The longest road trip of the season is complete as Eau Claire went 4-3 against a trio of Great Plains opponents over the past week.

The Express headed to Bismarck, N.D., for an interdivisional series with the Larks to kick off the long trip. All four games were tightly contested, as Eau Claire took the first two games by three combined runs before dropping the final pair of games by a run each. The Game 3 defeat was later removed from the Express’ record due to a pitching violation committed by Bismarck.

Eau Claire took the first game of the series with a thrilling 4-2 victory, scoring three runs in the top of the ninth inning to take the lead that gave it the win. Quinton Coats (Cincinnati) was the hero, launching a go-ahead two-run home run with the Express down to their final out of the game. The Eau Claire pitching staff was excellent, combining for nine innings of one-hit ball, highlighted by five scoreless innings from starter Jace Kirby (Walters State CC) and 2.2 innings of hitless ball from Lorenzo Atwell (Walters State CC). Andres Castro (Pima CC) notched the save.

Game 2 was another Trains victory as the visitors scattered runs throughout the contest en route to a 5-4 victory. Matthew Cormier (Cal State Northridge) powered the Express offense with a pair of solo homers while Coats added another. Starting pitcher Easton Bobb (St. Thomas) turned in another quality start with five innings of two-run ball and Kenneth Fistler (Alma) worked the nine-out save.

Regulation was not enough to decide Game 3, as the Larks broke through to notch a 6-5 victory in 10 innings. Five different Eau Claire hitters drove in a run and Austin Steeves (Stanford) excelled on the mound with three scoreless innings in the contest that was later ruled a no-contest.

Looking to secure the series win before heading back east, the Express dropped another heartbreaker in Game 4. After taking the lead for the third time in the top of the sixth inning, Bismarck answered with a pair of runs to go ahead for good. George Bilecki (Arizona State) and JJ Moran (Stanford) both homered in the series finale but the Trains were unable to manufacture the run they needed to tie the game over the final three innings.

After wrapping up the series against the Larks, Eau Claire headed to Mankato, Minn., for the first time since 2022 to take on the MoonDogs. The two-game set was split as the Express battled back after dropping Game 1.

Mankato made a statement early in the opener, gashing the Trains for six runs in the first frame. The Express answered with an RBI single from Marcelino Alonso (Madison College), but the MoonDogs continued to pile on throughout the contest en route to a 17-2 win.

Despite being blown out a night before, Eau Claire rebounded nicely with a 6-3 victory in Game 2 against Mankato. Walker Retz (St. Thomas) paced the Express with a gem of an outing that earned him Northwoods League Pitcher of the Night. The Boyceville, Wis., native threw seven scoreless innings and allowed just one hit in his outstanding performance. On the offensive side, the entire lineup contributed as all nine Eau Claire batters tallied at least one hit. Cormier led the way with two RBIs while Coats and Jackson Glueck (Pima) each doubled and drove in a run.

Saturday marked the first day off of the season for the Express, but it was right back to the road with a Sunday matinee in Duluth, Minn to take on the Huskies. The top of the lineup shined for Eau Claire in a 10-2 blowout, as eight of the 10 Express RBIs came from the top three hitters in the order. Bilecki went 2-for-4 and drove in four runs, Coats launched his third homer of the week with a three-run blast and Alonso doubled and drove in a run. Sam Erickson (Texas A&M) also notched two hits and an RBI in the win. On the mound, Kirby gave up just two runs in five innings before turning the ball over to Conner Williar (Rock Valley) who worked 3.1 scoreless innings to pick up the save.

The road trip moved Eau Claire to 11-16 on the season as the end of the first half begins to approach. The Express return to Carson Park Monday night against La Crosse for the first of four straight games against the Loggers.

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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.