Bemidji hangs tough with Burnsville as comeback push falls short

May 11—BEMIDJI — Teams from Burnsville High School don't find themselves in Bemidji that often. Saturday was an exception to the norm.

The Blaze made the trip up north for a Saturday matinee against the Lumberjacks. Burnsville staved off Bemidji's comeback push in the late innings, picking up a 6-4 win.

For the Jacks, Saturday was about exposure, not only against an atypical opponent but also the pressure-packed situations that come with competing in a game that goes down to the wire at home.

"When you look at a stud on a team, that person has been in those (high-pressure) situations before," Bemidji head coach Brad Takkunen said. "The more we can get into those situations, the better we're going to be. When you look at a game where we don't want to be super comfortable losing close, at the same time, the goal was to compete, which we did."

Trailing 6-2 heading into the bottom of the sixth inning, the Lumberjacks sliced their deficit in half. Emilie Jessen brought a run in with a sacrifice fly before Ridley Hadrava made it 6-4 with an RBI single. The Lumberjacks brought the tying run to the plate in the bottom of the seventh inning. Audrey Neadeau drew a one-out walk, setting the table for the heart of Bemidji's batting order.

Burnsville's Miley LaMotte danced around any potential trouble by inducing a flyout from Aleah Shogren and striking out Olivia Birt to end the game.

Despite the loss, Takkunen was encouraged with his team's resiliency cut into a late four-run hole.

"It's one of those things where we're trying to focus on our identity," Takkunen said. "Do we fold or not; do we compete or not? They definitely kept competing. The biggest message from today was to enjoy what we're doing here. Have some fun. Don't put so much pressure on us. We're not trying to win the World Series. We're playing a game, so have some fun playing."

Bemdiji fell behind 1-0 in the top of the first inning on a two-out RBI single from Brooke Gerber. The Jacks got the run back when Birt reached first on an error, scoring Sammy Nistler.

"We just wanted to try to relax," Takkunen said. "Relax and have fun. That was our main focus, and it seemed like they were much more loose at home. ... Some teams tighten up (at home), but we seem to loosen up. Regardless, it's really about trying to respond when you get a chance. When you get pitches to hit, hopefully, you put the bat on the ball."

The Blaze added three more runs by the end of the third inning. Alexandra Gerber hit an RBI double in the second before Kathryn Dam's sacrifice fly in the fourth inning made it 4-1.

Hadrava made it 4-2 in the bottom of the fourth with a two-out, run-scoring single. Hadrava with 2 for 3 in three plate appearances. She was the lone Lumberjack to record multiple hits.

"I was really happy with how we seemed to relax in a lot of ways," Takkunen said. "We saw some kids hit the ball hard, who maybe haven't hit the ball hard in a while. Hopefully, that will get us rolling a little bit."

Trailing 6-2 in the top of the sixth inning, Jordan Pemberton showcased her defensive talents. She chased down a ball in the gap to prevent a double before making a diving catch in the next at-bat.

"(Those catches) definitely kept us within striking distance," Takkunen said. "The one that was hit to the gap was hit real hard. She made a spectacular catch. When she had to lay out the next play, that was probably the most spectacular catch I've seen in a long time. That ball was going to drop, and Jordan was fully laid out. She looked like Byron Buxton on TV."

Aleah Shogren pitched all seven innings for Bemidji, allowing two earned runs on eight hits and four walks. She struck out four batters. Gracie Johnson picked up the win for Burnsville, while LaMotte notched the save. Bemidji dropped to 3-11 this season, while the Blaze improved to 3-14.

"They play literally the best teams in the state in their own section," Takkunen said of Burnsville. "They have three of the top teams, including the top team, in their section, and they compete with them. Regardless if it's Burnsville or whoever, I'm happy with how we kept competing the whole game."

Burnsville 6, Bemidji 4

BRN 121 120 0 — 6-8-2

BHS 100 102 0 — 4-8-4

WP: Johnson (6 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 9 K)

LP: Shogren (7 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 4 K)

S: LaMotte (1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K)