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Alex Brockpahler earns first Lake & Pine Win!!!
May 31, 2009 - 08:00 PM --
The Sebeka High School baseball team was bumped from the Sub-Section tournament much earlier than they would have preferred, but that made Alex Brockpahler available for the Gnats rotation this weekend.
The Gnats traveled to Verndale to take on the Bison in a Lake & Pine South showdown. Alex Brockpahler frustrated the Bison hitters all day on his way to his first win in his Lake & Pine career. Alex allowed 2 runs through 8 innings, while surrendering only 3 hits and 2 walks, and striking out 9 Bison. Alex’s dominating performance was good enough to lead the Gnats to a 9-2 win. Congratulations Alex on your first Lake & Pine win.
The Gnats offense surged for 11 hits, 6 walks, and 4 hit batters. The Gnats had solid offensive production across the board with each spot in the lineup reaching base safely at least once.
Another pleasant surprise was the return of Gnats veteran pitcher Ryan Tuorila returning to the mound for the first time in years. RT pitched a scoreless 9th while surrendering one hit and striking out the other 3 batters that he faced to seal up the win for the Gnats.
The Gnats are home at Stigman Field this weekend on Saturday 6/6 against Staples and Royalton, and on Sunday 6/7 against Grand Rapids. The Gnats are now 8-4 overall, and 5-1 in the Lake and Pine. Come out to the ballpark and catch a game and cheer on the Gnats as they defend their Lake & Pine South Championship. GO GNATS!!!
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Gnats sweep Royals in double dip!!
May 26, 2009 --
The Nimrod Gnats upped their record to 6-2 with a 3-2 and 8-7 wins over the Royals from Roseau. The 1st game a a pitchers duel, with Ben Bestland and Jake Brockpahler holding the visiting Royals to 3 hits while striking out 11. The Gnats put together a couple hits and a couple walks to score 2 in the 5th and then got the game winner in the bottom of the 9th on a passed ball. In the night cap, the Gnats came from behind with 3 runs in the 7th for a 8-7 victory.
Nimrod will have a busy weekend playing Fort Ripley on Friday, Sebeka and the Cold Spring Silver Springers on Saturday all at home. Then on Sunday travel to Verndale to take on the Bison.
Hope to see you at the ball park!!!
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Season Opener Postponed
April 26, 2009 --
The start of the Lake and Pine baseball season was put on hold for the Gnats. Nimrod traveled to Red Eye only to have rain and cold weather result in the game being postponed to a later date.
The Gnats will now open the season against the Sebeka Stingers this Sunday (5/3/09) at 1:30. The Gnats will have their home opener at Stigman field next Saturday (5/9/09) when they host the Midway Snurdbirds and the Bemidji Mudcats.
Come out and enjoy the beautiful weather and a baseball game. Admission is $3 for adults and $1 for students. Come cheer on the Gnats and check out the new Gnats apparel. If you are interested in any of the Gnats gear, talk to Aaron Funk for prices and ordering information.
With the new teams in each division, we look for some battles for the league crown in each side. Best of luck to all the Lake and Pine teams in their 2009 campaign. GO GNATS!!!
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NIMROD GNATS BASEBALL
Welcome to the home of the Nimrod Gnats. The Gnats have been a perrenial power in the Lake and Pine as a member of the South Division. Nimrod has won numerous regular season and playoff championships in the league.
The town of Nimrod is located on the Crow Wing River just 13 miles from Sebeka. Driving towards Nimrod on Hwy. 227 you will come around a curve and see a small church and a sign saying NIMROD POP. 75. Then you'll see a few houses, a gas station, a bar, and then if you cross the river you'll have missed our little town.
Over the years the Gnats roster has mostly been made up of players that played their high school ball for Sebeka, Menahga, Staples-Motley, and Verndale. Gnats players have also played at a variety of colleges. South Dakota State University, University of Minnesota, Southwest Minnesota State- Marshall, and Central Lakes College in Brainerd to name a few.
The baseball field in Nimrod, Stigman Field, is named after the Stigman family. One of the boys in that family, Dick Stigman, was a standout pitcher in townteam and high school baseball. He went on to pitch in the Major Leagues for the Minnesota Twins, Cleveland Indians, and Boston Red Sox. He was selected to pitch in the 1960 All-Star Game during his rookie season. He was also a member of the 1965 American League Champion Minnesota Twins. Dick Stigman also holds the Major League record for most consecutive starts without a decision (10).
There have been a lot of changes with the team over the past 15 years. The field was dedicated and named, a grandstand was built, a grass infield installed, a new backstop, an electronic scoreboard, as well as a new fence. The field alone is a huge change from the skin's infield and snowfence that it used to be. The team also became the Nimrod Gnats (formerly the Nimrod Rangers) and the colors became Maroon and Gold. The Gnats have been to the State Tournament 3 times in the past 10 seasons(1998, 2001, 2002).
Every year since the 1979 centennial celebration Nimrod has annually had the Nimrod Jubilee Days celebration. There are fireworks, a parade, a 5K and 10K race, a slowpitch softball tournament, street dance, the Nimrod Mud Run, a mud volleyball tournament, and the Nimrod Bull Bash. If you don't have plans for Labor Day, swing into Nimrod for a great smalltown celebration as Nimrod transforms from a town of 75 people, into over 1000.
If you are traveling through Nimrod this summer, swing in and take in a game. Then stop into J&J's Bar and Grill for a cold drink and a burger basket. J&J's is conveniently located right in front of the ballfield in the middle of town. You can also go for a swim in the Crow Wing River down at the bridge. Hopefully you will get a chance to come to a few games this summer, or if you've never been to Nimrod, we hope that you pay us a visit in 2009.
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League Changes for 2009 Season!!
January 28, 2009 - 10:00 PM --
The first Lake & Pine League meeting was held tonight and Aaron Funk was named the new South Division President. A variety of other changes also took place. First off, each team will play the other teams in their own division twice, and will only play the teams from the other half of the league once.
The Bagley Thundercats also joined the league, and Lakes Area will now be playing out of Nisswa. The leagues were also realigned based on the geographical location of the home field of each team. Although it will be strange for the Gnats to no longer battle against Red Eye and Huntersville for a South Division title, the changes should make for interesting chases for division titles in 2009. This is how the Lake and Pine divisions will look for the 2009 Season.
NORTH- Bagley, Huntersville, Wolf Lake, Midway, Red Eye
SOUTH- Sebeka, Nimrod, Verndale, Staples, Nisswa
A few other details were specified for the playoff system as well. At the end of the regular season, only the top four teams in each division will advance to the league playoffs. The regular season champion will have an automatic bid into the Region tournament. The league playoff will still occur in order to determine whether teams advance to Regions as the League Champion, Runner-Up, or Wild Card. Diamond was approved by the State as the official baseball again. Over the past 5 years the official baseball of the state has been Diamond, Pro Nine, Rawlings, and now is back to Diamond. Other technicalities were approved such as tiebreakers for the regular season standings, who supplies umpires, and a few other things.
Although fans won’t be seeing the same matchups and division titles chases as normal, there is no doubt that these new matchups will provide some new rivalries and a lot of entertainment for the summer of 2009. The first league games will be the last Sunday in April, so be sure to mark your calendars and get ready for the best show of the summer, Lake and Pine Baseball. Keep logging onto www.leaguelineup.com/gnats for more news about the 2009 Amateur Baseball Season as well as other local sports information and highlights.
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Trevor Ness joins 100 Point Club
January 21, 2009 - 07:00 PM --
Trevor Ness solidified his place in Wadena hockey history by becoming only the 13th player to score 100 points in his high school hockey career for the Wolverines.
We have been closely following this story, and Trevor broke into the 100 point club in style, scoring 5 points against Walker-Hackensack-Akeley in a 12-0 thumping of the Wolves.
Joey Osborn of Sebeka also provided some offense scoring 3 goals for the hat trick on the evening.
With his performance against the Wolves, Ness also continues to climb the rankings of the scoring leaders for the state. With his 5 point explosion he jumped to 7th in the entire state in scoring.
The Wolverines travel to Faribault for a game on Friday, and then Saturday travel further down the road to Marshall.
Congratulations to Trevor and his family on reaching this milestone in his career. Best of luck to Trevor and the rest of the Wolverines as they come down the home stretch of the regular season and into the playoffs.
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Ness nears 100th Career Point
January 20, 2009 - 01:00 PM --
Trevor Ness (6) scored 3 points in his last game and is now sitting on 99 points for his career. The 5'9'' Forward will likely break into the 100 point club in their next game against Walker-Hackensack-Akeley tonight. Trevor will become just the 13th player in Wadena hockey history to join that group.
Trevor is leading the Wolverines in scoring this season with 38 points, and is 9th in the entire state for scoring. Other notable scorers for the Wolverines are Brandon Wing- 24, Joey Osborn- 16, Dylan Carlisle- 15, Colter Pettite- 12, Taylor Bienusa- 11. The Wolverines next game is tonight against Walker, and then they travel to Faribault and Marshall for games this Friday and Saturday.
Right now the Wolverines are 9-5-1, and are winners of 8 of their last 11 games. The picture for this article was provided courtesy of Sherri Osborn. Wolverines Defenseman, Joey Osborn (12) plays summer ball for the Sebeka Stingers, and his brother Chris Osborn has been drafted by the Gnats twice for the Region Tournament as a catcher for the Red Eye Countryboys.
Keep checking the site for more details and stats on this story.
If you have any stories or items you think should be on the website, please send the information to Stephen Funk. The 2009 Season is quickly approaching. GO GNATS!!!
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Sebeka Trojans Boys Basketball heads to the State Tourney!
March 23, 2009 - 01:00 PM --
The Sebeka Boys Basketball Team (24-3) is heading to State for the first time in school history.
Saturday night the Trojans were heading to SCSU in search of cutting down the twine, and even though the tightwads at Halenbeck Hall denined that, Sebeka handled Isle 70-42 to punch their ticket to State.
Now they will play 2 times defending State Champs Ellsworth on March 26, 5:00pm @ Williams Arena. (Hopefully "The U" can afford an extra net.)
Good Luck to the Trojans and Gnats ( Alex Brockpahler, Brenen Brockpahler, and Paul Funk) Also, Good Luck to a former Gnat, Head Coach Jon Lillquist.
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Trojans Travel to Bertha for huge Conference Game
January 16, 2009 - 02:00 PM --
The 6-1 Sebeka Trojans take on the 10-0 Bertha-Hewitt Bears in a game that has huge conference title implications. The Trojans only loss came in the Foley Holiday Tournament where they lost to Foley who is a 2A school after leading most of the game. The Trojans refocused after that loss and posted a 72-52 victory over 3A Becker. After the break Sebeka returned to the conference schedule beating the Verndale Pirates 93-37 on their own court. They also posted an 84-38 victory over Henning earlier this week.
The Bears are the defending conference champions and as Sebeka Head Coach Jon Lillquist said, "they are the conference champions until someone else knocks them off." Sebeka offers a very well rounded attack with a deep bench and a variety of players that can run the floor. The Gnats centerfielder Alex Brockpahler is one of the starters for the Trojans and has been one of the keys to their success with his ability to create turnovers, attack the basket, and dish out assists. The JV and Varsity are both fun to watch with a lot of talent on the two squads. The other Gnats players on those teams are Brenen Brockpahler, Paul Funk, and Travis Titcomb. The Head Coach, Jon Lillquist, is a former player and manager for the Gnats.
If you're not busy tonight, the drive to Bertha and price of admission will definately be worth your money to see these two conference heavyweights battle. The Trojans are currently ranked 9th in the state, and the Bears are ranked 5th. It's not that often that talent like this comes together in these small towns, so be sure to go and root on the Trojans.
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Ness closes in on 100 Career Points
January 16, 2009 - 02:00 PM --
The 5'9'' Forward for the Wolverines is only 4 points away from the 100 point club. Only 12 other players have ever reached that platform in Wadena hockey history. Trevor Ness (6) will hopefully be joining that group over the next couple of games.
Right now the Wolverines are 8-5, and are winners of 7 of their last 9 games. Another player from the area in the picture is Joey Osborn (12). Joey plays summer ball for the Sebeka Stingers, and his brother Chris Osborn has been drafted by the Gnats twice for the Region Tournament as a catcher for the Red Eye Countryboys.
Keep checking the site for more details and stats on this story.
If you have any stories or items you think should be on the website, please send the information to Stephen Funk. The 2009 Season is quickly approaching. GO GNATS!!!
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Gnats 2008 Season Recap
December 5, 2008 - 04:00 PM --
The 2008 season for the Gnats saw a lot of new things, but ended with the same result. The Gnats dropped 2 games in the Region Tournament to end the 2008 season.
Although the Gnats exited Regions earlier than they would like, there were still many bright spots in the 2008 season. Nimrod and Huntersville have some of the best fan following in the league, The Gnats and Horseflies were both in the Region tournament this year allowing their fans to wear their maroon or orange shirts a little longer into the summer.
The Gnats played pretty good baseball in the second half of the season and through the playoffs. Nimrod was once again the Lake & Pine South regular season and playoff champion. The Gnats all climbed aboard the shoulders of Adam Johnson in the league championship game as #14 went the distance and belted 2 homeruns in the victory.
The Gnats were missing a couple starters off the region roster as starting shortstop Alex Jansson and starting catcher Trevor Ness were both helping the Staples Legion team to a 3rd place finish at the State Tourney. The Gnats very own Trevor Ness was named MVP of the Division 2 State Legion Tournament.
Along with Trevor and Alex, the Gnats had a few other new faces during the 2008 campaign for another league title. Dylan Shequen logged a few innings at first base and behind the plate. Doug Shequen proved to be a clutch pinch hitter and relief pitcher during the course of the season. He also coached the Gnats and helped to manage the young talent of the team. Jake Sumner, a graduate of Menahga High School, also played a key role in the success of the Gnats filling in wherever needed in the field, and logging some huge innings on the mound. Taylor Pederson also suited up for the first time for the Gnats during the 2008 season. It was nice to see the son of Jeff Pederson wearing the Gnats colors as JEFFCO Construction has been a long standing supporter of the Gnats. Justin Kinnunen and Chris Bruhn both saw limited action during the 2008 season but showed a great deal of potential in their appearances.
The Gnats look forward to more success in the 2009 season. Manager Doug Shequen's expecations are high for the young Gnats. There is a lot of young talent on the team, and it will be fun to see that talent continue to develop. The Gnats will return more experience to the diamond, and many are looking forward to watching the young Gnats play their games during the high school season at Sebeka and Staples.
The Gnats also hosted the 2008 Nimrod Invite. It rained every day of the tournament, but everyone pulled together to keep the field looking great. People were amazed that we got all the games in that weekend, and we couldn't have got through the weekend let alone even think of having a tourney without the help from the community. J&J's Bar and Grill offered a bunch of promotions and kept people well fed and made sure that there were plenty of cold ones to go around.
A big thank you goes out to everyone that has helped out the team in the past as well as those who plan to be involved in the future. With Christmas right around the corner, if you need a quick and cool gift idea, contact Aaron Funk about some Nimrod Gnats apparel that is still in stock.
So from the Gnats to you and all of yours, Merry Christmas!!
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Gnats Catcher Trevor Ness leads Wolverines on the Ice
December 15, 2008 - 10:00 PM --
Everyone who has seen Trevor Ness behind the plate for the Gnats knows that he is a great baseball player. Lots of people don't know that Trevor is also a great hockey player.
Wadena traveled north to Hallock and was able to get in a game on December 13th before the blizzard hit. Trevor wears #6 for the Wolverines, and led them to a 4-1 victory over Kittson County Central. Trevor plays center for Wadena and scored 2 goals in the game. Brandon Wing, also from Staples High School scored the other 2 goals.
Although the Wolverines look to improve upon their 2-3 record, Trevor is having a pretty solid season as far as the stats line shows. He has accumulated 9 points over 5 games. If Ness can continue his 2 points per game average he will become only the 13th person in Wadena Hockey history to reach the prestigious 100 point club during his career.
The Wolverines move on to play Prairie Center on Tuesday, and then travel to Park Rapids for a game on Friday night. If you don't have any other plans, come out and root on Trevor and the Wolverines as they look to improve on their 2-3 record. Best of luck to Trevor and the Wolverines and to all Gnats players during their winter sports.
Continue to read on the Gnats website as more stories and updates will be added over the offseason. If you have any stories about baseball, Gnats players, Nimrod, or anything that you would like to see on this site, please direct comments and information to stephenfunk7@hotmail.com.
Merry Christmas!!
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SouthPaw Sound- DJ and Lighting
Click here to download
April 16, 2008 - 10:00 PM --
For all of your DJ and Lighting Needs!!! Whether it be for a high school dance, prom, wedding reception, you name it, SouthPaw Sound has you covered.
- 4 Vocopro Wireless Microphones
- 10 Foot Truss Light Stand
- 2 Dual 15inch Peavy Speakers
- Yamaha Powered Mixer
- Chauvet Police Beacon
- Chauvet Blacklight
- 2 Strobes
- 1 Laser Wizard
- Chauvet Fog Machine
- Chauvet Line Dancer
- 13,000 Songs!!!
Anybody can play some music, but SouthPaw Sound will play the right songs to get your guests out on the dance floor and keep them there. Your satisfaction is our #1 priority.
SouthPaw Sound also provides PA assistance at events, as well as announcing at events such as the Region 14C tournament. Nobody beats our rates.
If you are interested in the services of SouthPaw Sound, please direct questions to Stephen Funk at 218-639-2725 funkx050@umn.edu. Call today to learn about special discounts and promotions.
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Gnats Players bring home hardware from UMC
December 5, 2008 - 04:00 PM --
Gnats players Paul Funk and Travis Titcomb brought home 2nd place honors in the Forestry contest at Ag Activities Day on December 5 at UMC. Paul was 5th individual while his sister Maria led the team and brought home top individual honors, Travis rounded out the team score bringing them 2nd place honors.
Alex Brockpahler is also on the team, and will be competing in the State contest this spring. Alex was unable to attend the contest in UMC as he was preparing for the Trojans first game of the 2008-2009 basketball season. The Trojans return a lot of talent off of last years team and opened the season with a win.
This site is going to stay a lot more up to date. If you have any news items you want on the site, email them to Stephen Funk at stephenfunk7@hotmail.com. I plan to get stats updated and keep a few news items on here about Gnats players, fans, and sponsors. The more that use it, the more useful it will be. Use the message board to talk baseball, or Gnats, or Nimrod, whatever it might be. Just make sure we get people using the site more.
GO GNATS!!!!!
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