Eau Claire, Wis. – What a night at Carson Park.
Starting pitcher Cohen Gomez (Stanford) pitched a complete game shutout Thursday evening to secure the win, the 700th in the storied Northwoods League careers of field manager Dale Varsho and pitching coach Vic Cable.
As the winningest coaches in league history, they are the first to ever reach this incredible milestone. Varsho and Cable have been at the helm since the team’s inception in 2005. The duo crossed the 600-win mark on June 4, 2023 in a 13-4 win over the now-defunct Minnesota Mudpuppies and have notched another 100 wins since.
The game itself was a wild one, as Gomez dominated the Honkers from the first pitch. The 6-foot-4 right-hander worked a seven-pitch first inning and continued to roll from there. Keeping his pitch count low throughout the night allowed him to finish it himself as he allowed five hits and walked only one while striking out 11 batters. The performance was the first complete game shutout for the Express since 2017.
On the offensive side, Eau Claire got on the board in the second inning as Sam Erickson (Texas A&M) singled to start the inning and worked his way to third before scoring on a double play. The Flower Mound, Texas, native notched the second run by himself with a towering solo home run to left to double the Express lead to 2-0.
That would be the only offense Eau Claire needed as Gomez mowed down the Honkers all night. He retired the final six batters he faced to close out the win.
The Express finish their 2025 season with a home series against Waterloo. Game 1 is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. Friday evening.
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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.
