Dutch Boys Soccer Dominates in Cedar Rapids, Advances to Substate
A long road trip east produced a strong start in the soccer postseason for #12 Pella as they handled #16 Cedar Rapids Washington 6-1 Monday evening. Head Coach Mark Solomon says it took a few minutes to get going, but the Dutch responded to the challenge of elevating their game with quality play. In the 9th minute, Logan Solomon found Teddy Apostolopoulos with a hard crossing pass, and eight minutes later, Solomon again pulled the strings and crossed to Austin Bone, who found the net with a hard left-footed shot. The Warriors got one back shortly after, but Tyson Barnes set up Logan Solomon with a pass and Logan put the Dutch up 3-1 at halftime. He also added two more goals to put the match out of reach in the second half, and Nate Warner wrapped up the scoring late on a corner from Kellen Smith. Pella will take on #2 Hoover Wednesday with a state tournament bid on the line.

Pella Baseball Team Flexes Bats in Six-Inning Win
A five-game homestand concluded with the Pella baseball team showing off some offensive firepower in a 13-3 six-inning win over Martensdale-St. Mary’s Monday. Caleb Stewart started the scoring with a two-run home run in the 2nd inning, and the game was tied 3-3 going into the 5th inning. The Dutch exploded from there, scoring ten runs in the final two frames. Anderson Schirm was 4-for-5 with two runs batted in, Isaiah Kettler was 2-for-3 with a solo home run, and Nathan Carey pitched four innings with three strikeouts. Tate Weesner added two perfect innings with four Ks. Pella improves to 3-2 and travels to Carlisle this evening.

Dutch Tennis Begins Individual State Today
While their dream for a team title is on hold until next week, six members of the #1 in 1A Pella boys tennis team will chase individual accolades today and tomorrow at the 1A State Singles and Doubles Tournament. Pella’s entire varsity lineup is featured in the tournament that crowns individual title winners at Byrnes Park in Waterloo. The doubles duo of Jack Briggs/Joshua Roozeboom are the top seed in Class 1A doubles; teammates Cameron Rowe and Cashen Thompson–who placed 8th last year, will seek to play spoiler as the 15-seed. District champion Ben Van Gorp is the three seed in the singles tournament, while Beau Bush is the 10th seed and has a potential team postseason preview matchup with Xavier player Charlie LeGrand.