EAU CLAIRE, Wisc. – The Eau Claire Express (24-7, 42-22) rolled over the Duluth Huskies (11-19, 27-38) in the opener of a four-game set, winning 13-1.

Starter Manny Dorantes cruised through the first inning, but his command deserted him in the second. The right-hander issued three walks and three hits in the frame, allowing four runs to cross the plate and leaving the game due to pitch-count rules. Sawyer Stein’s RBI double and Phillip Cheong’s two-run single were the crucial blows. The Express brought around five two-out runs in the third inning, with Cheong tripling in a pair to cap the inning and give Eau Claire a 9-0 lead.

The Express weren’t done. Jake Busson cleared loaded bases with a three-run two-bagger in the fifth, and Quinten Marsh followed with a double of his own that pushed Busson in. The score stood at 13-0. All the while, Eau Claire starter Braxton Bjur had hummed through 5.0 scoreless innings with seven strikeouts.

Duluth scratched a run across in the seventh after an error, a walk, and a sacrifice fly from Wyatt Pennington. That is all the scoring Duluth would do, as the eighth and ninth passed without incident.

Owen Maslowski reached in two of four plate appearances with a hit and walk. St. Scholastica teammate Finley Spicer singled in his debut and came in to score after a Reached On Error.

Dorantes took the loss after allowing four runs in his start. Kai Valleroy conceded five runs in an inning-plus. Harrison Burdge let up four through 2.0. Braxton Swetland provided a bright spot with 3.0 innings pitched, two hits, two walks, three strikeouts, and no runs allowed.

On Deck

Duluth returns home to continue its commuter series with Eau Claire. They host the express at 6:35 p.m. tomorrow, then return to Carson Park for two more on Wednesday and Thursday.