Grand Rapids, bearing a storied baseball tradition, pulled off the first upset of the Class 3A baseball state tournament.
Junior lefthander Easton Sjostrand threw a three-hit shutout as Grand Rapids knocked off No. 2-seeded St. Thomas Academy 5-0 in the quarterfinals at the Mini Met in Jordan. Sjostrand struck out four and walked three in his 80-pitch complete game.
"I really like the way Easton threw today," Grand Rapids coach Bill Kinnunen said. "He's been consistent all year. He's a smart kid."
The Thunderhawks (17-10) provided Sjostrand with all the support he needed in the third inning, scoring twice against the Cadets (18-7). They added three insurance runs in the last inning. Sjostrand capped the scoring with an RBI single in the seventh.
Senior Kyle Henke drove in two runs with a run-scoring single and sacrifice fly. Teammate junior Kyler Miller had two hits and was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
The Thunderhawks are making their 21st state tournament appearance and have won two titles (Class 2A in a two-class system in 1978 and 1984) and finished in the top three 10 times. Most recently, they were the Class 3A runner-up to Mahtomedi in 2021 and finished fourth last season.
Mahtomedi 3, Byron 0: Pitching also came to the forefront in the second game of the Class 3A quarterfinals. Zephyrs sophomore Ethan Felling pitched a three-hit shutout against the Bears.
Felling struck out 12 and walked one while throwing 103 pitches in a complete game.