St. Joseph Mustangs force a Game Three in the Mink League Championship series
By Calvin Silvers
Many St. Joseph community members know that if you hear bats cracking and an audience cheering at Phil Welch Stadium come the end of July, that means two things… The Mustangs are competing in the MINK League Championship series and summer is ending.
Game One was played at the two-seeded Clarinda A’s home field in Clarinda, Iowa, where the A’s used team effort as seven different players drove in a run and all nine batters in the starting lineup reached base at least once as they took the contest with a 10-7 score.
It was survive and advance on Friday night in front of a loud crowd for the one-seeded St. Joseph Mustangs, as they used 10 hits to capture five runs for the 5-3 victory, forcing a Game Three at 7 p.m. on Saturday at Phil Welch Stadium.
Neither team tallied a run on the scoreboard, as the contest saw 1 ½ innings pitched in quick successive. Mason Holton was the one who got things rolling for the ’Stangs in the bottom second inning, as he advanced Trevor McCollum to second base after McCollum was walked.
McCollum made it all the way to third base before Noah Bodenhausen singled to left field, bringing in both McCollum and Jordan black for the two RBI. That was the bulk of the excitement in the inning, as Carson Schrack and Darius Freeman lined and grounded out.
Carrying that 2-0 lead into the top of the third inning, the A’s took the lead right back after Khi Holiday singled to right field. Now with two outs, Mustangs wanted to keep that goose egg on the scoreboard, but Conner McKnatt singled as well, bringing home Holiday to cut the lead to 2-1, and setting up Sean Bazemore on third for Clarinda.
A Drake Cobb hit traveled directly at Mustangs’ shortstop Holton, but his error allowed two runs to cross home plate before Tyler Macon flew out to center field to retire the inning with the A’s leading 3-2.
The lead wouldn’t last long as Jeter Mauzey was the first up to bat, using a home run to help the Mustangs tie this one at 3-3.
The next scoring affair wouldn’t come until the bottom fifth, as back-to-back errors committed by the A’s set up Mustang runners on first and second. A Mauzey single to left field allowed Freeman to advance to second while Schrack was on third.
Holton used a sacrifice out to right field, as Schrack picked up the unearned run. The inning ended with a McCollum flyout, but the Mustangs retook the lead 4-3.
Another St. Joseph run in the eighth kept the lead a two-run advantage, and the A’s were unable to find their three runs in the bottom ninth.
