South Pointe falls short in 4A baseball title-decider

A.C. Flora fans and students flooded South Pointe’s baseball field to soak in a sixth baseball state title Tuesday night.

The sunny, 80 degree weather for Game 2 in Rock Hill was the perfect storm for A.C. Flora, which took the game 8-1. Flora improved to 25-8, the same record South Pointe finished the season with. This year's Stallion baseball team made program history with its first state championship appearance, while the Falcons won their fourth title since 2012.

Senior Coleman Pope lead Flora with two hits and two runs, while Harmon Cox and Willis Bethea each drove in two runs.

"They came out, worked hard and accepted everything we asked them to do," Flora coach Andy Hallett said. "We come out in the playoffs and we win eight in a row, and we find ourselves sitting here celebrating."

A.C. Flora scored four runs in the second inning and didn't look back. Up 1-0, lead-off hitter Coleman Pope popped a single over third baseman, Stephen Thompson's head, and drove in a runner for a two point Falcon advantage.

Pope's RBI was followed by a double to left field from Willis Bethea that drove in two more. Sophomore Leighton Long joined the party with a single that brought in another and stretched the lead to 5-0. The Stallions responded with a run in the bottom of the second, but were unable to catch up.

This story was originally published May 17, 2017 at 12:28 AM with the headline "South Pointe falls short in 4A baseball title-decider."