The #16 seed Pella Christian Eagles traveled to top seeded Van Meter Friday evening for the first round of the Class 1A playoffs. The Eagles could not capitalize after taking a 6-0 lead, and Van Meter ran away with a 38-12 win, broadcast live on 92.1 KRLS.

Pella Christian recovered a muffed punt on the first drive of the game, and Dan Jungling punched it in from one yard out on a quarterback keeper to give the Eagles the 6-0 lead. Van Meter responded with touchdowns on their next two drives, as well as two more in the second quarter. Pella Christian threatened with a strong drive in the closing seconds, but ran out of time, and the Bulldogs took a 28-6 lead into the locker room.

Pella Christian held Van Meter to a field goal on the first drive of the second half, but the Eagles still had no answers. Another touchdown in the third capped off the Van Meter scoring, and Pella Christian added a final touchdown in the fourth for the final score. Eagles coach Rich Kacmarynski says his team just couldn’t put together the consistent drives they needed to against a very good football team.

Dan Jungling finished 18/30 through the air with two touchdowns and an interception. Jase Amelse was the rushing leader with 13 carries for 69 yards. David Willis and a great game defensively, leading the way with 13 tackles. Pella Christian’s season comes to a close with an overall record of 5-5. Van Meter is now 10-0 and will host South Central Calhoun in next week’s quarterfinal round.