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Welcome to the home of the
NIMROD GNATS
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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!!!
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.
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.
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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