High school baseball/softball: Coppell grabs crucial win in district 5-6A playoff race

“I feel like every pitch was working,” Floren said. “The slider was really well on two-strike counts. I could throw that curveball anytime I wanted, for a strike, and the changeup was especially good to the lefties late in counts.”

Floren’s 10th strikeout came during the final frame with two runners on. The Navarro commit also had two other innings where he kept two runners on-base unscathed.

Coppell planned to attack Flower Mound pitcher Tyler Cochran early and recorded all three runs in the first inning, starting with a lead-off triple from Floren.

“That started the whole thing going and then seven shutout innings,” Coppell head coach Armando Garza said. “Yeah, it's unbelievable.

“I know that we lost on paper 2-0 (On Tuesday). But these boys believed in the approach that we had, and then came in today, and trusted that same approach. It showed.”

After Floren’s triple, Cain Frosk’s sacrifice fly scored him. Aaron Malick reached home after a pick-off error and Ryan Hill drove in Suhoon Cho for the third run.

“It felt great,” Floren said. “We came with a gameplan to come and attack the pitcher, and that's exactly what we did. It felt great to get the bats going early in the game.”

Next week’s final two games will be a de facto play-in series for Coppell against Marcus.

“It's very challenging, but also a lot of fun,” Floren said of playing in a tough District 5-6A field. “I mean, almost all these teams we play are good enough to go two or three rounds deep, so it's a lot of fun to play against.”

Friday’s top performers

Baseball

Brooks Nelson, McKinney North: Nelson recorded 13 strikeouts for McKinney North who pulled off a sweep over Melissa with a 2-0 win.

Chandler Hart, Allen: Hart’s 10 strikeouts in five innings helped Allen fend off McKinney Boyd, 6-0, to improve to 20-8. Brooks Bettley had the save.

Reid Overstreet, Rockwall: Overstreet’s solo-shot homer in the bottom of the 4th helped push Rockwall’s lead over rival Rockwall-Heath before his team held on for the big 7-2 win.

Colton Stovall, Frisco Emerson: Colton Stovall’s walk-off single completed a late rally for Frisco Emerson in the team’s 5-4 win over Burleson Centennial. Stovall finished with two hits and two RBIs.

Chase Pearrow, Waxahachie: Chase Pearrow’s big senior season continued Friday night going four-for-four at the plate and recording his 12th home run in Waxahachie’s 15-1 win over Lancaster. Jax Robinson also added his seventh home run of the season in the game.

Softball

Finlee Williams, Melissa: Oklahoma commit Finlee Williams recorded a staggering three home runs in Melissa’s 15-0 win over Prosper Walnut Grove.

Avery Pitts and Emmie Santos, Forney: Forney’s pitching duo of Pitts and Santos held off Rockwall-Heath for a 7-5 win with 13 combined strikeouts.

Katie Kinzig, Lovejoy: Kinzig finished going four-of-four at the plate with two RBIs in Lovejoy’s 10-1 win over Sherman. Gisela Boitmann added two hits of her own in addition to striking out five in four innings.

Hadley Bright, Birdville: Hadley Bright’s two-run RBI-double in the Top of the 6th gave Birdville its first lead since the opening frame and her team held on to beat Argyle 3-2.

Abby Jackson and Katelyn Crosby, Frisco Reedy: Abby Jackson and Katelyn Crosby finished with two home runs each and six combined RBIs in Reedy’s 20-6 win over Highland Park.

Ryland Uland, Prosper Richland: Uland’s solo-run homer in the Top of the 3rd extended Prosper Richland’s lead over Aubrey in what would eventually be the team’s 12-1 win.

Finley Montgomery, Denton Guyer: Notre Dame signee Finley Montgomery tossed a no-hitter Friday night in Guyer’s 17-0 win over Denton Braswell. She recorded 10 strikeouts in five innings.