The Pella Christian baseball team split their two games Saturday at the Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont Tournament to cap off a busy week. The Eagles first used a big late-inning comeback to down North Mahaska 18-10, before dropping the second game against Moravia 3-2.

In the first game of the tourney, Pella Christian jumped out to a 4-2 advantage after the first three innings, but North Mahaska battled back to score eight of the next nine runs to take a 10-5 lead going into the bottom of the sixth. In what became the Eagles’ final at-bats, P.C. sent 18 hitters to the plate and scored 13 runs on seven hits, six walks, and two errors. Josiah Vink led the Pella Christian offense in the high scoring affair, going 3-5 with two RBIs and a run scored. Brecken Ritzert scored five of the Eagles’ 18 runs, reaching base safely on three walks and two Warhawks errors. Eliot Menninga and Grant Kelderman added six of the 12 runs batted in, combining to go 3-7 at the plate and scoring five runs. Connor Van Zee struck out two in recording the game one victory, pitching 2.1 innings in relief while allowing just three unearned runs on two hits.

Pella Christian again took the early lead in the championship game against Moravia, as Van Zee singled home Menninga in the bottom of the first inning. Menninga came around to score again in the bottom of the third to push the Eagles’ advantage to 2-0, after drawing a walk, stealing second base, advancing to third on a wild pitch, and coming home on a Mohawks error. From there the Pella Christian offense ran dry, while Moravia plated two fourth inning runs and a sixth inning run to win the game and tournament. Garrett Wielard got the start on the mound in game two and struck out one in taking a no-decision, while allowing just one earned run on six hits and a walk. Finn Spronk suffered the loss in 2.2 innings of relief, striking out one while giving up just one unearned run on two hits and a walk.

Pella Christian’s record moved to 3-10 overall with Saturday’s results, and they will return to Little Hawkeye Conference action with the Eagles softball team Monday night to host Oskaloosa. The baseball game is slated to start at 7 pm, while softball will begin shortly thereafter at 7:15 pm.