Apr. 11—BEMIDJI — A 3-2 comeback win over the reigning kings of Section 8-4A wasn't enough satisfaction for the Bemidji High School baseball team.
Following a one-run win over St. Cloud, a game in which they trailed 1-0 in the sixth inning, the Lumberjacks lined up on the third base line in the outfield for wind sprints.
Head coach Jim Grimm said they were for "mental mistakes."
"It's not a punishment," Grimm said. "It's to help them remember so they can put their hand on the mistake. If it's a mental mistake, that's something we already know but didn't do. We talk about it and run a sprint, and it's a way for them to put their hand on it and get rid of it."
Mental errors were evident for both teams in a season-opening contest.
Leading 1-0, the Crush squandered a leadoff double, stranding Adam Eiynck at third base in the top of the second inning.
In the bottom of the third, the Jacks were doubled up on a line drive. Orion Preisler speared a hard-hit ball off of Jack Lundquist's bat, then threw out Lawson Berg at first base after he didn't tag up.
St. Cloud was also caught stealing after a batter interfered with Gunner Ganske's throw to second base from home plate.
While the bats were quiet, Bemidji's fielders were stout to stay within reach of tying the game or taking the lead. Drew Lieser lined a ball to left field to Dylan Lundin, who doubled up Max Kiffmeyer at first base to end the top of the fifth inning.
The Lumberjacks used the momentum to tie the game in the bottom of the fifth. Reece Dokken hit a one-out triple before Lundin drove him home with a ground ball to second base. Dokken beat the throw home to make it 1-1.
"We were woefully inadequate at getting extra-base hits last year," Grimm said. "Reece is a cat that can do it. I think if that ball would've been hit in July, it's out of here."
Lundin didn't get past third base as Kobe Brown lined out to end the inning. Brown, however, was off the hook for the loss on the mound.
He pitched five innings and allowed one earned run on five hits with two walks and two strikeouts. His only blemish came in the game's third at-bat.
Jackson Sheetz laced a leadoff double in the top of the first inning before Kiffmeyer put runners on second and third. While Kiffmeyer was caught stealing in the next at-bat, Sheetz wasn't. He scored on an RBI single from Lieser to give St. Cloud a 1-0 lead.
Brown got out of the bases-loaded jam with a strikeout.
"We dodged a major bullet there," Grimm said. "Last year, if Kobe's (first pitch) was a strike, he'd be fine. If it wasn't, we had to be cautious. So today, he throws a ball to the first batter. Are we going to have this again? But you know what, he said this ain't happening this year. It's good for him."
After the fifth inning, Brown handed the ball to Lundquist. He allowed one unearned run on one hit in two innings to help BHS move to 1-0 to start the season.
"They were big for us," Ganske said of the BHS pitching. "We had a few defensive mistakes out there, but they kept us in it and threw strikes. Even when they were struggling, they stayed confident.
"We made some nice plays defensively at the end, and Jack stayed in it. He kept throwing strikes and kept throwing his off-speed at them."
Lundquist needed some run support.
After Dokken's run tied the game in the bottom of the fifth, Ganske gave the Jacks their first lead with an RBI single. Ganske drove in Lundquist from third with a one-out line drive to center field.
He later scored on an error to make it 3-1.
"It was just me knowing I'm better than this guy," ...
