Bemidji baseball rebounds after walk-off loss, splits doubleheader with Grand Rapids

Bemidji answered a bitter finish with the kind of response coaches want from a team still learning how to win together. After Grand Rapids walked off with the opener, the Lumberjacks steadied themselves and took the second game, 7-4, to leave the doubleheader with a split and a cleaner message about where this group stands.

The first game turned late and then turned fast. Grand Rapids and Bemidji were tied 3-3 heading into the seventh inning before Thunderhawks senior catcher Oliver Spahn drew a bases-loaded walk to end it, handing Bemidji a 4-3 loss. For a roster trying to build consistency, that kind of ending can linger. Instead, Bemidji came back with a firmer answer in the nightcap.

Game 2 belonged to Bemidji’s pitching and one decisive inning. Joe Dick, Ethan Morgan and Jaden Lehmberg covered seven innings as the Lumberjacks held Grand Rapids in check long enough to break the game open. Bemidji scored four runs in the fourth inning and never let the Thunderhawks back into it, finishing the day with a 7-4 victory on Friday, April 24.

The split mattered because it came after a setback that could have snowballed. High school baseball often comes down to how a team absorbs one bad inning or one walk-off defeat, then gets back to business an hour later. Bemidji did that. The opener was frustrating; the response was competitive and controlled.

That response also fit the bigger picture for a Bemidji team that has spent April showing it can play with momentum. MaxPreps listed the Lumberjacks at No. 33 in Minnesota and No. 5 in Minnesota Division AAA on April 27, with JD Wood hitting .500, Kash Rasmus carrying a .600 on-base percentage, Brennen Brower stealing two bases and Lawson Berg posting a 0.91 ERA. Earlier wins over Thief River Falls, 10-0, and Rock Ridge, 2-1, already suggested the Lumberjacks were carrying real form into the Grand Rapids series.

The split also carried some historical weight. Bemidji had been swept in a Grand Rapids doubleheader in 2024, including another walk-off loss in the opener at Bob Streetar Field. This time, the Lumberjacks left Grand Rapids with one comeback already in hand and no sweep hanging over them, a small but meaningful marker for a team trying to prove it belongs in the upper tier of Minnesota baseball.