The Pella High girls basketball team never found its footing last night in a 65-45 regional final loss to Glenwood heard live on 92.1 KRLS, sending the Rams to the state tournament for the fourth straight season.

Jenna Hopp, the leading scorer in class 4A at 24 points per game, dominated the Dutch to the tune of 30 points and 21 rebounds as Glenwood led from start to finish. They used an 11-0 run to open a 13-2 first quarter advantage, took a 35-22 lead into halftime and never led by less than double digits for the entirety of the second half.

Pella’s offense struggled to get on track against a triangle-and-two defense deployed by the Rams. While the Dutch anticipated that might get thrown their way, coach Blaine Forsythe says that it was really difficult to prepare for and Glenwood executed it to perfection.

“They play a lot of what we call junk defense in the western side of the state, things that we don’t see in the Little Hawkeye. So that made it challenging for us, and Kylie (Tauke) and Kennedy (Van Vark) had to work pretty stinkin’ hard just to touch the ball.”

Kylie Tauke and Kennedy Van Vark, who both average in double figures for the Dutch, combined to make just one field goal. Tristan Gordon led the way for Pella with nine points and Mia Warner nabbed eight rebounds.

The Dutch finish their 2022-2023 season with a record of 17-6.