The Pella boys tennis team continued their climb back to the state tournament with a dominating Saturday of action, defending their home courts and winning 5-0 against both Hoover and Pella Christian in the opening rounds of the Class 1A substate bracket.

Pella didn’t drop a single game against the Huskies, and found a bit more resistance against the Eagles, but still closed festivities before needing a sixth match. Jack Briggs, Joshua Roozeboom, Cameron Rowe, Nile Rozenboom, and Ben Van Gorp all had two victories, and Brody Ferrell was on the verge of his second before the match was called.

The Dutch will host Grinnell on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. with a state appearance on the line.

On the road, the #5 in 2A Pella girls soccer team kept the #15 in 3A Roughriders at arms length for the majority of the match, winning 4-3. Abby Warner racked up another hat trick and Maelee Solomon scored what was ultimately the game-winning goal, as Roosevelt pulled the contest within the final margin in the final few minutes. The Dutch improve to 11-3 overall and travel to the #2 ranked Comets of North Polk on Monday.