Eau Claire, WI – Things didn’t go the Trains’ way Sunday Afternoon, as they lost to the visiting Rochester Honkers 7-11.

This game was played in just over 3 hours, as one long 6th inning proved to be too much for the Express to overcome. The Honkers tacked on 3 in the 5th and 5 in the 6th to set them way ahead of the home team.

Cal Higgins (Western Kentucky) started on the bump for the Express, and looked solid through 4 innings. Things started to get dicey for him going into the troublesome middle innings though, as he let runners on and they eventually scored after a pitching change. In all, he made it through 5 innings, giving up 7 hits, 5 earned runs, and 4 strikeouts.

At the plate, the Express didn’t get too much going as they finished the day with only 6 hits as a team. Despite this, Temo Becerra (Stanford) looked solid, going 1-3 with a Sac Fly in the 9th, and a run scored.

The Express showed a little life in the bottom of the 9th, but ultimately the 6-run deficit was too much for them to overcome as they only added 2 more runs, bringing the final score to 7-11.

The Express are still in 1st place in the Great Plains East division but will look for a win tomorrow to clinch a playoff berth. Be sure to tune into the game on 106.7 FM – Moose Country, or watch the game on the Northwoods League website. First pitch will come at 6:30 pm CT and the game will be played in Rochester vs. the Honkers.

Boxscore

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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 Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Now in its’ 30^th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 24 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 325 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. 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.