Hermantown High's softball team came within a run of continuing its postseason last spring. Around town, that kind of ending tends to linger through the winter.
The Hawks finished 12-10 overall and 6-2 in the Lake Superior Conference in 2025, good for second place behind Cloquet, and they pushed deep into the Class 3A, Section 7 tournament before their season ended in a 5-4 elimination-bracket loss to Rock Ridge. It was the kind of tight May finish that often carries into the next year as motivation.
Now Hermantown enters the 2026 season with a roster that returns a large portion of last year’s varsity contributors and a lineup that gained valuable postseason experience.
Last year’s team showed flashes of what the Hawks can be when their offense gets rolling. Hermantown opened the season with a 5-3 loss at Superior but quickly found rhythm, posting decisive wins including 18-0 over Duluth Denfeld, 10-0 at Proctor, and a 20-0 victory over Duluth Marshall.
The Hawks also proved they could handle tournament pressure. After a 4-3 loss to Chisago Lakes dropped them into the elimination bracket of the Section 7 tournament, Hermantown responded with an 8-3 win over North Branch, followed by a 16-3 semifinal victory against Grand Rapids. The season ultimately ended one game later in the one-run loss to Rock Ridge.
The pitching staff will again be central to Hermantown’s outlook.
Returnee Avery Beranek was the team's No. 1 pitcher last year. Young talent is also part of the equation with Abigail Noldin, who contributed as an eighth grader and saw time across multiple positions, including pitching.
Hermantown also returns several versatile players who gained varsity experience a year ago. Rylee Knight, Evie Nelson, Bryden Giesen, Jillian Ritsche and Carlin Carlson are among the returning underclassmen who should help form the backbone of the lineup.
Graduation did take away several veterans, including catcher Mikayla Sweeney, infielders Claire Kaups and Isabella Wojtysiak, and outfielders Norah Gunderson, Hope Kohanski, and Ella Schulz. Replacing that experience will be one of the Hawks’ early challenges.
Hermantown proved last season it could compete with the top teams in the region. The Hawks finished just behind Cloquet (17-6 overall, 7-0 LSC) in the conference standings and split key stretches of the schedule against other competitive programs.
The Lake Superior Conference again figures to be competitive this spring, with Cloquet, Rock Ridge and Hermantown all expected to contend.
Hermantown opens the 2026 schedule April 7 at Bemidji, followed by another early road test April 10 at St. Anthony Village before the Hawks return home to Rose Road Field on April 13 against Greenway/Nashwauk-Keewatin.
Conference play quickly ramps up. Hermantown hosts Cloquet on April 16, faces Grand Rapids on April 23, and travels to Rock Ridge on May 5 in a rematch of last year’s playoff thriller.
For the Hawks, the memory of that one-run elimination game likely hasn’t faded.
If Hermantown can combine the pitching depth it returns with the experience gained by a young lineup last spring, the program could again find itself playing meaningful softball in late May — this time hoping the final inning turns out differently.