Perham sophomore Avaeh Grismer hits first career home run against Hawley

Avaeh Grismer gave Perham’s softball team a jolt against Hawley by hitting the first home run of her high school career, a milestone that stood out even in a tough matchup with the Nuggets. The sophomore’s shot gave the Yellowjackets a personal breakthrough to build on as the spring season continued in Otter Tail County.

For Perham, the homer mattered because it came from a player in the middle of the program’s growth. The Yellowjackets entered 2026 with nine returning players who had starting varsity experience, but head coach Kevin Feldt has said the group is still young and keeps learning with every game. Grismer’s first career home run fit that profile, showing how a developing roster can still produce individual moments that change the tone of a day.

Hawley carried extra weight on the schedule because Feldt identified the Nuggets and Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton as the Heart O’ Lakes Conference and Section 8AA favorites. That made the April 16 doubleheader at Hawley’s Rodeo Grounds more than just another date on the calendar. Perham had gone 7-9 in the Heart O’ Lakes Conference last season, so every test against a top contender offered a clear measure of how far the Yellowjackets had come and how much work remained.

The timing also mattered. Perham’s softball schedule listed the Hawley doubleheader for Thursday, April 16, 2026, with games set for 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. at the Rodeo Grounds in Hawley. Around the same time, Perham was listed at 1-0 on StribVarsity’s team page, a sign that the Yellowjackets were still early in the season and sorting out roles while looking for production from a lineup with returning varsity experience.

Grismer’s homer gave that process a concrete milestone. In a sport where confidence often builds one at-bat at a time, a first career home run can become the kind of moment a young player carries for the rest of the season. For Perham, it was the kind of bright spot that can matter in a matchup against a conference favorite, especially for a team trying to turn its returning experience into results. The Yellowjackets also had a stronger showing elsewhere against Hawley that day, with Perham’s baseball team beating the Nuggets 17-1 in Game 1 of a doubleheader at Tuffy Stadium, underscoring how much of the spring conversation in Perham ran through one opponent.