March 28, 2024

No. 10 Pella uses fast start to down Newton girls

Offensive struggles continue for Cardinals in loss to Lady Dutch

PELLA — The Newton girls basketball team spent Wednesday and Thursday working on the fundamentals of shooting at practice.

But the Cardinals continued to struggle at the offensive end of the floor against Class 4A No. 10 Pella on Friday.

The Lady Dutch started fast and held the Cardinals to two points in both the first and fourth quarters during a 63-22 home win.

Newton shot 17 percent from the floor and committed 20 turnovers in the Little Hawkeye Conference loss.

“The girls know they need to make more shots,” Newton head girls basketball coach Eric Vander Velden said. “We worked on the fundamentals of shooting the last two nights in practice. No matter what we do defensively, it doesn’t matter if we don’t score.”

Pella led 17-2 after one and outscored Newton 23-7 in the second and 13-2 in the fourth. The Cardinals won the third 11-10.

The Lady Dutch are now 31-3 all-time against Newton and have won 21 straight in the series.

Pella has won three in a row and nine of its last 10 games, while Newton has dropped eight straight.

Sophia Reynolds led the Cardinals (3-12 overall, 1-9 in the LHC) with five points, seven rebounds and three assists and Alex Garvis added seven points, three rebounds and two steals.

Audrey Rausch put in three points and grabbed three boards, Cadie Horn pulled down four rebounds and Alex Riney scored three points.

Newton was 2-of-10 from 3-point range and made 6-of-12 from the free-throw line.

Pella (12-3, 7-2) shot 41 percent from the floor, made 9-of-24 from 3 and buried 8-of-11 from the foul line. The Lady Dutch out-rebounded Newton 39-22 and committed 14 turnovers.

Kylie Tauke had 20 points and eight rebounds to lead Pella, while Mia Warner finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds and five steals. Tristan Gordon dished out eight assists.