Baconton Charter beats Bowdon, advances to Elite Eight

BOWDON — The swings kept coming.

So did the answers.

And when it mattered most, the Baconton Charter School Blazers delivered the one that sent them on.

Baconton Charter erupted for nine runs in two late innings Thursday afternoon to rally past Bowdon, 10-4, in a decisive Game 3 of the GHSA Class A Division II Sweet 16, punching its ticket to the Elite Eight.

“I am so proud of our guys,” head coach Marc Logue said. “They went out front first with that home run and our guys fought back and they fought back and they fought back. Corbin Suggs did an excellent job on the mound and Victor Esquivel did it again — another home run.”

With the win, the Blazers (23-8) will host Irwin County High School in the Elite Eight next Wednesday after Irwin County eliminated Screven County.

But it didn’t come easy.

After splitting Wednesday’s doubleheader — a 5-2 win in Game 1 and a 2-0 loss in Game 2 — Baconton Charter found itself trailing 3-1 through four innings Thursday, with Bowdon riding the momentum and the home crowd sensing an upset.

Then came the fifth.

Quinton Peterson led off with a single, and Kaden Logue followed with a walk, setting the table for a rally that would flip the game — and the series.

Daniel Cruz lined a double to right field to score one run. Esquivel followed with a single to center, driving in two more and giving the Blazers their first lead since the early innings.

Still, Baconton wasn’t finished.

After another walk and a two-out free pass to CJ Richardson loaded the bases, Hudson Coronati delivered the knockout punch — a bases-clearing double to center that stretched the lead to 7-3 and silenced the Bowdon dugout.

The inning was part of a six-run explosion that turned a tight elimination game into a Blazers advantage.

Esquivel, who had hit the first home run of his varsity career in Wednesday’s opener, struck again in the sixth — this time with even more at stake. With two outs, he crushed a solo shot over the center field fence to add insurance and continue a breakout series at the plate.

He finished with four RBIs, reaching base multiple times and delivering in every big moment.

Corbin Suggs followed Esquivel’s homer with an infield single, and Preston Hurst capped the scoring with a two-run double to left, pushing the lead to 10-4.

On the mound, Suggs went the distance, allowing five hits and four runs while working through traffic with poise. He struck out three and walked five, but consistently made pitches when it mattered.

Behind him, the Blazers played clean, error-free baseball — a steady presence in a game that could have unraveled early.

And it wasn’t just Suggs.

In a series defined by grit on the mound, all three Baconton starters went the distance — Coronati in Game 1, Cruz in Game 2 and Suggs in the clincher.

“These guys pitched their hearts out,” Logue said.

Bowdon struck first on a home run by Jonas Wigley and stayed within striking distance through the middle innings, but couldn’t withstand Baconton’s late surge.

Cruz and Esquivel each collected two hits, while the Blazers showed patience at the plate with 13 walks — including three apiece from Logue and Richardson — keeping pressure on Bowdon’s pitching staff throughout.

By the final out, the dugout emptied, and the Blazers had done what they’ve done all season — respond.

Now, they’re moving on.

One series down, one step closer — and for a team that refused to go quietly, the road to the state championship runs through Baconton next week..