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Pair Of Flames Helps Northwoods Team Advance
Aug. 20, 2010
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. - A duo which propelled the UIC baseball team to win plenty of games in the spring has taken their talents north for the summer to do the same for the Northwoods League's Eau Claire Express. The Northwoods League is a summer baseball league comprised of 16 teams of the top college players from around the country. Headquartered in Rochester, Minn., the league's teams are based primarily in Wisconsin and Minnesota, with one team each in Iowa (Waterloo), Michigan (Battle Creek) and Canada (Thunder Bay). The players are not paid which preserves their NCAA eligibility, however each team is operated similar to a professional minor league club, with wood bats, overnight road trips and baseballs that are up to minor league specifications all part of the Northwoods equation. After leading the Express to first and second half regular season championships and an overall regular season record of 48-22, UIC's Steve McGuiggan and Andy Leonard played pivotal roles in downing the Wisconsin Woodchucks in the best-of-three Division Series, 2-1. In last night's decisive game three, the Woodchucks scored first in the top of the third inning, but the Express answered right back in their half of the frame and never looked back. With the bases loaded, McGuiggan was hit by a pitch which brought in the tying run. Later in the inning it was Leonard who produced an RBI groundout to give Eau Claire a 2-1 advantage that they would not relinquish. The Express went on to win the ballgame, 6-2. McGuiggan and Leonard both have enjoyed productive summers in Wisconsin. McGuiggan, an Apple Valley, Minn. native, was named a South Division All-Star and led the team with seven home runs and ranked third with 27 RBI. Leonard, who hails from Orland Park, Ill., led the Express with 34 RBI and 65 hits in 65 games played.
The Express will move on to face the Rochester Honkers in the best-of-three Northwoods Championship Series beginning tonight at Carson Park in Eau Claire. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. and you can follow all the action live at www.northwoodsleague.tv. Photos courtesy of the Eau Claire Express
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