(Photo Courtesy: Lyle Ripplinger)
Written By: Cody Shook, Larks Broadcaster
THUNDER BAY, ON– The Bismarck Larks took care of business on the road tonight against the Thunder Bay Border Cats, winning 3-1 after scoring all three runs in the top of the 4th inning. With their second win in the second half, the Larks are now 27-17 on the season and 2-6 in the second half.
Zach Jones started on the mound and only allowed one unearned run over his six innings of work. He struck out one batter and gave up five hits, but he worked out of jams and didn’t allow the big inning to come for the Border Cats. Interim Field Manager, Dj Engle said “I was really impressed with his outing tonight, he attacked the zone early and often which led to weak contact and quick innings.” Jones earned his first one of the season on the mound tonight and Matt Munden earned his first save of the season.
Ripken Reyes started the top of the 4th inning with a single into left field. Jacob Nesbit then followed that up with a single into right field. Tristen Carranza then hit a line drive to third base and got on when he sailed the ball into right field which scored Reyes and made it first and third with nobody out. Cj Shaeffer got his second hit of the game in the top of the 4th inning when he hit a single that scored Carranza and Nesbit.
In the bottom of the 4th inning, the Larks gave up one run when an error was committed with two outs which kept the inning alive and eventually became a bases loaded with two out situation. Jones was able to get the Border Cats lead-off man to fly out to center field.
The Larks bats went cold after the 4th inning, not recording another hit till the top of the 9th inning. They only left three runners on base all game and they only struck out five times.
Matt Butler, Clayton Hill and Munden all came out of the bullpen in relief to continue throwing zeros on the board and keeping it a 3-1 game. “Our pitching from start to finish was everything that we needed it to be and that helped us get the win” said Engle.
The Larks won 3-1 and are now 27-17 on the season and 2-6 in the second half. The Larks will be back in action tomorrow night when they take on the Thunder Bay Border Cats in game three of this four game series. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. Catch all the action on http://mixlr.com/larksbaseball/.
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The Bismarck Larks are a proud affiliate of the Northwoods League, the proven leader in development of elite college baseball players. The Larks mission is to use FUN to make a difference in the lives of our families, businesses, players, and communities we serve. This is accomplished with a commitment to putting fans first and providing high quality family entertainment at affordable prices. In 2017, the Larks sold out 27 of their 36 home games in Bismarck Municipal Ballpark, home of Dakota Community Bank and Trust Field, and were named the Northwoods League’s Organization of the Year.
The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Entering its 25th anniversary season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, more than 190 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (TOR). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.
