The Pella baseball team continues to perform well at the plate, racking up 15 hits in a roller-coaster 16-13 win Thursday night at home against Saydel.

The Eagles put Pella in a deep hole, jumping out to a 7-0 lead in the first inning and were up 9-3 through two frames. The Little Dutch exploded for nine runs in the fourth inning, though, to take a 12-10 lead. However, they would have to overcome a deficit one more time to earn the victory in a long game under hot and muggy conditions.

Lead-off batter Trevor Wood paced the Pella offense, going 3-for-3 at the plate with two RBIs, a run scored, a walk and a sacrifice hit. Ryan Lanke also had two RBIs while scoring twice in a 3-for-4 performance that included a double and a walk. Schyler Kane also put himself in the two RBI club, going 2-for-3 and scoring twice.

The Little Dutch had to use three pitchers on the night, as Paul Anderson, Lanke and Brett Kingery scattered a combined 14 hits for Saydel. Pella’s defense made it slightly harder on themselves by committing five errors; compared to two for the Eagles.

The non-conference victory improves the Pella baseball team to 14-13 overall and 10-8 in the Little Hawkeye Conference, with a Varsity doubleheader at Knoxville Friday night. The second game of the double-dip will be broadcast live on 1320 AM and streamed live at kniakrls.com.