July 29, 2021
St. Cloud, MN – In what was a pitcher’s duel throughout the game, St. Cloud (40-13) pulled away late for a 2-0 win over Eau Claire (22-31) on Thursday night.
The Rox have the most shutouts in the league, now with ten on the year. St. Cloud is the first team in the league to reach 40 wins this season, and with Mankato’s loss on Thursday, the Rox hold a four-and-a-half game advantage on the rest of the league. For the full Northwoods League standings, click here.
The pitching staff was dominant on Thursday, striking out 14 batters during the shutout. Riley Cornelio (TCU) led the way as the starter, throwing a season-high six innings. Cornelio struck out seven batters and allowed just four hits on the way to the win.
Josh Gainer (Long Island-Brooklyn) followed Cornelio with two shutout frames out of the bullpen. He struck out four batters himself and now has thrown 18 and two-thirds innings without allowing a run this season.
Finally, Kevin Davis (USC Upstate) earned his seventh save of the season, tying him for the lead on the team. Davis struck out the side in order to finish off the Rox’ big win to open up the series with Eau Claire.
After being shut out through seven innings, the Rox’ bats finally broke through in the bottom of the eighth. With two outs and the bases loaded, Eau Claire made an error on a ground ball from Jordan Barth (Augustana), which allowed the go-ahead run to score.
For a full box score from Thursday’s game, click here.
St. Cloud continues its three-game homestand with the series finale against Eau Claire on Friday night. First pitch from Joe Faber Field is scheduled for 7:05 pm.
The St. Cloud Rox 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. 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.stcloudrox.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rox as your favorite team.
