Pella built a 28-14 halftime lead and held on for a 31-28 victory over Lewis Central last night in Council Bluffs in the opening round of the Class 4A football playoffs as heard live on 92.1 KRLS.
After falling behind 7-0 on the first of Braydan Doss’ four Titan touchdown runs, Pella tied it on the final play of the first quarter on a 38-yard catch and run score by Tyson Roose. Aidyn Halverson’s two-yard run in the second quarter put Pella in front, and after Doss tied it with just over three minutes to go in the half, William Schuknecht returned the ensuing kick 73 yards to set up a Roose 10-yard TD reception. The Dutch defense forced a quick punt and Griffin Simpson hit Henry Allen on a 38-yard score to give Pella a 14 point lead at intermission.
Despite several chances to put Lewis Central away in the third quarter, the Titans stayed in the game with a pair of interceptions, then cut the deficit to just seven on Doss’ third TD late in the frame. Pella made it a 10-point lead on a 23-yard Brody Van Zee field goal early in the fourth quarter, and after Doss hit paydirt with less than a minute to go, the Dutch recovered the onside kick and took one kneel down in victory formation…