The schools and towns are just over ten miles apart but the baseball teams have not played each other since 2014. That will change Monday night when Knoxville and Pella meet up on the baseball diamond for the class three-A District title game.
The Panthers outlasted Chariton five/two on Friday night while the Little Dutch pulled away from Newton to win six/nothing also on Friday. Both teams are coming off winning their respective conference titles this season…Knoxville the South Central and Pella the Little Hawkeye. That is where the similarities likely end as Pella is the number one ranked team in class three-A while Knoxville is 19-and-17. One thing the Panthers will have to deal with is the Little Dutch pitching. Likely Pella starter Tyler Hillman has a point-98 E-R-A with 57 strikeouts on the season while Knoxville will counter with Blake McClung…who is five-and-two on the season with a three-point-five/three E-R-A. Panthers Coach Joel Johnson tells KNIA/KRLS Sports in a one-shot winner take all format that is the postseason…he is telling his guys to enjoy the moment. You can hear the game live on KNIA and KRLS starting at six-45 with the pregame shows and seven with the first pitch.