After getting swept by the La Crosse Loggers a day prior, the Bismarck Larks welcomed in Great Plains West division rival, the St. Cloud Rox. The Larks were jumped early by the Rox and would drop game one of the two-game set.
The Rox scored two runs in the first thanks to a Sawyer Smith (St. Cloud State) two-RBI double to score John Nett (Kansas) and Jackson Hauge (Minnesota State Mankato). Then in the third, Kyle Jackson (Kent State) recorded an RBI single, which was followed by a Sawyer Smith groundout to extend the lead to 4-0 after two and a half innings.
In the bottom of the third, Bismarck would get on the board. Dante Leach (Tennessee Wesleyan) would collect his first RBI as a Lark by driving in Sam Bieser (North Greenville) to make it 4-1. But the Larks let up three more runs, with one in the fourth, sixth, and eighth. To let the Rox score seven runs.
In the bottom of the eighth, Bismarck centerfielder Jackson Beaman (Mizzou) would blast his team-leading sixth home run for a two-run shot to cut the lead down to three. It was the first time in 23 games that Beaman went deep, and his bomb would go down as the Fetzer Electric Play of the Game.
However, St. Cloud’s Mason Olson (BYU) shut the door for the save in the bottom of the ninth, striking out four total on the night to allow St. Cloud to secure the series opener and hand Bismarck its third straight loss.
On the mound, St. Cloud’s starter Cade Lommel (Creighton) got the win by going 5.1 innings, striking out eight, and only giving up two runs.
Bismarck’s starter, Alec Danen (University of Mary), picked up his second loss of the year, giving up five earned runs in 4.1 innings.
Out of relief, Brad Helton (Metro State Denver) threw the Metro Area Fastest Pitch of the Game in the fifth inning, hitting 91 mph on the radar gun.
The Larks will return for the series finale against the Rox on Sunday at 5:35 p.m. CT. It is also Host Family Appreciation Night. On Host Family Appreciation Night, we want to extend a HUGE thank you to those that house our players all season.
