By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
All seemed lost for the St. Joseph Mustangs in the MINK League Divisional round Tuesday after Clarinda jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the first inning.
Little did they know that the A's (37-6) wouldn't score for the rest of the night.
The Mustangs (24-20) scored eight runs over the final three innings and stunned Clarinda with an 8-7 win at Clarinda Municipal Stadium, giving the Mustangs a spot in the MINK League Championship series.
Down 7-5 entering the ninth, the Mustangs loaded the bases and tied the game at 7-7 with one out, thanks to an RBI single from Sam Kissane. A sac fly by Jaxon Himel scored the go-ahead run.
Brady Loving pitched the final inning to earn the win and the save. Mack Stephenson made the start. Despite the seven runs spotted early, he lasted six innings and struck out four batters.
Himel, Sean O'Malley and Jake Grauberger all doubled, while Kissane and Himel both hit triples in the victory.
St. Joseph now goes for its seventh MINK League title, facing Sedalia (21-17) in a three-game championship series. The first game is Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Sedalia.
After an off-day Thursday, the series comes to Phil Welch Stadium on Friday. The third game would also be in St. Joseph Saturday if needed. Both games would start at 7 p.m. as well.