Eau Claire Drop Series Finale in Bismarck

Bismarck, ND – The Eau Claire Express (0-4) fell to the Bismarck Larks (4-0) in the series finale in North Dakota Friday night by a score of 16-8. Despite out hitting the Larks by a mark of 12-9, Express pitching could not solve the Bismarck problem from the mound.

Bismarck jumped out to an early lead once again Friday night, scoring six runs in the second inning. The Express put up two runs in each of the fourth, fifth, and sixth innings, but could not catch up to the Larks who kept pace, scoring five runs in the same frames.

Leading 11-6, the Larks continued to roll, scoring their final five runs of the game in the sixth inning. Eau Claire closed out the remainder of the game by scoring two runs on four hits over the final three innings.

Individual performances highlighted the evening for the Express in Bismarck. Troy Beilsmith finished the night 4 for 5, scoring three runs and driving in another. The Evansville product is batting .444 through the first four games of the season. Reid Bass (Cumberland) went 3 for 5, with two RBIs and one run scored. Nick Lopez (Illinois-Chicago) started the game at third base for Eau Claire and finished on the mound, tossing three shutout innings for the visitors. Additionally, Lopez added one run and a single RBI to his slash line in the game.

The Express pitching corps combined for nine total strikeouts Friday evening with Nick Herold (Winona State) leading the group with four K’s in 1.2 innings of work.

Eau Claire will bolster their roster with several new additions when they return to Carson Park Saturday, opening their home schedule with a home and home series against the Duluth Huskies. Gates open at 6:00 pm with first pitch notched for 7:05 pm. Stay after for a magnificent fireworks display. Tickets are still available to purchase by clicking HERE, or calling 715-839-7788.

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The Eau Claire Express are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The 25-year old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 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, over 200 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 (MIA). 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.