Eau Claire, WI – On Mario Night at Carson Park, the Eau Claire Express could not survive an early avalanche of runs, as they were defeated by the Rochester Honkers 9-5.
The Express offense once again came alive early, as Colton Wemhoff (Kansas) got the hitters started with a grand slam in the bottom of the second inning to push the Trains to an early 4-2 lead. The wheels fell off the tracks in the third inning, as the Honkers followed a two-run home run from Ryan Tiger (Rogers State) with a five spot third inning, and another run in the top of the fourth to jump ahead 8-4. Each team would add another run in the sixth frame of tonights game, but that would be all for the games offense.
The Trains batters threatened throughout this contest, putting runners on base in the fourth, sixth, eighth, and ninth innings, but would only be able to manufacture a singular run.
Parker Guthrie (Washington- St. Louis) got the start for Eau Claire, pitching 2.0 innings, allowing seven earned runs on four hits and taking the loss (0-2). Dylan Tostrup (Southern California) picked up the win for Rochester (3-0), allowing five runs on two hits, while striking out seven.
The Express open and close a series tomorrow, with a doubleheader against the Duluth Huskies. Game one is set for 11:05am CT, while game two is set for 6:35pm CT.
https://scorebook.northwoodsleague.com/update/4374/statistics/stats/home/batting/game
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. Entering its’ 31st season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 26 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 350 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 (TEX), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (STL) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (ATL). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2023 World Series Champion, 2021 and 2023 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and two-time All-MLB first team 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.
