AC Flora wins 4A Lower State baseball title
As Will Bethea crossed home plate with the final run of A.C. Flora’s 12-2 victory against Hilton Head in six innings of the Class 4A Lower State baseball championship, coach Andy Hallett was making a beeline from the third base coaching box to his assistant coaches on the first base side.
They all shared hugs as the Falcons advanced to the state championship series for the first time since 2014, when the Falcons capped a three-year run of state championships.
“The year, the kids, the team, the stuff,” Hallett rattled off. “To watch our team play as well as they have, I couldn’t be more proud of the guys that wear that uniform.”
A.C. Flora (23-7) will host South Pointe on Saturday at a time to be determined in the first game of the best-of-three championship series.
The Falcons have run roughshod through the Lower State bracket. They went 6-0 and outscored the opposition 56-10.
It was much the same in the clincher against the Seahawks. An eight-run third inning ended much of the suspense. Andrew Walker, Baker Cox and Coleman Pope each had two RBI in the frame. Walker and Cox had two-run doubles, and Pope added a two-run home run just over the wall in left.
Pope, the only player remaining from the 2014 state title team, added another two-run home run in the fifth.
“I made a couple of minor adjustments, and I’m just seeing it really well right now,” Pope said. “I got a couple of balls over the fat part of the plate and I put two good swings on it.”
The big inning was more than enough for freshman Harmon Cox. The right-hander came on in relief to pitch the final four innings, allowing an unearned run on two hits with four strikeouts and one walk. He retired the final seven hitters he faced.
He and Bethea combined on a three-hitter.
“I can’t speak enough of what Harmon did on the mound,” Hallett said. “That was absolutely incredible.”
Hallett didn’t know how this team would turn out with several young players in the lineup. But they’re back where the Falcons have been eight times in the past 16 seasons – playing for a state championship.
“It’s the first time here for most of them, and the moment can get a little big sometimes,” Hallett said. “I’ve talked to the kids about trusting the process, trusting the coaching staff. We did a great job of handling adversity early then coming back and getting the big inning.”
W: Harmon Cox, L: Logan Toomer. Hitters: ACF: Coleman Pope, 2-4, 2 HR, 4 RBI; Will Bethea 2-2; Andrew Walker 2-2, 2 RBI; Baker Cox 2-3, 2 2B, 3 RBI. HH: Koty Brigham 2-2.
This story was originally published May 10, 2017 at 9:24 PM with the headline "AC Flora wins 4A Lower State baseball title."