Pella opens their home gym for the winter in the first girls-boys doubleheader for the Dutch, with North Polk coming to town tonight.

The non-conference matchup marks the first game for a Pella boys team seeking an 18th ever trip to state this winter, after the 2020 season closed at Wells Fargo Arena.
For the Dutch, it’s a matter of how quickly their returning players can elevate their game to replace three All-Conference graduates, with a starting lineup that includes Grant Nelson, Josh Warner, Parker Elder, Karl Miller, and Ryan Mace. Pella welcomes North Polk to the Tulip City 24 hours after they fell to Little Hawkeye Conference school Indianola 74-50.

The 1-0 Lady Dutch are also leaning on a heavily experienced lineup, with all starters returning from the 2019-20 campaign. The core of Madison Naig, Faith Diers, Anna Vander Waal, and Annika Peterson were all key contributors in Pella’s 57-25 opening win over Mt. Pleasant before the Thanksgiving holiday — with the four accounting for 72 percent of the team’s scoring. The visiting Comets’ girls are 0-2 and have lost to a pair of Little Hawkeye Conference championship contenders — No. 12 in 4A Dallas Center-Grimes and No. 13 in 5A Indianola.

Varsity action begins with the girls in the first doubleheader of the new season, with pregame starting at 6 p.m. on 92.1 KRLS and the KRLS mobile app. All Pella home games will have the radio broadcast paired with video on the Pella Dutch Live YouTube channel. Trevor Castle and Mike Buchheit will call the action.