PCM baseball cruises past Perry

PERRY — Starting off the week on Tuesday, the PCM baseball team played a conference game against the host Bluejays and won 11-2.

The Mustangs improved to 2-0 against Perry this season.

Going into the fifth inning, PCM led 3-1. What followed was seven unanswered runs for the Mustangs, effectively ending the game.

“It was another solid win for us,” PCM head coach Brent Fridley said. “Right now, the top of our lineup is playing very well. And once we get runners on base, we are dangerous. We can run very well.”

Jaden Houser led the way offensively, going 3-for-3 at the plate with two doubles and a single. He also walked twice and stole two bases.

PCM totaled 10 hits to Perry’s six, and Perry batters walked three times to PCM’s eight.

Beyond Houser, Trigg Steenhoek had one RBI single, Kaleb DeVries had a single and a double, Trenner Van Dyke hit a single and Coby DeRaad, Konnor Bell, and Izaac Bagby each hit singles.

The Mustangs had four stolen bases on five attempts, led by Steenhoek with two.

Van Dyke started the game on the mound for PCM, allowing four hits, one walk, and one run. He earned the win. Houser closed the game in the seventh, allowing one hit, one run and two walks.

“The win against Saydel got us back on track,” Kaleb DeVries said. “Then against Perry, we were confident because the first time we played them, it was a run-rule in six innings. Sure enough, our pitching and hitting were both solid, and that got us the win.”

PCM 13, Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont 6

The Mustangs game scheduled for Wednesday got rained out, but they were able to travel to play Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont on June 19.

The result was a 13-6 non-conference win where they outpaced the Rockets 13 hits to 10.

Houser led the way offensively with three hits and three RBIs. Bagby added two hits and four RBIs.

“All season, we have to control what we can control,” Fridley said. “Obviously, this season weather has been a factor in getting some of our games rained out or delayed. However, there’s nothing we can do about that.”

DeVries had one hit, Van Dyke had one hit for an RBI double, DeRaad had two singles to end the hitting efforts for the Mustangs.

However, PCM advanced on 10 walks and three batters were hit by pitches.

After three innings, the score was 5-4 in the Rockets’ favor. In the final four, PCM added nine runs. The Rockets couldn’t hold the pace, only scoring one run in that time.

DeVries started the game on the mound, and got rattled. He gave up two hits, five runs, six walks and committed five errors. He only managed three strikeouts. After 2 2/3 innings, he was pulled so Jensson Hood could finish the game. He gave up seven hits and one run with a 1.31 earned run average and earned the win.

“It was rough for me, but I got through it,” DeVries said. “Our offense was alive so that helped. Jensson came in after me, and we pitched well, which ultimately led us to victory.”

Grand View Christian 15, PCM 2

Ending the week at home, PCM took on the 10-6 Grand View Christian Thunder in a Heart of Iowa Athletic Conference game.

And the end result was a 15-2 win for the Thunder. After three innings, PCM was down 7-0.

The Mustangs got on the board in the fourth, scoring two runs. In the final three, the Thunder tacked on eight runs for the final score of 15-2. Their offensive efforts were aided primarily by Andrew Shannon, who had two hits, three RBIs and one home run.

It was early in the game when DeRaad left the game with a concussion. He was relieved by Konnor Bell, who Fridley has confidence in as a catcher.

“We’ll miss him because his bat has come alive,” Fridley said about DeRaad. “He’s hitting the ball well and he’s a dangerous base runner. However, Konnor can do well at catcher.”

PCM managed five hits. Steenhoek went 3-for-3 with three singles. Houser and Bagby each notched one hit.

On the mound, Carson Hansen started the game and took the loss. He gave up three hits, five walks and seven runs. From there, Shay Burns came in, allowing six hits, three runs and one walk. Steenhoek and Houser also pitched, but they contributed all of 34 total throws.

One bright spot for PCM was their fielding, which was mostly clean. For the game, they posted a .926 fielding percentage with only two errors.

“In the outfield, I feel like we’re in a good place,” Fridley said. “Almost every time a ball is hit to the outfield, it’s an out, especially if it’s a fly ball. We are good from pole to pole.”

PCM (6-8, 5-6 in the conference) faces Pella Christian (5-17) at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday in Prairie City.

It comes after road games against Nevada, West Marshall and South Hamilton. The Mustangs also travel to Roland-Story on Friday.

“The good thing is that next week we have five games in five days,” Fridley said. “It will be a busy week, but we have to stay focused on the opportunities ahead.”