On Wednesday night, the Pella Christian baseball and softball teams traveled to Oskaloosa for doubleheaders in the Little Hawkeye Conference. Both games ended in splits, with the Eagles winning the second game and losing the first.
Pella Christian lost 1-0 in the first game on the softball diamond before winning the nightcap 7-0. The Eagles defeated the Indians 6-2 in the first game, but they gave up the game’s only run on an RBI ground out in the bottom of the second inning. Despite having chances to equalize the score during the first inning, Pella Christian lost the game by leaving nine baserunners stranded. The Eagles reversed the trend in the nightcap, scoring five runs in the opening two innings before securing the victory with single runs in the fifth and sixth. With a combined 5-7 at the plate, two RBIs, and one run scored, Chloe Snyder led the offense in both games. In the first inning, Laurel Roozeboom gave up just one run on two singles and three walks while striking out two, but she lost the entire game. In addition to recording the shutout victory in the nightcap, Maddy Van Zee threw a full game, striking out two batters while allowing just five hits and two walks. The Eagles’ record now stands at 8-14 overall and 4-12 in conference play as a result of the split.
After falling 9-8 in the first game, which took eight innings to decide the result, the Pella Christian baseball team rallied to win the second game 8-5. After the first two innings, the Eagles and Indians were tied at 2-2. However, each team scored six runs in the third through sixth innings and recorded a scoreless seventh to force extra innings, which Oskaloosa won with an RBI sacrifice fly. Pella Christian only fell behind once in the nightcap, as the Indians stormed out to a 1-0 lead after the first inning. The Indians only scored two runs in the fifth and sixth innings, while the Eagles answered with three runs in the second, one in the fourth, three in the fifth, and one in the seventh, allowing P.C. to win 8–5. The doubleheader included multi-hit performances from Brecken Ritzert, Ben Van Wyngarden, and Logan Gallaher, with Gallaher going 2-4 with an RBI in the opening game. In the second game, Ritzert went 2-5 with two RBIs and a run scored, while Van Wyngarden went 2-2 with three runs scored and a walk. Blake Gallaher lost the first game despite only giving up one run on two hits and two walks while striking out two in two relief innings. After striking out 12 batters in five innings and giving up just one earned run on two hits and two walks, Grant Kelderman won the game in his dominant start in game two. The split put Pella Christian at 7-19 overall and 2-14 in the conference.
Tonight marks the return of both Eagles summer sports teams to the road at PCM. The baseball game starts at 7:30 p.m., while the softball game starts at 7:15 p.m.
