HARBOR SPRINGS — Nick Lemieur showed signs as a sophomore a year ago to be regular starter in the rotation for the Harbor Springs baseball team.
He then went out and showed what hard work during the offseason can really do.
Lemieur began the season as Harbor’s opening day starter in 2026, then blossomed into the area’s most dominant arm and a feared sight for opponents throughout that junior campaign.
“He committed this last offseason to getting bigger and stronger, spent a lot of time in the gym, not just swinging a baseball bat and throwing a ball, but working on stabilizing muscles and everything you need to do to take your game to the next level,” Harbor Springs baseball coach Doug Konoske said.
The offseason work led to a dominant first start of the season for Lemieur against Onaway, an efficient 11-strikeout performance that brought confidence in each start that followed and now leads to a Petoskey News-Review Baseball Player of the Year honor.
“It just gave me a giant confidence boost this season and it really helped me pitching against better teams like Elk, St. Francis and those teams,” Lemieur said. “It just gave a me a lot of confidence.”
2026 News-Review All-Area Baseball Team
Lemieur developed into an attacking pitcher, not afraid to go after batters in the zone. That came out of the work put in during those offseason months, when he got stronger and built up his pitching arsenal.
“It was definitely all about getting stronger and getting my (velocity) up and working on pitch location,” he said. “All of that really helped.
“I love to throw the fastball, but my slider, curve and changeup really came together for me in the offseason, which really gave me more command of the batter. I threw my slider a lot, which I’d have to say was my second best pitch on the season.”
Lemieur’s season grew from 12.2 innings and two starts as a sophomore, to a team-high 51.2 innings and 10 starts.
His ability to work the strike zone stuck out for Konoske, as he never walked more than two batters in a single game.
“I’ve always told the kids that the game starts with throwing strikes,” he said. “For Nick to go out there and throw strikes consistently, I think on the season he had 63 strikeouts and 11 walks, so to have a 6-to-1 strikeout to walk ratio; I always tell the kids, throw to contact. Trust the defense behind you.”
He allowed just three earned runs during the regular season and held a 0.94 ERA for the year, with batters hitting just .182 off him.
He also got things done at the plate, batting an impressive .333 with 26 RBIs, 27 runs scored and 14 steals.
Lemieur’s hard work built a special season in Harbor Springs that came with a 27-4 record, Northern Shores title and district championship, a trio that’s not all that common in the program.
“The senior group really stepped up in making team chemistry what it was,” Lemieur said. “They picked everybody up, became leaders on the team and just gave everyone a good feeling about the season.
“Every week, knowing that we’re a good ball team and can do some things that haven’t been done in a while, it felt great.”
Just as a lot of work came for Lemieur between his sophomore and junior seasons, the same is happening now for the senior-to-be.
He’s got goals of making it another special season in Harbor Springs in 2027.
“We’ve got some good guys coming back and we can definitely do some work with the younger guys coming up,” Lemieur said. “I’m just really excited to have another good season.”
As someone who played collegiately at a high level, Konoske can see Lemieur playing beyond his Harbor years as well.
“I definitely see the talent in him,” he said. “He’s got the tools, size and strength to take the next step. We were very proud of him, taking those leaps and bounds from last year and hopefully he can do the same thing next year.”
Reach Sports Editor Drew Kochanny at dkochanny@petoskeynews.com and follow him on X @DrewKochanny and Instagram @drewkochanny
This article originally appeared on The Petoskey News-Review: Harbor Springs’ Nick Lemieur powers himself to Player of the Year honors
Reporting by Drew Kochanny, The Petoskey News-Review / The Petoskey News-Review
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By Drew Kochanny, The Petoskey News-Review | USA TODAY Network
