St. Cloud, Minn. – The second half of the Northwoods League season got off to an exciting start on Wednesday at Joe Faber Field, as the St. Cloud Rox and the Eau Claire Express did battle in a thriller to open a two game series.

The top two North division teams in the first half wound up in a shootout at the Rock Pile, with the Express (26-11) topping the Rox (24-12) by a final score of 11-8 in ten innings.

The Express got out to an early lead, scoring two runs in the top of the first. St. Cloud starter Carlo Graffeo (Southeastern Louisiana) would settle down from there, not allowing another earned run in his next five innings. Eau Claire would add another six runs in the seventh, extending their lead to 8-0.

The Rox were held hitless until the bottom of the eighth, when Marcus Carson (Kentucky) punched through a single. That would spark a rally that saw four consecutive walks bring home two runs.

Aaron Rozek (Minnesota State, Mankato) came out of the bullpen to start the eighth and had a solid outing, throwing two innings without allowing a run and striking out three batters.

With the outcome looking bleak in the bottom of the ninth, the Rox launched a massive effort that would put them back into the game.

Back-to-back hit by pitches and a single from Brandon Benson (Georgia College) would load the bases with no outs. Two batters later Drew Freedman (Wake Forest) singled and Webb Bobo (Southeastern Louisiana) lifted a sacrifice fly that brought in two more runs, halving the Eau Claire lead.

Three more walks, a couple wild pitches, an error, and a hit would plate four more runs in the inning, completing an eight run comeback for the Rox. The eight run deficit is the largest that the Rox have come back from so far this season.

Eau Claire would score three runs in the top of the tenth, giving them an 11-8 lead. Bobo would be hit by a pitch in the bottom half of the inning giving the Rox a base runner, but it was not enough as the Express slammed the door shut on St. Cloud.

The Rox and Express will play again on Thursday night at Joe Faber Field. It will be Augie Rodriguez Replica Jersey giveaway night presented by Coborn’s, Times Media, and 104.7 KCLD. The first 400 kids 14 and under will receive a replica jersey of the Rox manager.

The St. Cloud Times Player of the Game was Webb Bobo, who drew three walks, was hit by a pitch and drove in a run.. For more coverage of the Rox during the 2016 season visit www.sctimes.com.

For more stats and information about the game, here is the boxscore.

Single game tickets can be purchased 24 hours a day at www.stcloudrox.com, by calling (320) 240-9798 or by visiting the Rox ticket office located at the Municipal Athletic Complex.

The St. Cloud Rox are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 23rd season of summer collegiate baseball, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 18 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 150 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (CHC). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.stcloudrox.com