Eau Claire, Wis.— The Express game against the St. Cloud Rox was postponed due to poor weather and field conditions after two and half innings of play. The Rox led in the shortened contest 3-2, but the game will not be completed until a later date (exact date to be determined). Eau Claire will travel to Duluth for a two game series against the Huskies tomorrow with the first pitch scheduled for 6:35 p.m. at Wade Stadium.
Unlike in last night’s extra innings contest, the Rox jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Luke Ringhofer ripped a single to shallow right field with two outs, scoring Ricky Ramirez from second. Coming into tonight’s game, Express starter Caleb Boushley had allowed just one run in three starts (20 innings pitched).
The Express quickly leveled the game at one run apiece in the top of the second inning on Dan Metzdorf. An Austin Guzzo single and two consecutive walks put Ben Mezzenga at the plate with the bases loaded. Mezzenga hit a hard grounder to the Rox shortstop, who could not handle the ball cleanly, allowing Guzzo to score from third. Eau Claire took the lead after Mickey McDonald drew a bases loaded walk, quickly giving the first half North Division Champions a 2-1 lead.
The offensive fireworks continued in the bottom of the second, with St. Cloud adding two runs to take a 3-2 lead heading into the third inning of play. Brett Pope led off the inning with a single, and was joined on the base paths by Ben DeLuzio with no outs. Webb Bobo drove in two runs with a double off the fence in right-center to execute the third lead change in two innings.
A flash of lightning produced the second weather delay for the Express in three games, causing a 30-minute pause in play immediately before the bottom of the third inning. The delay ended up being over an hour and a half long, and the game was postponed to a future date.
Brody Rodning will get the nod against the Duluth Huskies tomorrow night at Wade Stadium, seeking to extend Eau Claire’s winning streak to seven games following tonight's postponement. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. in the first game of the North Division series. Rodning, the lone left-hander on the Express pitching staff, has a 1-1 overall record in six starts. In his last outing on the mound, Rodning pitched six innings, striking out six batters in a no-decision against the Waterloo Bucks on July 2nd.
Season tickets and single-game tickets are on sale now for Express home games. All tickets can be purchased by calling the Express office at 715-839-7788 or by stopping at the downtown office at 102 E. Grand Ave.
The Eau Claire Express are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 23rd season of summer collegiate baseball, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 18 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, more than 150 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (CHC). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.eauclaireexpress.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store and set the Express as your favorite team.