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It had been a while since the Eau Claire Express had played a full game of baseball.
Tuesday, that all changed as the Express played 15 total innings in a doubleheader split against the Duluth Huskies.
After being rained out Saturday and Sunday in Willmar and being suspended last night due to severe weather, the Express carried over the momentum from Monday's suspended game by winning 8-2 before falling 2-0 in the twin bill.
Last night, Eau Claire gave up two runs in the top of the first, but thanks to a bases-clearing double from Drew Turbin, who later scored on a wild pitch, the Express took a 4-2 lead before lightning stopped the game.
"It's important of how we finished yesterday by getting back the lead rather than getting down 2-0 right away," Field Manager Dale Varsho said.
The orange and black picked right up where they left off, notching a run in the bottom of the third on a Mike Barajas RBI single plating Turbin.
The Express tacked on a run in the sixth on Brady Burzynski single scoring Brent Gibbs and then two in the seventh on RBIs from Barajas and Jack Zoellner. Barajas had an RBI double scoring Daniel Salters while Zoellner had a sacrifice fly to score Tyler Hermann.
All in all, it was eight runs on seven hits for a team that hadn't played a full-game since Friday.
"We all know this is a long season, so we’re just trying to stay the course as hitters," Turbin said.
The Express offense didn't have to do all that damage as the pitching staff stood its ground and didn't allow a run in the resuming of the suspended game Monday. Eann Cox, who was on the mound when the game was called, went 3.1 total innings and struck out four while only walking one.
"Eann did well, I thought did exactly what he's been doing," Varsho said. "He gets in the zone, doesn't walk a whole lot of guys."
After that, Austin Stroschein threw four scoreless innings while Steven Wilson, making his Express debut, threw a scoreless ninth.
In game two, the Express offense couldn't find a rhythm. Huskies' starter Corey Copping threw five innings of shutout ball, and Eau Claire could only muster three hits in the contest, resulting in a 2-0 loss.
Ian Doughty went four innings on the mound and got the loss despite striking out five. Justin Jaquish threw threw hitless and scoreless innings in relief.
The paid attendance of 5,684 in Game Two broke the Carson Park all-time record for one game.
The Express will welcome back the Waterloo Bucks, a team Eau Claire swept at Carson Park earlier in the year, for a two-game series Wednesday and Thursday. It is Big Brothers and Big Sisters Night sponsored by EO Johnson Technologies at the park tomorrow, where cash will be given away at the gates. Aron McRee takes the bump for the Express tomorrow with a first pitch starting at 6:35 p.m.
