Pella Christian handled the opening round of the postseason with relative ease, sweeping Interstate 35 High School 3-0 (25-12, 25-19, 25-11) Monday night in the regional playoffs.

The Eagles largely dominated from wire to wire, especially on serves, tallying 14 aces on the night, including five from Lizzy Posthuma and four from Avey Amelse.

Seniors Molly Bolt and Anna Van Zee said the team’s performance was far from perfect however, but they were both happy with how they were able to handle difficult situations.

“We focused a lot in practice on how we could finish this game quickly and just play like we know how we can and prepare ourselves for what we expect to see for the rest of the playoffs,” Bolt says. “We’re just really excited to be getting another win and moving on because one of our goals was to make it to state and we’re just one step of the way there.”

“Obviously, we started off a little rough but it’s really good to come out and finish in three, so we were able to finish well and I think it’s a good start to play the first game and just know that we’re another step closer to state,” Van Zee says.

Bolt led the team with 14 kills, followed by seven apiece from Amelse and Sarah Gritters. Pella Christian improves to 18-20 overall and next travel to Pleasantville on Monday for the next round of the 2A regional playoffs.