CAPE JR. LEGION TO PLAY FOR TITLE

CHARLESTON, Mo. -- Seth Hudson belted a bases-loaded double in a four-run sixth as Cape Girardeau Best Mortgage Junior American Legion advanced to the championship game of the District 14 Tournament with a 7-5 victory Sunday over top-seeded Sikeston.

Best Mortgage, the No. 2 seed, will square off with Sikeston again today in the 1 p.m. championship contest. Sikeston, which went on to defeat Tri-County 13-5 in the loser's bracket final, must defeat Cape twice to claim the title.

Cape (39-9) evened its season record against Sikeston to 3-3 with Lee Essner picking up the win with 1 1/3 innings of hitless relief. John Thies started and allowed all five runs on nine hits in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out nine and walked six.

Cape trailed 5-3 entering the bottom of the sixth, where it put together three of its six hits on the game. With one run already in, Hudson, who had two hits, doubled with two out to clear the bases.