Pella Christian Boys Golf Wins Sectional Meet at Bos Landen
The Pella Christian boys golf team opened postseason action in dominant fashion Wednesday, taking the top three individual spots en route to a first place finish at their Sectional meet at Bos Landen Golf Course.
The Eagles shot a 328 on the day, which outpaced second place Pleasantville by 26 strokes and the final district meet qualifier Woodward-Granger by 40 strokes. Pella Christian was led by Eliot Menninga and Isaiah Breems, who tied for the top spot in the meet after each shot an 80. A sudden death playoff required two holes to determine the meet medalist and Menninga edged Breems to take first place individually. Completing the one-two-three finish for the Eagles was Cooper Spronk with an 82. Deacon Branderhorst carded an 86 to end the day tied in 6th place, while Landon Fransman shot a 90 to finish in a tie for 9th place. Carter Brand rounded out the Eagles varsity squad with a 97.
The Eagles will compete for a spot in the State Tournament on Monday, traveling to the Lake Panorama National Golf Course for the District Tournament.
Pella Christian Boys Tennis Team Competed at Individual State Districts Tournament Wednesday
The Pella Christian boys tennis team competed at the Class 1A District Individual State Qualifying meet at Pella’s Caldwell Park Wednesday.
Rob Schreur and Rhett Terpstra posted the deepest run of the Eagles tennis players in the tournament, reaching the semifinal match. The duo opened their run in the doubles bracket with a 6-0, 6-1 win over Centerville’s Hagin Byrd and Daniel George and followed that up with a 6-0, 6-3 quarterfinal victory over Albia’s Isaac Helm and Tavian La Rue. Schreur and Terpstra’s bid for a spot in the Individual State Tournament fell one match short however, as they fell to Pella’s Joshua Roozeboom and Cameron Rowe 6-0, 6-0 in the semifinals.
Shaun Bos and Aaron Meinders were victorious in their first round doubles match, defeating Albia’s Ty Pickerell and Bode Thompson 6-1, 6-0, but fell in the quarterfinals 7-5, 6-4 to Grinnell’s Zander Freeman and Sam Simon. In the singles bracket, Kirby Van Wyngarden also won his first round match, knocking off Knoxville’s Talon Brown 6-0, 6-0, but suffered a similar fate with a 6-0, 4-6, 6-4 loss to Grinnell’s Chase Rundall in the quarterfinals.
The Pella Christian boys tennis team returns to the court on Saturday for the Class 1A District Team Qualifying Tournament, squaring off with Clarke at 9 am at Caldwell Park.
Pella Christian Track and Field Teams Vying for State Bids Tonight
The Pella Christian boys and girls track and field athletes will compete for their spot at State tonight, running at the Class 2A State Qualifying Meet at Roland-Story.
The Eagle girls, who have emerged as a strong contender for the Team State Title next week, have nine events that currently rank in the top two spots among teams in attendance. Additionally, the Pella Christian girls have seven events that are in the top five spots at the meet. The Eagle boys hold a top two spot in two events entering the meet at Roland-Story, with another five events that sit in a top five spot. The top two finishers from each race automatically earn a trip to State, while eight at large bids will be awarded for all events based on times or distances compared across the state. (please note athletes can compete in a maximum of four events, and may not end up qualifying in the races below)
Individuals and relays for Pella Christian that are currently in the top-two spots among those competing at Roland-Story include:
Rachel Kacmarynski – 100m Dash, 200m Dash, and Long Jump
Meredith Van Wyk – 100m Dash
Bailey Vos – 400m dash
Claire Westerkamp, Rachel Kacmarynski, Lexi Terpstra, Meredith Van Wyk – 4x100m Relay
Claire Westerkamp, Rachel Kacmarynski, Bailey Vos, Meredith Van Wyk – 4x200m Relay
Rachel Kacmarynski, Meredith Van Wyk, Maisy Meinders, Bailey Vos – 4x400m Relay
Amaia Agre, Rachel Kacmarynski, Meredith Van Wyk, Bailey Vos – Sprint Medley Relay
Trevor Veenstra – Shot Put and Discus
Individuals and relays for the Eagles that are currently top-five and will by vying for a spot at State include:
Meredith Van Wyk – 200m Dash
Bailey Vos – 200m dash
Chloe Nikkel – 400m hurdles and long jump
Bailey Vos, Maisy Meinders, Julia Shmalcs, Emma De Boef – 4x800m Relay
Chloe Nikkel, Amelia Boender, Amaia Agre, Maisy Meinders – Distance Medley Relay
Chloe Huisman, Ani Bell, Chloe Nikkel, Maddy Van Zee – Shuttle Hurdle Relay
Sawyer Meinders – 1600 and 3200 Meter Run
Elias Keegan, Ely Cadwell, Eli Hoksbergen, Sawyer Meinders – 4x800m Relay
Noah Nunnikhoven, Tysen De Vries, Johnson Morgan, Brecken Ritzert – Sprint Medley Relay
Johnson Morgan, Logan Nunnikhoven, Ely Cadwell, Sawyer Meinders – Distance Medley Relay
The 2024 state qualifying meet at Roland-Story High School begins at 4:00 with field events and 4:30 with running events.