Minnehaha Academy senior Alexander Fedje-Johnson took one swing of the bat and drove a fastball deep to left field at Dick Putz Stadium in St. Cloud. While he knew it was a home run the moment the ball left the bat, he didn’t know he was sparking an unanswered nine-run streak. 

The third-inning blast led Minnehaha Academy to an 11-2 victory over state tournament first-time entrant East Grand Forks in the Class 2A quarterfinals Thursday.

“He’s been sparking our offense the last three years,” Minnehaha Academy coach Scott Glenn said. 

Minehaha’s 11 runs dwarfed the combined run totals in the first two games at Dick Putz Field in St. Cloud. Glenn still doesn’t have the answer for putting up big numbers. 

“It’s not easy to hit a home run here, but he (Johnson) drives us every game,” Glenn said. 

Up in the count 2-1, Johnson was looking for a fastball when he saw one coming on the outside corner. “I was sitting fastball and he ended up coming with it and I connected,” Johnson said.

The home run provided the energy the Redhawks needed to pull away. “For awhile we didn’t have a lot of fire but we just needed to get our little spark,” Johnson said. 

Minnehaha Academy (25-3) will play at 2:30 Friday in the semifinals, East Grand Forks (15-9) finish its first state tournament in the consolation bracket beginning at 12:30 on Friday.

Minnehaha Academy broke a 2-2 tie in the third inning with a home run by senior Alexander Fedje-Johnson and scored eight more runs en route to an 11-2 victory over East Grand Forks Thursday in the Class 2A quarterfinal.

Fedje-Johnson's hit went deep over the left field wall, sparking the offensive onslaught at Dick Putz Field in St. Cloud.  

Minnehaha Academy (25-3) advances to the semifinals Friday at 2:30 p.m. against winner of the Paynesville Area-Pierz quarterfinal.

East Grand Forks (15-9) will compete in the consolation bracket at neighboring Joe Faber Field. First pitch for that game is 12:30 pm. 

Check back later for more on Thursday's game.

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