The Class 2A State Baseball Tournament begins today at Merchants Park in Carroll and eighth-seeded Pella Christian kicks off the first of four games today against top-seeded Beckman Catholic.

The Eagles outscored their opponents 26-4 in the three postseason games ahead of State, with dominant pitching leading the way. In 13.2 innings pitched this postseason, Corbin Westerkamp has allowed just one run and three hits, while striking out 26. Meanwhile, Lincoln Vander Molen recorded eight strikeouts and gave up just two earned runs on four hits in 8.1 innings of relief.

The Trailblazers dominated their three substate games, defeating three of their conference opponents by a combined score of 29-3. While limiting their opposition to just three runs, Beckman allowed 14 hits over the three postseason games leading into State. The Trailblazers made the most of the opportunities, posting 21 hits and just five extra base hits en route to being the highest ranked team to make it to Carroll. Pella Christian Head Coach Chris Fynaardt knows his squad faces a tough challenge today, but says they are ready for a good game.

“We know they’re a great team. They’ve got great tradition. I think they’ve been to the state tournament something like 19 times, so they’re not gonna back down from anybody. Like you said, they play a great schedule, just like we do. They play a lot of 3A and 4A. So, they’ve seen it all. They’re not going to be surprised by anything we do, I don’t think, but it’d be nice if they were. But yeah, it’s just going to be another good ball game like Van Meter.”

Pella Christian and Beckman Catholic kick-off the Class 2A State Tournament today at 11 a.m., and the game can be heard live on 92.1 KRLS beginning with pregame coverage around 10:45 a.m.