Eau Claire, WI – The Eau Claire Express (10-12) took down the La Crosse Loggers (11-11) by a final score of 9-4 on Monday night. The score was close until the 7th inning when the Express broke the game open.
Lakeland University Postgame Recap: The Loggers jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the second on four hits. Not taking long to respond, the Express tied the game in the bottom of the 3rd.
Express newcomer, Brandon Dieter (Stanford), started the inning with a single and Garett Lake (Pima CC) walked. Spencer Myers (Notre Dame) laid down a beautiful sacrifice bunt to advance both runners into scoring position. Brock Burton (Grand Canyon) walked to load the bases. Matt Bottcher (Illinois-Chicago) ripped an RBI single up the middle to move everyone up a base and plate Dieter. Phillip Sikes (Pima CC) grounded out and scored Lake on the play.
La Crosse would get a run back in the top of the 4th but would get shut down by the Express in the bottom half. Nick Lopez (Illinois-Chicago) reached on an error by the Loggers second baseman. Vincent Martinez (Stanford) walked and Dieter singled to load the bases. Myers delivered with a 2 RBI double and the Express went on top 4-3. The Loggers scored their final run in the top of the seventh on a home run that once again tied the game at 4-4.
Eau Claire broke the game open in the bottom of the 7th inning. Leading off with three straight singles by Burton, Bottcher, and Sikes, the Express loaded the bases with no outs. Burton scored on a fielder’s choice hit by Troy Beilsmith’s (Evansville). Nick Lopez followed with a single and moved all the way to third on an E7. Bottcher and Beilsmith came home on the error. To finish the inning, Martinez roped an RBI single to drive in Lopez.
Not quite done yet, Matt Bottcher, who was 4-5 on the night, drove in an insurance run on an RBI triple as Eau Claire took a 9-4 in the 8th inning.
Cole LaLonde (Century CC) struggled early and could only complete 2 innings. He gave up two runs on six hits. Ethan Swanson (Cowley) entered for three innings of one run ball. He allowed one hit and issued four walks. Craig Colen, in his first outing with the 2019 Express, also pitched three innings with one run allowed. He struck out four. Nick Alvarado (Illinois-Springfield) tossed the top of the 9th and earned on K.
Eau Claire continues this homestand by welcoming the Thunder Bay Border Cats into town on Tuesday night. Come to Carson Park for a 6:35 pm first pitch and a game that will feature a special ticket deal for the senior citizens of the Chippewa Valley! Every Tuesday night is Senior Night; this promotion gives fans the experience of a traditional evening at the ballpark. For only $12, fans 55+ can take in a game at Carson Park and receive a hot dog and soda with their ticket.
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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.