For the third time in three consecutive games, the Bismarck Larks have lost despite outhitting their opponents. The yellow birds traveled to central Minnesota to take on Great Plains West rivals, the St. Cloud Rox, for a two-game series, where they were swept. Both games ended with a 4-3 final in favor of the Rox.
In game one, The Rox used a four-run first inning to do all of their scoring. Jackson Hauge (Minnesota State – Mankato) hit a no-out double to put two runners in scoring position, and then the two new guys, Jose Gonzalez (Ave Maria) and Oscar Serratos (Biola) knocked both in to make it 2-0. Then, after Gonzalez scored on an RBI groundout from Matt Goetzmann (Nebraska Omaha), Sawyer Smith (St. Cloud State) hit an RBI double to make it 4-0 through one frame.
In the third, the Larks got three runs, with two of them coming from Garret Hill (North Dakota State), to make it 4-3. But, those would be the only runs that the Larks would be able to scratch across, as St. Cloud reliever Chris Brown (Lubbock Christian) would go four complete innings of shutout ball with two strikeouts and no walks to earn the win. In the ninth, Mason Olson (BYU) collected his sixth save of the season. Larks starter, AJ Kostic (Central Michigan) picked up the loss in his first start as a Lark.
Game two of the series started off slow offensively, as the Larks are Rox were scoreless threw the first two innings, but in the third, the yellow birds struck first thanks to a Jack Herring (Rollins) RBI single to score Nick Oakley (UC Santa Barbara) to make it 1-0.
The Rox then tied it an inning later in the fourth. Noah Blythe (Antelope Valley) knocked in Kyle Jackson (Kent State) to make the score 1-1. Then, in the fifth, the Rox took their first lead of the night thanks to a Jose Gonzalez RBI base hit to make it 2-1.
In the seventh, the Larks took the lead right back with a two-run inning. Garret Hill struck again to tie it with an RBI single, and right after, in his Larks debut, Aaron Biediger (Dallas – Richland) hit a sacrifice fly, and the score was 3-2.
However, the Rox wouldn’t quit and took the lead right back. Noah Blythe hit an RBI single to tie it, and then Michael McNamara (Kent State) walked to bring in the fourth and final run of the game for St. Cloud. The Larks wouldn’t be able to respond, and Mason Olson’s second consecutive save in two nights gave the Rox the series sweep and another close victory. Dillon Goetz (Skyline) received the loss for Bismarck, while Carson Keithley (Texas State) got his first win of the season for St. Cloud. Both pitchers came out of relief.
The Larks return to Bismarck Municipal Ballpark on Monday to open a two-game series against the Duluth Huskies. First pitch is at 6:35 p.m. CT. It is also Healthcare Appreciation Night at the ballpark. Join us in celebrating our dedicated Healthcare Professionals, including doctors, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, dentists, and all members of the medical team.
