Tuesday night was a tough night for the pitching staffs at Corbett Field. Both the Minot Hot Tots and Bismarck Larks had issues keeping the ball in the strike zone resulting in 24 total walks but also an 11-6 win for the visitors.

Bismarck worked two walks in the top of the first but left them stranded. Minot similarly got started with a walk and were able to make it count. Andrew Clapinski tripled to the left field corner bringing Caleb Gipson in to score from first base.

With the lead, Hot Tots starting pitcher Jaden Davis, pitched a quick second inning. He got help from Clapinski again when a Bismarck runner was caught stealing to end the frame.

With already three walks issued, Davis would pass out five more in the third inning along with a hit by pitch. Eventually, the Larks would get their first hit, a two-RBI single by Jackson Crider, and take the lead. Following the four-run inning, Bismarck was in control but still had to execute on their own end.

Minot sunk into a deeper deficit following a Luke Lavin solo blast in the fourth inning, extending the Lark lead to 5-1.

In the bottom of the fourth, Chris Daniels roped a double to right field and plated Tyler Arnold to get the Tots back on the board. It ended up being the start of five unanswered runs for Minot through the next three innings. Minot got a run in the fifth inning on a bases-loaded walk and an additional three in the sixth by the same fashion.

The scoring spree resulted in another lead change. The Larks came back up to hit in the seventh inning trailing 6-5, but wouldn’t let the lead last long. Bismarck scored four runs on one hit and one Hot Tot error. There was another walk and two hit batters in the inning as well.

From then on, Minot never got a lot going at the plate resulting in a Bismarck runaway win. The Larks closed up the two-game series with an 11-6 final score, splitting the pair of games with Minot. The Dakota Dust-Up Rivalry is now tied 2-2 with eight matchups to go this season.

David Goldapper reached 94 mph on the radar gun to earn the night’s SRT Fastest Pitch. He was also included in the First Command Play of the Game by tipping a ground ball to shortstop Sohrab Rezaei to get an out at second base. The SportClips MVP was Andrew Clapinski who went 3-for-4 with a double, two RBI and threw out a base stealer.

Minot returns to action Wednesday night against the Willmar Stingers. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 pm.