The Pella Lady Dutch soccer team is already in postseason mode as the playoff tournaments loom. The girls fell 3-1 at home to No. 10 in Class 3A Ankeny Centennial in what Head Coach Mark Howard calls a necessary tune up game. He says the Jaguars were a deep, balanced squad that his team had to fight hard against, and he was happy to see a late spark in the form of a Bellara Huang goal near the end.
Pella falls to 10-2 on the season, and will take on No. 2 DCG in Grimes next Wednesday for the Little Hawkeye Conference crown. Over on the boys’ side, they dropped to Perry, 2 – 1, after a double overtime and penalty shootout thriller. Seth Johnson had the Little Dutch’s lone goal, while Chase Petty was magnificent in the crease, making save after impressive save. With the game tied at one after double OT, Perry eventually won 5 – 4 on penalty kicks. The Pella boys finish the regular season 13 – 5, and they are off until the 28th to host either Centerville or South Tama in the Class 2A district tournament.