(Eau Claire, Wis.) – The Rochester Honkers (3-6) held a 3-1 lead in the game, but the Eau Claire Express (4-5) came back and won on a walk-off error in the ninth inning. Chia-Ching Ho (National Taiwan Sports University) went six innings on the mound in his Honkers debut.
A leadoff single by Zach Gilles (Central Michigan) led to a first-inning run for the Express. He stole second base and ended up scoring on a wild pitch.
Honkers’ starting pitcher Chia-Ching Ho settled in after giving up a run in his first inning pitched in America. After the leadoff single by Gilles, he did not give up a hit until the bottom of the sixth inning. At one point, he retired nine batters in a row.
The Honkers grabbed their first lead of the game with three runs in the third inning. Johnathan Fleek (Western Illinois) singled to lead off the inning and tied the game on a wild pitch. Griffin Neuer (Bellarmine) walked and scored on an Express error to take the lead for the Honkers. Two batters later, Weston Hatten (Nevada) singled to score David Norowyta (Hawaii).
Ho pitched well in his first Northwoods League start, but ran into trouble in the sixth inning. Eau Claire scored two runs on three hits. The Express scored their second run of the game on a sacrifice fly by Tyrus Greene (California). Nic Ready (Air Force) followed with a RBI single to tie the game.
Still tied 3-3 in the ninth inning, Eau Claire led off the with back-to-back singles. Justin Evans (Columbus State) followed by attempting a sacrifice bunt down the third base line to move the runners up. Honkers’ third baseman Ethan Ibarra (St. Cloud State) fielded the ball, but his throw was offline, allowing Tyrus Greene to score the winning run.
Kyle Ferderer (North Dakota State) pitched two innings for the Honkers in relief. He did not give up any hits with one strikeout.
Victor Chavez (Scottsdale CC) earned the win (1-0) for Eau Claire. He pitched one inning, giving up one hit with two strikeouts.
Garrett Cobb (Seminole State) took the loss (0-2) for Rochester. He pitched the ninth inning, but did not record an out.
The Flock will return to Mayo Field tomorrow night to take on the Eau Claire Express. Come to the ball game for Team-Up/Miracle Field Kick Off Night, presented by Meshbesher & Spence. Eddie Mathis (Bellarmine) is scheduled to make the start on the mound for the Honkers. Gates open at 6:00, first pitch is 7:05 pm.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. The 23-year old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 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, more than 160 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champion Ben Zobrist (CHC) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM) and Lucas Duda (NYM). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.
