Ontario, Canada – The Express finished their time in Ontario, Canada, following a 7-2 loss to the Thunder Bay Border Cats Saturday night.
Eau Claire Express Postgame Recap:
Following a previous 2-1 loss against the Thunder Bay Border Cats on Friday after a walk-off sacrifice fly, the Eau Claire Express still could not get their bats moving on the north side of the border, dropping 7-2.
Starting in a similar pattern of a strong defensive start, the Express limited their opponents’ runs with starting pitcher Mason Kinchen securing seven strikeouts during his time on the mound early on.
Complimenting Kinchen’s pitching skills was his defensive team behind him, preventing the Border Cats from securing a run until the third inning, with Jesus Vasquez passing home plate after Jorge Valdes hit a single to center field.
The Express finished the game securing a total of 24 putouts, 27 overall catches and zero errors during their time in the field.
Thunder Bay continued to build off its early momentum and did not look back, securing three runs in the fifth inning as the Express struggled with their pitching, bringing in Collin Toedter and Tyler Bartley on the mound.
The Express attempted their comeback with Christian Bosque passing home in the sixth inning and Matthew Maulik scoring on a sacrifice fly by Landon Ubrig in the seventh.
Still leading 4-2, the Border Cats secured their win at the bottom of the eighth inning, scoring three runs, bringing their lead to 7-2.
Attempting to get their bats moving at the top of the ninth inning, James Burgess started with a single to center field, and was quickly matched with a single to right field by Adam Salazar.
Finding bright spots in the innings, the Express eventually fell after a final strikeout concluded the game 7-2.
The Express will face the Thunder Bay Border Cats once again, at their home of Carson Park for Faith Night at 3:05 p.m. Sunday.
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The Eau Claire Express is 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. Having completed its 27th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 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 250 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 (WAS), 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 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and MLB Gold Glove finalist and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TOR). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.eauclaireexpress.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or Google Play and set the Booyah as your favorite team.
