Flagstaff Stuns Coconino To Advance To The 4A State Baseball Tournament

The 20th-seeded Flagstaff Eagles had fallen to 13th-seeded Coconino twice this season, but the two teams met with a spot in the 4A state baseball playoffs on the line at Coconino High School Wednesday. The Eagles jumped out to a 4-0 lead through two innings with Luke Wilson driving in three runs and starting pitcher Justin Cordasco hitting a solo home run. It was 5-2 Eagles in the fifth inning when the Panthers Cole Gillespie hit a two-run home run to cut the Flagstaff lead to 5-4. In the sixth inning, the Eagles scored five runs with both Drew Smith and Spencer Smith each driving in a run and Jake Carpenter smacking a two-run double to increase their lead to 10-4. Spencer Smith would add a solo home run and the Panthers would score twice, but it wasn’t enough as Flagstaff completed the upset of Coconino 11-6. The Eagles hit the road Saturday to play a first round game. Coconino finished their season with a 12-6 record. Flagstaff will learn who they will play in the first round on Thursday.