Eau Claire, Wis. – Jake Busson reintroduced himself in a big way.
The two-way player out of Hudson, Wis., had a record-breaking day at the plate, driving in eight runs in his first game back as a member of the Express to pace his team to a 15-7 victory over the Badlands Big Sticks.
Busson recently wrapped up his collegiate season at Iowa Central Community College and now returns to Eau Claire as a temporary player before heading to University of Illinois-Chicago in the fall. In his first appearance after being activated Sunday morning, the shortstop launched two home runs out of Carson Park and added a pair of singles to post a 4-for-6 day with eight RBIs.
In his first plate appearance of the summer, Busson turned on an 0-1 pitch and sent it well onto the football field behind the left-field fence of Carson Park for a three-run home run that gave the Express the lead after giving up two runs in the top half of the opening inning.
After lining a single to center field in the second, Busson came up for the third time in as many innings with the bases loaded and one out. Once again, Busson saw one strike before launching a blast over the wall, this time to left-center field for a grand slam. The homer gave Eau Claire an 11-3 lead and tied Busson with his former teammate Owen Washburn, who drove in seven against La Crosse on June 30 a season ago.
With the game largely in hand, Busson had one last crack at the record in the final frame with two runners in scoring position and one out. He cashed in with a sharp single to left to make the game 14-7 and give him the new franchise mark. Busson finished 4-for-6 with two singles, two home runs and eight RBIs.
While Busson was the star at the plate, fellow newcomer Marcelino Alonso (Madison College) had three knocks of his own including a double for two runs batted in. Howie Rickett (Madison College), Jackson Glueck (Pima) and Alex Hendrickson (St. Thomas) all added an RBI of their own while Ian Guanzon (San Joaquin Delta) drove in two on a pair of sacrifice flies.
Starting pitcher Nate Vela (Winona State) was solid on the bump, giving up three earned runs in four innings and racking up seven strikeouts. Connor Lovin (Dodge City CC) earned the win with three innings pitched out of the bullpen before Miller Green (Western Kentucky) closed things out with two scoreless innings of work.
The second game of the series against the Big Sticks is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. Monday night at Carson Park.
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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. Entering its’ 32nd season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in history 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, nearly 2400 NWL alums have been drafted and over 380 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 (TOR), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford 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, MLB All-Star, MLB Gold Glove, two-time Silver Slugger winner and two-time All-MLB first team shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). League games are viewable live on Northwoods League+ (at watch.northwoodsleague.com), ESPN+, and the Northwoods League Network. Learn more and find complete streaming schedules at watchnwl.com. 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.
