In a meet that had a field of talented 3A schools, the Pella boys track and field team claimed the Class A title at the Waukee Invitational Thursday. Pella was led by a 1-2 for finish for Nick DeJong (55-04.5) & Mason Huerter (50-09.5) in shot put, as well as wins for Tony Schmitz in 800m (2:03.04) and Jordan Buma in 400m hurdles (58.06). Pella will learn how many boys track and field athletes they are sending to the Drake Relays by Saturday afternoon. Find full results at here.
Pella’s girls placed 2nd at the Newton Cardinal Invitational in a field featuring several 3A and 4A schools, scoring 67 team points. The Lady Dutch had top finishes from the 4×400 meter relay of Ashley Blommers, Emily Holterhaus, Elsie Thoreson, and Caroline McMartin (4:10.04) and in the 4×800 relay of Lindsey Blommers, Chelsea Jorgensen, Tirzah Wittenberg, and McMartin (10:09.36). Knoxville finished in 13th overall. Results: cardinalinvite_results_2col
–
The No. 5 ranked Pella’s boys soccer team had a bounce-back win at home, blanking Ottumwa 3-0 last night. Head Coach Mark Solomon says he was happy to see improvement after playing and falling in a tough match against Norwalk earlier this week.
“That Norwalk game was a fantastic game, they played really well at home and we kind of struggled to adapt,” he says. “So having a little more confidence tonight, being at home for the first time in several games…it was a really great feeling and just great to see some guys get some success.”
Pella had a goal each from Reid McGinley, Nathan Leathers, and Ben Nelson. The 6-2 Dutch are back at home Tuesday against Newton.
–
After a two-week break from varsity competition, the Pella boys golf team didn’t miss a beat, winning a conference triangular at Grinnell, shooting 158 to Oskaloosa’s 167 and the Tigers’ 174. John Oltman led Pella as the meet medalist with a 36, Ethan Gordon carded a 40, and Luke Galeazzi and Will Simpson each shot 41 in nine holes. Pella heads to Washington this Saturday. The Lady Dutch Golf Team placed 4th out of 12 teams at the Oskaloosa Invitational, shooting a 397. Pella was led by Karissa Galeazzi (93), Lauren VanWyk (95), Halie Veenstra (103) Lindsy Roose (106), and Reagan VanWyk (106). They are next at Grinnell Tuesday.
–
The Pella tennis teams each cruised by Oskaloosa, with both the boys and girls winning 10-1. The Lady Dutch welcomed back multiple-time state qualifier Brooke Jorgensen to the top of the lineup after missing a few starts earlier this week, and she handled the one spot 6-2, 6-1 in victory. Jorgensen said after the match it’s been a big adjustment from playing on an experience team last spring to transitioning into a leadership role.
“It’s definitely a lot different, I’ve never really been the leadership-role type–I kind of stay quiet and sit back and watch everyone else do it, but this year, since we had five people graduate in our varsity, I’ve definitely had to step up, but it’s been really fun,” she says.
Lisa Dykstra and Zoe Card also each earned singles victories with tiebreakers. Pella’s boys dominated the top half of their card, with all six singles players winning their matches, including Jordan Roozeboom, Jack Edwards, Carter Briggs, Luke Diers, Ezra Blasi, and Matthew Thompson. The Dutch boys are undefeated in dual meets and next host their home invitational Saturday; the girls are off until a home match against Grinnell next Thursday.