Pella’s football team started class 4A district play with a 24-14 road victory over Newton last night in a game heard live on 92.1 KRLS.

After falling behind 7-0 late in the first quarter, the Dutch tied the game on the next offensive play, with Nolan Clayberg racing 63 yards for a score.  Aidan Pollock’s three yard touchdown put Pella in front just before halftime, and Preston Rowe added a 12 yard catch late in the third quarter to put Pella up 21-7.

After Newton scored following a bad snap on a fourth quarter punt, the Dutch chewed up nearly four minutes of clock and iced the game with a 27 yard Luke Hardman field goal.

Pella’s defense was key in the victory, with Jay McKinstrey’s club stopping Newton on three fourth down attempts in the second half.

“When you have a quarterback like they have who can run it and throw it, and he’s very elusive, for our defense to make those stops was pretty impressive.  It was neat to see, and it was great to see the guys make plays.  You could see our guys elevate their play, and they were playing with energy even though we had some tired guys out there.  But they knew those plays were important.”

Pella’s running game did most of the work on offense, with the Dutch churning out 215 yards on the ground, including 88 from Clayberg and 79 from Pollock.

The Dutch are 2-3 on the season and start district play at 1-0.  Fellow blue blood Xavier visits Pella for the first time ever next week for homecoming.  The Saints whitewashed Cedar Rapids Washington last night 31-0.