The fortunes on the diamond went opposite ways in four close games for the summer teams of Pella; the Dutch softball team swept Grinnell 5-4 and 8-7 in a pair of walk-off wins, while the baseball team fell 3-1 and 6-3, with game two heard live on the KRLS3 stream.

Pella tried to topple the #2 in 3A baseball Tigers, but seven combined errors between the two games were ultimately the difference. In game two, Pella led 3-2 after rallying in the 3rd and 4th innings from an early 2-0 deficit. But the Dutch would commit three errors in the next three innings that led to Tigers runs, including a trio of Grinnell runners scoring to take the lead in the 7th. Pella’s Keegan Hansen reached base all four times in game two and Tate Weesner struck out nine in six-plus innings during his first conference start on the mound in 2022.

A pair of up-and-down games gave the Pella softball team its first conference doubleheader sweep since 2019 and snapped a six-game losing streak. In game one, a 4-0 Pella lead turned into a tie, only for a walk-off winner to propel the Dutch into game two, where Ava Curry lead off with a home run and Pella earned an extra innings victory after giving up a 7-4 lead in the top of the 7th.

Pella’s baseball team drops to 9-7 overall and 3-5 in the Little Hawkeye Conference, while the softball team improves to 7-9 and 3-4 against league competition. Both return to action Monday against Pella Christian; both games can be heard on 92.1 KRLS (softball) and the KRLS3 stream (baseball), and viewed on Pella Dutch Live.