Pella Christian took both ends of a Little Hawkeye Conference doubleheader at Newton last night, with the girls winning 56-44 and the boys earning a 51-39 victory as heard live on KRLS2.
The Eagle girls used a 7-0 run to close the first quarter to take a 10-5 lead and never looked back, building a 26-16 advantage at halftime and never leading by less than six the rest of the way. Karis Fikkert had a 14-point 12-rebound double-double, while Rachel Kacmarynski added 11 points and 12 boards.
Kacmarynski has drawn headlines most of the season, but coach Brendan Foughty has been particularly impressed with Fikkert’s performance for his otherwise young squad.
“When we talk about Karis it honestly kinda makes me want to cry, because Karis is a kid that basketball probably didn’t come very easy for her from the beginning. She’s one of two kids, her and Amelia (Boender), that have stuck it out from her class through her senior year. She has put in so much time to become a better play. She works harder than just about anybody on our team, she was at every summer opportunity that she could get to and she stays after practice. Things are starting to click for her now a little bit.”
Faith Kacmarynski was P.C.’s third double digit scorer last night, tying Fikkert with 14 for a game high. The Eagle girls are now 7-10 on the season and 3-6 in the LHC.
While Newton’s boys never make it easy in their home gym, the Pella Christian boys never trailed. They jumped out to a 9-0 lead and held on through several Cardinal rallies. Newton cut it to 13-10 at the end of the first quarter and it was still just a seven point game when Josiah Vos drilled a three-pointer at the end of the first half to give the Eagles a 29-19 cushion into intermission.
The Cardinals kept clawing back, pulling within four in the second half, but P.C. knocked down 9-of-11 free throws in the second half and used their length on defense to stave off the challenge.
Vos and Tysen DeVries each scored 15 points as the Eagles improve to 13-4 on the season and 6-3 in conference play.
Up next for both Pella Christian squads is a home doubleheader against cross-town rival Pella on Friday night.