After the Chillicothe Mudcats clinched a postseason spot on a walk-off home run on Wednesday night, their exciting four game win streak in the MINK League was snapped on Thursday night, as they came out flat and lost 10-7 on the road against Nevada. The Griffons, who were already eliminated from MINK League postseason contention, snapped their own eight game losing streak in the process.

It was just the third time this season that the Mudcats and Griffons squared off, and it was Nevada’s second win over the Mudcats this season. Both teams will face off one final time in Nevada on Saturday night.

Chillicothe scored first on the night, with an RBI single from Noboru Shinohara getting the Mudcats in front, 1-0, in the top of the second. It was Shinohara’s second RBI base hit against Nevada on the road this season, the other RBI coming back in late May.

Unfortunately, Nevada would hold the lead from there for the rest of the game, scoring three runs in the bottom of the second, and two runs in the bottom of the third, to take a 5-1 lead, all on just two hits combined. Chillicothe starting pitcher Sungbin Park struggled, only going 1.2 innings, giving up four walks and hitting three Nevada batsmen.

Chillicothe would battle back though, as Sammy Cruz hit an opposite field two run home run to cut the deficit to 5-3, one of his three hits on the night in his best game at the plate this season. It was also Cruz’s first home run of the season. Nevada, however, would score three more runs, one unearned, in the bottom of the fourth to make the score 8-3 in their favor. One of their runs came on a solo home run by Diego Flores, which was Nevada’s only home run on the night.

Chillicothe wouldn’t give up though, as the home run party continued in the sixth. A solo shot from Nathan Cupp, the second Mudcats home run in the game, made the score 8-4 in the sixth, giving Cupp his first homer of the season.John Spoto would score on a wild pitch in the seventh, making it 8-5. Spoto finished with three hits, and two doubles on the night, continuing the fantastic week for him at the plate.

Nevada would ultimately score two decisive insurance runs, one of them unearned in the bottom of the eighth, creating a mountain to climb for the Mudcats heading into the top of the ninth. The Mudcats would not go away, as doubles from Spoto and Cruz in the ninth helped the Mudcats make the score 10-7.

Chillicothe ultimately sent the tying run to the plate, with runners at first and second and two outs. Unfortunately, there was no more later magic left for the Mudcats, as Drew Sanidad grounded into a fielder’s choice to end the game.

It was a sloppy defensive game from both teams on the evening, as Chillicothe and Nevada combined for nine total errors in the matchup. That included a Nevada player committing five errors on his own, but the Griffons’ offense helped back up their poor defense. Nevada has now scored 31 runs against Chillicothe in the three matchups against the Mudcats this season.

Chillicothe moves to 19-21 on the season, and is now 17-20 in MINK League action. the fall to 6-10 on the road, and lose their third game in the last four matchups that have taken place on the road. Nevada, on the other hand, picked up just their fifth home win of the season, a consolation prize for the team that was mathematically knocked out of postseason contention earlier this week.

The Mudcats still have three games to play, all of them on the road. If they win two of them, they will host a postseason game at Shaffer Park on Monday night. The Mudcats can also clinch a home postseason game, and the number four overall seed in the MINK League playoffs, with one win in their next three games, and a Sedalia loss in the Bombers’ regular season finale against Jefferson City on Friday night.

Next up for the Mudcats is the Clarinda A’s in a rescheduled game that will take place today at 4:00 p.m. It’s a single 7-inning game today on the road for the Mudcats, as they play the first game in a rare three-team doubleheader. Clarinda will face the Carroll Merchants in the second game of the doubleheader. Be sure to tune in this afternoon for more fun Mudcats baseball live on KCHI and on kchi.com.

By Ganesh Setty · July 18, 2024, 7:27 PM EDT

The Ninth Circuit on Thursday suggested it might certify a question to the Nevada Supreme Court over whether an insurer can subrogate against another carrier if an underlying, covered settlement doesn’t exceed…

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An ex Las Vegas councilwoman, former assembly member and current Nevada judge has been federally charged in connection with an alleged charity fraud scheme in which prosecutors say she pocketed more than $70,000 in donations intended to honor fallen officers.

Michele Fiore, 53, is charged with four counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, The U.S. Justice Department announced Wednesday.

According to the indictment handed down on Tuesday in Las Vegas, Fiore, who lives in the town of Pahrump, “solicited donations to build a statue honoring Las Vegas police officers” killed in the line of duty as a then-Las Vegas city councilwoman.

Pahrump is a small town not far from the California state line, at the southernmost tip of Nye County where Fiore is a justice of the peace.

Fiore is “a conservative firebrand and fervent gun-rights advocate who published a calendar of herself pictured with various high-powered firearms”, the Reno Gazette Journal, part of the USA TODAY Network reported. As an assemblywoman in 2015 she introduced a campus carry bill that would have allowed concealed carry permit holders to have guns on college campuses, at K-12 schools and at day care facilities.

Funds raised were to create statue to honor fallen officers

Fiore allegedly promised donors “100% of the contributions” would be used to create the statue, the indictment alleges.

But prosecutors said Fiore did not use the tens of thousands of dollars in charitable donations for the statue of the fallen officer and instead converted the money to her personal use.

“The donations were used to pay her political fundraising bills and rent and were transferred to family members, including to pay for her daughter’s wedding,” officials wrote in the release.

Federal court papers obtained by USA TODAY show Fiore is represented by Las Vegas-based attorney George P. Kelesis and was slated to enter a plea on the charges Friday.

USA TODAY has reached out to Kelesis.

‘A horrific scene’: Triple decapitation: Man accused of killing parents, family dog in California

Michele Fiore faces up to 20 years in prison on each felony count

The FBI Las Vegas Field Office is investigating the case which remained open Thursday, officials said.

If convicted, she faces a maximum of 20 years in prison on each criminal felony count.

Contributing: Jeffrey Meehan with the Reno Gazette Journal.

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.