Eau Claire, WI – The Eau Claire Express (22-34-1) could not muster up a hit in the Sunday afternoon game against the Bismarck Larks (32-23-1). What started out as a beautiful day in North Dakota turned into stormy conditions during the game. After a rain delay in the top of 7th inning, the game was called a 0-0 tie, reverting the score and stat line back to the 6th inning.
Bismarck’s Matt Butler was on the mound for the duration of the game. The junior from St. Cloud State no hit the Express and recorded seven strikeouts. He allowed four on base via the walk.
Justin Slaten (New Mexico) was the Eau Claire starter. He tossed four scoreless innings, giving up three hits and one walk. Slaten added four strikeouts to bring his season count to 67. Reagan MacDonald (Dallas Baptist) entered in relief for the 5th and 6th innings. He allowed only one walk and struck out two Larks.
The Express had runners in scoring position in the 1st inning. Alec Trela (Memphis) and Andrew Pratt (Lubbock Christian) walked. Troy Beilsmith (Evansville) was hit by a pitch to load the bases. The threat was over after a strikeout.
With the game tied at 0-0, the rain started in the 7th inning. Nick Brueser (Stanford) lead off with a solo home run to break up the no hitter and put the Express up 1-0. Three more runs scored in the inning, but with two outs in the top of the 7th, it began to downpour and we went into a rain delay. After an hour delay, the game was called a tie. Even though Eau Claire batted in the 7th, Bismarck did not have the opportunity to do so. Because of that, the score and stat line reverted to the 6th inning. All plays that occurred in the 7th inning will not count.
Eau Claire returns home on Monday, July 30th for Changing Diabetes Night presented by Novo Nordisk. Fans will also be able to receive a complimentary chair massage from Paradise Massage while taking in an Express game!
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The Eau Claire Express are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Now in its 25th anniversary season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 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 190 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (TOR). 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 or on Google Play and set the Express as your favorite team.