Willmar Travels To Carson Park To Take On Great Plains East Foe Eau Claire

The Matchup: The Willmar Stingers (43-16) will take on Great Plains East foe the Eau Claire Express (34-27) for a two-game series at Carson Park on August 5th and 6th.

Additional Arm: The Stingers have added right-handed pitcher J.D. Hennen (Augustana University/Alexandria, MN.) to the roster for the rest of the second half and playoffs. Hennen made two appearances during his freshman season with the Vikings. He pitched against Quincy (Mass.) on March 11th and against Wayne State (Neb.) on April 26th.

Players To Watch: For Willmar, Kyle Payne (Northwest Nazarene University) has a .311 batting average and has 41 hits with 33 RBI in 132 plate appearances. Payne was another Stinger that started for the Team West in the Great Plains Division All- Star game in Bismarck, North Dakota. The speedy third baseman also had a key triple in the game before the event was called due to rain in the seventh inning.

The Great Plains East Division All-Star Dylan O’Connell (Western Kentucky University) will be in the spotlight for the Express. O’Connell leads Eau Claire in runs (41) and is second on the team in the categories of batting average (.356) and home runs (7).

Tonight’s Pitchers: Jack Kelley (Palomar College) will get the call from Stingers pitching coach Josh Teichroew. Kelley (0-1) has a 5.71 ERA. In four appearances, he totals 16 strikeouts and has allowed eight free passes.

For the Express, Isaiah Katz (University of Wisconsin- La Crosse) will be making his eighth appearance this season. Katz () has collected 26 strikeouts and walked eight batters in 26.2 innings of work.

Last Meeting: Willmar last met Eau Claire in early July when they were swept during a rainy series by scores of 15-5 and 8-7 in front of the home fans at Bill Taunton Stadium.

Keys To The Series:

Stone Miyao.
Shutdown Bullpen.
Strike First.

First Pitch: Game one of the series will take place at 6:35 (C.T). Game two will be a matinee game at 2:05. Both games of the series will be played at Carson Park in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

For more coverage of the Stingers, visit the West Central Tribune online at www.wctrib.com.

The 2023 season is presented by J.D. Kreps Financial Group, empowering investors with powerful financial advice.

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The Willmar Stingers 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. Now in its 30th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world 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, over 325 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 (NYM), 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 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.willmarstingers.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Stingers as your favorite team.