season and evens its Little Hawkeye Conference record to 2-2, while Pella falls to 2-7 on the season and drops to 0-3 in the conference. Knoxville makes another trip to the Tulip City Friday as the Panthers visit Pella Christian, while Pella will host Grinnell Thursday in a makeup game.

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