Pella Christian tried to reprise their role as spoiler like they did Tuesday against Interstate-35 on Saturday night against Centerville. The Eagles just couldn’t produce the magic twice as they fell to the Reds 8-4 in the 2A district baseball finals, as heard on 92.1 KRLS.

The Pella Christian offense managed just three hits through the first six frames of play, highlighted by a Corbin Westerkamp triple that resulted in the first run for the Eagles. That run came on the heels of a six-run second inning for Centerville however, meaning Westerkamp’s run made the game 7-1. The Reds scored again in the fifth inning, to make it an 8-1 deficit for the Eagles. In the seventh, Luke Fynaardt’s one-out single and Caleb Belzer’s two-out single allowed Micah DeHaan to start a small rally with a two-RBI double. An error by the Centerville shortstop from the bat of Westerkamp scored DeHaan, pulling Pella Christian within four, but Bennett Spronk would fly out to deep left-center field to end the game. The loss marks the end of the Eagles’ lone senior Kyle Branderhorst’s high school career. Head Coach Braden Shull said that Branderhorst has been a key reason for Pella Christian’s success in recent years.

Pella Christian’s baseball season comes to a close with a record of 11-22.