The Big Sticks were in Dickinson Sunday afternoon to take on the Canyon County Spuds in the rubber match of their three-game set.

Kenny Stewart made his first start for the Big Sticks in this one. He came into the game with a 1-1 record and a 1.42 ERA. Brendan Thome was starting for the Spuds, who came in with 3-1 record and a 4.89 ERA.

The scoring was plentiful in this game, as it started early and continued throughout the course of the game. The Spuds were the first team to get on the board in the top of the first. Zach Tallerman smacked a two on, two out single to drive in Ronnie Mcbride from third.

However, it was in the top of the second when the avalanche of runs started. With the bases loaded and two out, Cole Arnold was able to work a walk to score another run for the Spuds. Then the big at bat of the inning came around when Joey Grabanski stepped up to the plate with the bases still juiced. On the second pitch he saw he blasted a grand slam down the left field line to put the Spuds up 6-0 with two outs in the second.

That would be the end of the night for Kenny Stewart as Brady Salyards relieved him of his duties. Stewart finished with 1.2 innings pitched, giving up six runs on six hits while walking one and striking out two. In his first start this summer, his ERA jumped up six full points to 7.88 overall on the year. Salyards came into the game as one of the Big Sticks' more consistent relievers, sporting a 2-2 record with a 4.00 ERA.

In the bottom of the second, the Sticks would make this a ballgame again. Austin Bunn came up to the plate with two on and one out. He drove a single that brought in Eric Martinez from second. Alex Thurston was next up as he drew a walk to load the bases. Ryan Stafford then stepped up to the plate as he drove a double to bring in two more runs for The Sticks. In the next at bat, Joe Osborn hit a sacrifice fly to bring in the last run of the inning. At the end of the second, the Spuds were up 6-4.

The third and fourth innings were relatively uneventful as there was no scoring. In the bottom of the fifth, the Sticks would get their bats going again. Joe Osborn led off the inning with a double, then Carson Lundmark smacked a single to make it runners on the corners with nobody out. Angel De La Cruz was next up and made it three hits in a row for The Sticks, as he hit a single to drive in both runs and tie the game at 6. Eric Martinez came up next and walked, taking Thome out of the game. Danny Burns came in for him in relief. Thome finished with 4.0 innings pitched, giving up seven runs on six hits, while walking four and striking out one. Burns came into the game with an 0-2 record, and a 7.62 ERA.

With still zero outs in the bottom of the fifth inning, Travis Ray Jr was able to hit a fielder's choice to bring in the last run of the inning. After the bottom of the fifth, the Sticks came all the way back and were up 7-6.

In the top of the sixth, the Spuds were able to tie it back up thanks to an RBI single from Noah Dehne.

Justin Butz relieved Brady Salyards of his duties in the top of the seventh. Salyards finished with 4.1 innings pitched, and he gave up one run on four hits, while he walked two and struck out five. Butz came into the game having only pitched one other game that he took the loss in. His ERA was at 5.79.

There was no more scoring in this game until we went to extra innings. Butz did a great job in relief pitching four shutout innings to bring them to the bottom of the tenth. Both teams started with a runner on second base in extras. For the Sticks, Carson Lundmark was the man running the bases. Marcus Hughes pinch hit for Angel De La Cruz and was able to advance Lundmark to third with a single. Eric Martinez was next up to the plate, only needing a sacrifice fly to win the game. He did much more than that. On the very first pitch of the at bat Martinez was able to drive one out to left-center field and over the fence to walk it off for the Big Sticks. They would take the rubber match of this series 10-7.

The Sticks improved to 8-8 for the second half of the season, putting them 0.5 games back from the Tommyknockers for second place in the Lewis Division. The Spuds dropped to 6-11 for the second half, moving them to last place in the division.

Notable Performances:

Eric Martinez: 2-4, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, BB (Player of the game)

Ryan Stafford: 1-4, 2B, 2 RBI

Angel De La Cruz: 1-4, R, 2 RBI

Justin Butz: 4.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 SO

The Big Sticks head into the all-star break on a high note, taking the series from the Spuds. Their next game is on 7/22 as they travel to Grand Forks to take on the Whiskey Jacks in a double header. First pitch is at 3:05MT and be sure to tune in on The Mix 105.7.