WHEN: May 25th + May 26th @ 6:35 PM CST

WHERE: Bismark Municipal BallPark

WATCH: FloSports

LISTEN: Granite City Sports Radio, 93.9FM & 1390 AM

The St. Cloud Rox travel to Bismarck Municipal Park to take on the Larks in the opening series of the 2026 Northwoods League season. The Larks begin the year with “Medora Night”, and have sold out the ballpark for game one of 72.

The Bismarck Larks are celebrating their 10th anniversary this season, announcing a new series of logos commemorating the year ahead, as well as a new line of uniform to launch the “Next Great Xpedition” campaign theme.

Probable Pitchers (SUBJECT TO CHANGE):

GAME 1: (STC) #55 RHP Hunter Poe vs. (BIS) #18 RHP Ethan Loffer

STC: Poe pitched in 77.2 innings in his senior year with McMurry University, posting a 3.48 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 2026. His K/9 stood at 9.0 in 2026, improving his career rate to 7.3

BIS: Loffer held an ERA in double figures in the 2026 campaign with Lakeland College, but his strikeout ability is impressive; the sophomore struck out 9.83 batters per nine innings of play, ringing up 55 batters across his 50.1 innings tossed.

Game 2: (STC) #27 LHP Jacob Imoto vs (BIS) #39 LHP Tyson Greenwood

STC: Imoto spent his sophomore season in Arkansas after a year at Palomar Junior College, where he boasted a 2.45 ERA in 44 innings of action. Imoto regularly closed the show for the Comets, leading his frontier with five saves.

BIS: Greenwood is a returner to the Northwoods League, spending 2025 with the Badlands Big Sticks. He posted an ERA of 4.97 in Dickinson before heading to Mineral Area College, where he scored an 8-5 record in 59.1 innings, paired with 49 punchouts.

RUN IT BACK: The Rox begin the season with four returners from a group last year that won the Great Plains West First Half Championship.

• Carter Jorissen, catcher: Jorissen was the MVP of the Rox in the 2025 campaign, and was awarded with an All-Star selection. After his summer in the Northwoods, the junior transferred to CSU Bakersfield, where he bat .250 in 16 games played.
• Tanner Recchio, INF: Recchio returns after breaking the Rox single-season stolen base record in 2025, swiping 34 bags in his 44 games played. He hustled out 39 more this year with the Tommies of St. Thomas, while hitting .305 with an OPS of .821.
• Nolan Geislinger, OF: The freshman from Iowa Western won the “Finest In the Field” award, given  to the three players in the Northwoods League with a perfect fielding percentage. Geislinger recently announced a commitment to the Oregon Ducks after a season with an OPS at 1.069.
• Alex Dupuy, UTL: The UAB Dragon comes back to St. Cloud for year 2 with the Rox after serving as a two-way player in 2025. Dupuy first was an LSUE Bengal, and was recruited to the Rox by Field Manager Nick Studdard.

DUGOUT SHUFFLES: Rox Field Manager Nick Studdard and assistant Beau Kirsch coach an LSU-Eunice team competing in the Junior College World Series in Grand Junction, CO. The Bengals had appeared in the Division II World Series in 10 straight seasons from 2014 to 2024 before moving to Division I; there, it took just a season to return to the dance. While the Bengals look for another championship, Rox coaches Nick Studdard and Beau Kirsch will miss the trip to North Dakota.

WELCOME TO GRANITE CITY: A new hire will lead the charge for the Rox during Studdard and Kirsch’s absence. Chris Garcia comes with experience from American River College, working as the associate head coach and recruiting coordinator. Last year, Garcia helped the Beavers earn their first playoff berth in 20 years.

A FAMILIAR FACE: Joining Garcia for the road trip will be Logan Lawrence, the 2025 Northwoods League Assistant Coach of the Year. Lawrence’s last stop was in Northern Oklahoma-Tonkawa in an assisting role. Lawrence is slated to be the Field Manager of the inaugural Pulaski Pop Tops in the Volunteer State League, beginning next week.

MONROE’S THE MAN: The Larks announced the hiring of Chris Monroe to be the team’s Field Manager this season. Monroe is currently the hitting coach for the Missouri Western State Griffons. During his playing career, Monroe was awarded a Great Lakes All-Star nod with the Traverse City Pit Spitters en route to a Northwoods League Championship in 2021.

UP NEXT: The Rox will continue west to face the Badlands Big Sticks on June 27 and June 28, before their home opener on June 29 against the Bismarck Larks.

The Larks will stay in Bismarck to welcome the Mankato Moondogs to a two-game series. After that, they head to Joe Faber Field for round two against the St. Cloud Rox.