The Badlands Big Sticks (5-5) entered Friday night’s match looking to flip the script on the Bismarck Larks (4-8) after a disappointing showing the night before. 

Ethan Wendel (McMurry University) got the start for the Big Sticks, the 6’9 sophomore from Louis, TX, was nothing short of dominant on the mound, posting 5 IP, 0 ERA, 3 H, 2 K, 1 BB, 0.80 WHIP.

The theme throughout the season for the Big Sticks has been starting games off fast, which is exactly what Badlands was able to do, scoring a run in the home half of the first off the bat of Troy Berg (Augustana University, MN) with an RBI groundout to put the Big Sticks up 1-0.

The Big Sticks would add two more runs in the second to take a 3-0 lead thanks to a pair of RBI singles from Defury and Matthew Dieguez (Fordham University). 

On the Diamond for the Larks was right-hander Braxton Greenburg, who put together five innings of work with a 4.26 ERA, 3 H, 0 K, 4 BB, 1.40 WHIP.

The Larks got on the board in the 7th inning with an earned walk that saw Christian Bernardini come home to score with the Larks trailing 3-1.

The Big Sticks added some insurance to their lead in the bottom of the 8th from Connor Massimini (East Texas Baptist University), launching a solo shot to left field, putting Badlands ahead 4-1. 

Badlands would hold on to a 4-1 win over the Larks on a night marked by strong pitching and timely at-bats, capitalizing on opportunities, bringing runners in to score.

The Badlands now get set for another home series against the Willmar Stingers, who lead the Great Plains West division with a record of 8-3.