Playing with the best of them in a loaded Class 4A Little Hawkeye Conference, the Pella Christian softball team fought tooth and nail with a cavalcade of ranked and state-tournament teams this season. Their pitching was fortified from their three-girl rotation the last few seasons by having former Lynnville-Sully Hawk, Emma Schnell, toe the rubber for the Eagles. Unfortunately, down the stretch, some nagging injuries to Schnell, centerfielder Abby Pleima, and others did not have the Eagles at 100% entering the postseason, which allowed Van Meter to upset them in the quarterfinals of the Class 2A regional tournament. Despite this, Coach Karen Harrill feels the team is absolutely headed in the right direction. Good news for PC: the vast majority of players on this year’s team were sophomores and younger, and should really make some noise next year with the experience they’ve picked up the last two seasons.