Sean Williams/MDN Thomas Rollauer (22) of the Minot Hot Tots at the plate against the Eau Claire Express on Monday night at Corbett Field.

Following the first home win in franchise history, the Minot Hot Tots (3-10 overall) looked to continue building momentum on the field as their series with the Eau Claire Express (6-7 overall) moved along on Monday night.

Still aiming for their first series win in franchise history, another victory on Monday night could give the Hot Tots a great opportunity to keep checking off boxes and build team confidence early on during their inaugural season.

Adding to the theme of firsts, Monday night’s contest was the first time the Hot Tots appeared on a national streaming service with ESPN+ broadcasting the game, giving people across the country a look at what was cooking up at Corbett Field.

Striking quick and getting an equally strong performance at the plate and on the mound, the Hot Tots were able to win consecutive games for the first time this year, as they took down the Express by a final of 11-1 on Monday night.

Marking his second time on the mound this summer, right-hander Rawley Hector was on the bump for Minot, and he made quick work of the Express in the top of the first inning by facing the minimum and giving his team a chance to strike first.

In the bottom half of the first that featured everyone in the Hot Tots’ lineup getting a trip to the plate, Minot got the party started early by taking a 4-0 lead by the end of the frame. The duo of Christian Perez and Nic Pepe did the most damage for the Hot Tots, driving in two runs each during the lengthy rally.

A single by Ryan Recio and walks by Gavin Bennett and Travis Stapleton set the table for a bases loaded, no outs situation for the Hot Tots as they looked to balloon their lead in the bottom of the third.

They proceeded to do so, utilizing bases loaded walks from Ian Halverson, Thomas Rollauer and Brannon Mondragon to extend their advantage to 7-0 at the end of the third inning. Pairing the strong day at the plate with solid pitching, Hector held the Express to three hits through five innings in what was his longest and most successful outing of the summer so far.

Being an integral part of helping the team continue to push their lead, a single by Recio in the bottom of the fourth led to another run, as Recio came around to score on a fielder’s choice to make it an 8-0 ballgame.

With an eight-run cushion, Zach Hoehn took over on the mound in the sixth inning and picked up where Hector left off. Through two innings, Hoehn gave up two hits and got tagged for a run in the eighth but kept the Hot Tots in a great position to get a win.

Kade Benavidez relieved Hoehn in the eighth and inherited a runner on second with no outs. Thanks to a gold-glove caliber catch by Rollauer in center field and Bennett throwing a runner out that tried to steal second, the defense rallied behind Benavidez to help him escape the jam unscathed.

Tacking on three more runs across their final two innings of work, the Hot Tots took an 11-1 lead into the ninth inning, where they were three outs away from consecutive victories for the first time this summer. The Hot Tots achieved that goal, taking down the Express by the same score.

Tonight, the Hot Tots and Express will wrap up their four-game series, as Minot looks to take the series with one more win. First pitched scheduled for 6:35 p.m. at Corbett Field.