CAPE LEGION LIVES TO SEE STATE TITLE GAME

SPRINGFIELD -- Cape Girardeau's comeback kids did it again Saturday night. As a result, the Ford & Sons American Legion baseball team is just one victory away from its second consecutive state championship.

Ford & Sons pulled off its third straight comeback victory in the 1995 Missouri American Legion State Tournament, rallying from a 3-0 deficit to beat the Blue Springs A's 8-4.

Cape (44-13), by handing Blue Springs (57-14) its first loss in the double-elimination tournament, forced one final game for the state championship and a berth in the Central Plains Regional in Terre Haute, Ind. Cape and Blue Springs will square off at 1 p.m. today for the state title.

"We're still kicking," said a grinning Cape manager Doc Yallaly, whose team picked up its third straight elimination-game victory after losing to Jefferson City Friday in its second tournament contest. "I felt like we could come back and do this because we've got the pitching. Now we just need one more."

Ford & Sons used a five-run seventh inning, solid starting pitcher by Talley Haines and brilliant relief work by Corey Knight to upend the A's, who were playing only their third tournament game compared to Cape's fifth tourney contest.

Haines, knocked out early in Friday's win over Joplin, bounced back with a strong performance. He worked 6 1/3 innings, allowing eight hits and three runs. Haines struck out two and walked three.

"Talley did exactly what we needed him to do," Yallaly said.

So did Knight. The hard-throwing righthander replaced Haines in the seventh and worked out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam to preserve a 3-3 tie. Knight was rewarded with the victory when Cape exploded in the bottom of the seventh. In 2 2/3 innings, Knight allowed three hits and one run. He fanned three and walked one.

"I just wanted to come in and do my best and keep us in the game," said Knight. "I felt good."

Cape had just five hits but made the most of them and also took advantage of seven walks by Blue Springs' pitchers. Jason Bowers, continuing his strong play after bouncing back from an ankle injury that sidelined him for the zone tournament, had two hits and scored two runs. Bowers has seven hits in the tourney. Scott VanGennip, also having a big state tournament, got his ninth hit of the tourney and drove in two runs. Aaron Barham also had two RBIs while Lance Craft and Robert Kern both scored twice.

Blue Springs grabbed a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning on a two-out home run by Brad Kessler, his 11th homer of the season. The A's made it 3-0 in the fourth, getting two hits.

Mark Marron, the Blue Springs starter, retired the first nine batters he faced, throwing very few pitches in the process. Cape finally got its first baserunner in the fourth as leadoff batter Craft walked. The speedy Craft, as he has done so many times all season, then manufactured a run all by himself. He stole second and third, then come home on a wild pitch to make it 3-1.

When Kern drew a one-out walk and a pitch to Jeremy Johnson went back to the screen, Marron -- despite not allowing a hit -- was replaced on the mound by Wade Waldren. Waldren completed a walk to Johnson, which was charged to Marron. Waldren then walked Ben Arbeiter to load the bases. Barham delivered a fly ball to center that scored Kern, making it 3-2. So Cape had two runs without the benefit of a hit.

Ford & Sons got its first hit of the contest in the fifth as Bowers led off with a solid single up the middle. Bowers stole second and scored on a two-out single by VanGennip for a 3-3 tie.

The A's threatened to regain the lead in the seventh as two hits and an intentional walk loaded the bases with one out. Knight then replaced Haines on the mound and blew six straight strikes past two befuddled Blue Springs batters to escape the jam.

Asked whether he was going for strikeouts in that situation, Knight smiled and said, "I was hoping for it."

Cape came right back with its five-run uprising in the bottom of the seventh, using three hits, two walks and an error. Barham had an RBI single while VanGennip, Kern and Johnson all drove in runs.

Blue Springs got a run in the ninth, but Knight finished the A's off.

"These guys just keep coming back," said Yallaly. "I believe we're going to win this thing."