After a fast and at times, frantic style, got the Pella girls basketball team on the doorstep of the state tournament in 2023, the Dutch are aiming to build on that momentum with several key returners in the new winter season that opens this evening at home against Atlantic.

The Dutch finished the 2022-23 winter with a 17-6 record and a tough loss at home in the Regional finals to Glenwood. Head Coach Blaine Forsythe says the success of last year has given a large returning group some motivation to take the program back to a spot to contend in the Little Hawkeye Conference and in Class 4A’s final eight.

Kennedy Van Vark leads a returning core of seniors, as the guard scored 10 points per game last winter and shot 34% from three-point range. Abby Warner (five points, two steals per game) and Tristan Gordon (4.9 points, four rebounds per game) are expected to be full-time starters for Coach Forsythe, with fellow senior Aaliyah Riddick (2.7 points, 1.9 rebounds per contest) expected to see an expanded role. Other key members of the rotation to start the winter for the Dutch include juniors Maggie Thompson, Kelsey Tauke, and Jenna Oltman, as well as sophomore Katie Scheckel, who is coming off of a first-team All-Conference volleyball season, and classmate Kamryn Long, a multi-event state track and field qualifier this past spring.

Pella will also await potential news of a return for Newton transfer Sophia Reynolds, who suffered a significant knee injury during summer workouts. She averaged 13.6 points and 5.8 rebounds per contest for the Cardinals as a junior, earning second team All-LHC honors.

The Dutch open the winter season at home against Atlantic this evening. The Trojans were largely senior heavy on a roster that finished with an 18-5 overall record last year, winning a share of the Hawkeye Ten conference title. The top returner for Atlantic is 5′ 10″ junior Paytn Harter, who averaged 15 points and 10.2 rebounds per contest in her sophomore season.

Coverage of the Dutch and Trojans girls basketball opener begins at 5:30 this evening on 92.1 KRLS. All home Pella basketball broadcasts can be found on Pella Dutch Live as well.