High School

Iowa High School Football Playoffs: Pella-Xavier Set For 4A Title

Dutch handle Sergeant Bluff-Luton, Saints top Newton

Dana Becker

Emmanuel Diers led Pella to a win in the state semifinals in Iowa Thursday.
Emmanuel Diers led Pella to a win in the state semifinals in Iowa Thursday. / IHSAA

Emmanuel Diers ran for 197 yards and scored three touchdowns to help Pella return to the Class 4A championship game for a second consecutive season.

The Dutch posted a rebounding 35-14 victory over Sergeant Bluff-Luton on Thursday in the semifinals inside the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls.

Diers, one of the key returning players back from last year, carried the ball 33 times and found the end zone on runs of 16, 5 and 5 yards. He had the first touchdown of the game, capping a 16-play, 79-yard drive that took up over seven minutes of the clock.

The Warriors, who were in the 3A semifinals last year before moving up to 4A this fall, answered, as Beckett Verros scored from nine yards out. Sergeant Bluff-Luton worked quickly down the field, covering 60 yards in five plays and taking up less than two minutes.

Pella, who lost in the finals to North Polk a year ago, scored the next 21 points, including two TD runs by Diers. In between, Michael Manning hit Logan VanDenBroek from 43 yards out for a score.

Manning finished 14 of 18 passing for 157 yards with the TD, as VandenBroek caught two passes for 75 yards. Harrison Mullens had seven receptions for 69 yards.

Verros would score a second time for Sergeant Bluff-Luton, ending his season with 16 carries for 131 yards on the ground. 

Both Nate Warner for Pella and Gavin Warren for Sergeant Bluff-Luton had interceptions, as Kyler VanMaanen recorded 19 tackles for the Dutch. Warner had 16 stops and Gage Branderhorst 10.

Dax Koedam led the Warriors with 11 tackles and Xavier Jones tallied 10.

Cedar Rapids Xavier Rallies, Eliminates Newton

In a back-and-forth affair that featured several lead changes and ties, top-ranked Cedar Rapids Xavier prevailed, besting Newton, 31-24, in a Class 4A semifinal at the Iowa high school football championships.

The Saints will now take on Pella, who earned a win in the first semifinal game over Sergeant Bluff-Luton inside the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa next week.

Cash Parks scored his second 1-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to break a 24-24 tie with 3:26 to play. The Xavier quarterback finished with 131 yards passing and a touchdown, rushing for 21 yards and two TDs.

“This win means a whole lot to this group with how tight we’ve all become,” Parks told High School on SI. “Everyone did their jobs. We got what we earned, just like our coaches preach. We are gonna celebrate this one for sure, but gotta get ready for Pella.”

Parks found AJ Evans on an incredible play in the end zone for a score, as the James Madison basketball recruit used all of his 6-foot-8 frame to come down with the football.

Carter Hoffmann carried the offensive load, rushing 20 times for 130 yards on the night. Dustin Cook added 67 yards, including a third quarter touchdown run.

Newton’s Caden Klein had 135 yards passing and 171 yards rushing, recording three total touchdowns. Isaiah Hansen added 66 yards on the ground and 40 yards receiving, as Finn Martin caught seven passes for 95 yards and a score.

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Dana Becker
DANA BECKER

Dana Becker has been a sports writer in Iowa since 2000, writing for The Fort Dodge Messenger, Mason City Globe-Gazette, Cedar Rapids Gazette and others. Dana resides in northcentral Iowa and started as a writer with SB Live Sports in 2022 focused on the state of Iowa. Along with providing coverage of football and wrestling, Dana also spotlights cross country, swimming, basketball, track and field, soccer, tennis, golf, baseball and softball. He began writing for High School on SI in 2023.

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