Prep Baseball Report

Become a Member

More +

GHSA Playoff Round Up: Friday, May 8th & Saturday, May 9th.

May 11, 2026
Prep Baseball Georgia
Staff

It is playoff time in the state of Georgia, the best time of the year. As we nearly hit the 300 game mark in the regular season, we have 400 games in site with a full slate of playoffs the next month.

We will be recapping each day of games, so be sure to check back daily to see how the games went. 

Friday

Houston @ Woodward (DH)

Scores:

GM1: 10-3, Woodward W

GM2: 7-6, Houston W

Standouts:

Rolan Potts, RHP/3B, 2027, Woodward


Carson Ray, SS, 2026, Woodward


Khalon Davis, 3B, 2026, Woodward


Keeler Edwards, OF, 2026, Woodward


Aidan Beall, RHP, 2026, Woodward


Kaiden Harvey, 3B, 2029, Houston Co.


Nick Hardee, 3B/1B, 2027, Houston Co.


Isaiah Galason, SS, 2026, Houston Co


Peyton Nauss, 2B, 2027, Houston Co.

Key Moments:

GM1: It was a quick start offensively for both squads as it took only until the second frame for both to score. T2, Nick Hardee reached on a BB and scored on a Peyton Nauss SF to make it 1-0. Woodward punched back hard B2 as 4 came home to make it 4-1, Elijah Lyles, Khalon Davis, and Myles Tate got hits while Rolan Potts left the yard; Keller Edwards would also score after he walked. T3, Raymond Byrd hit a 2B and came around to score on a Hardee RBI 1B, making it 4-2. B3, Davis reached again on a hard hit 2B and then scored on an Edwards RBI to take the run back as it was 5-2. Davian Hammonds reached on a D3K T4 and came around to score on a Kaiden Harvey RBI 2B to tally it at 5-3. B5, Davis kept up the hot game and left the hard dead center for a solo shot to retake the 3 run advantage 6-3. The 6th was full of a couple 1Bs and BBs for Woodward as they added 4 more to secure the 10-3 W.

GM2: What looked to be a dominating sweep by Woodward turned into a late thriller. It was all Woodward in the first 5 frames. The second inning saw 3 War Eagles plate as Keeler Edwards, Spencer Norman and Carson Ray recorded 1Bs in the inning making it 3-0. B4 is when Houston responded with a Isaiah Galason hustle 2B and run scored via a Noah Odom 6-3, now 3-1. T5 and T6 Woodward responded and added some insurance. Rolan Potts, Elijah Lyles and Carson Ray all picked up RBIs to make it 6-1. B6 was a long inning full of finely placed 1Bs, BBs and taking advantage of Es, as the Houston Bears sent all 9 to the plate and scored 4 to make it 6-5. Woodward was unable to respond T7, and the momentum was all Bears as they rode more HBPs, BBs, and Es to eventually win on a walk off balk, 7-6.

Takeaway: It was an intriguing two games of high level baseball that were both very different for each squad. G1 saw some good back and forth before Woodward’s hot bats continued to produce and slug over the yard. They work hard and anyone in the lineup is capable of being “that guy” who delivers during the day. When successful, both ends of Woodward’s play style are not afraid to attack directly whether it be early count hits or pitching right at potent bats. On the other end, Houston made sure to take advantage of mistakes in G2 as they rode them to a huge, season saving comeback. They push the issue and like to keep pressure on by being active in the baselines. These two squads grind and have the talent to win it all, G3 tomorrow will be a very energetic atmosphere as the winner advances to the Final 4.

Etowah @ North Gwinnett

Score: Etowah sweep, 12-5 & 7-4

Standouts:

Matthew Sharman, RHP/1B, 2026, Etowah


Trevor Condon, OF, 2026, Etowah


Calvin Brown, OF, 2026, North Gwinnett


Allan Ichim, SS, 2028, North Gwinnett


Nate Curcio, RHP/SS, 2027, Etowah


Caden Borcherding, C, 2027, Etowah


Evan Nguyen, 2B, 2026, North Gwinnett

Key Moments: In GM1, the Bulldogs would jump out to an early lead thanks to some untimely errors from the Eagles and clutch RBI hits from Brooks DeRosa and Calvin Brown that put plate 3 across the first three innings. Etowah would find their groove in the 4th and proceed to not relinquish the lead for the rest of the doubleheader. In the 6-run inning, Matthew Sharman would open things up with a leadoff HR to CF as the Eagles would bat around in the inning including 9 reaching base in the inning. A Colin Anderson 2B in the 6th would help lead to another 3-run inning for Etowah in the 6th proceeded by 3 more in the 7th highlighted by an RBI 3B from Trevor Condon; The Eagles would carry the momentum alongside the potent offense into GM2 with some big innings early that would set the tone for the game. The first 5 would reach base in the 2nd inning, finished off by the Deion Cole pull-side 2-run 1B after the outfielder stole sure-fire extra bases in the inning prior with a diving catch in LF. Things would continue in the third for Etowah as they would jump out to a 7-0 lead in a hurry. 5 singles in the inning alongside quality base running would be crucial to the 5-run inning. A big 5th inning from North Gwinnett would help score 4 runs behind RBI doubles from Evan Nguyen and Calvin Brown that would cut the lead to 3. A complete game outing from Nate Curcio would keep the Bulldogs lineup at bay outside of that 5th inning and push the Eagles to the doubleheader sweep.

Ian’s Takeaway: Etowah and the Final Four have been inevitable in recent years as the Eagles have now made it in the last 5 straight seasons. Trevor Condon continues to pace this offense in every way as the outfielder would reach base 7 times in the DH while adding 4 RBI and 3 R. Middle of the order continues to produce at the right time as Matthew Sharman, Caden Borcherding, Colin Anderson, Deion Cole, and Nate Curcio all coming through with clutch knocks in different situations throughout the night. Sharman and Curcio continue to provide the 1-2 punch needed at the top of the rotation with gritty CG wins in the sweep and will be key as the Eagles move to a tough state semifinal against Carrollton. North Gwinnett came into the spring replacing 17 seniors from last year’s team and showed ability to gel quickly with a talented young core stepping up huge. The sophomore trio of Brooks DeRosa, Junwoo Jang and Allan Ichim will be important building blocks going forward while returning talented upperclassmen to build off this year's run and look to be a major contender in 6A next spring.

Glynn Academy @ Pope
Scores:
GM 1: Pope 6 Glynn Academy 0
GM 2: Pope 9 Glynn Academy 4
Standouts:
Jensen Morneau, C, 2027, Pope


Parker Troughton, UTL, 2027, Pope


Jacob Israel, RHP, 2026, Pope
Kingston Jones, MIF, 2028, Pope


Kayden Campbell, 3B, 2026, Pope


Braden Milkwick, 2B, 2026, Glynn Academy


Conner Ellis, 1B, 2027, Glynn Academy


Key Moments:
GM 1: The elite 8 opened up with a pitching match up between 2 seniors. Jacob Sammis for Glynn Academy and Jacob Israel for Pope. They went back and forth for a couple of innings until the Greyhounds capitalized on a couple walks with a Jensen Morneau backside barrel to give them the early lead. From there they tacked on a few more runs with a Ben Hill SAC fly, Kingston Jones single with the INF in and finally a Henry Bauer liner up the middle to make it 5-0 in the 3rd. The Greyhounds would get one more across in the 4th on a Kayden Campbell SAC fly. Glynn had a chance in the 4th with runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs, but they were able to work out of it. Jacob Israel would go the distance for the complete game and game 1 win for the Greyhounds.

GM 2: Game 2 would take a different turn with Glynn jumping out to the early 3-0 lead after a huge 2 out double by Braden Milkwick and then another 2 out single by Conner Ellis to drive in 2 more. Keegan Mathis would take to the mound and square of against Nick Bobrowski, who has been near perfect so far in the playoffs. Mathis worked a clean 1st to lead off the game, but get into some trouble in the 2nd after Kayden Campbell led off the game with a solo home run. Kingston Jones then smoked one down the right field line for a triple and to tie the game at 3-3. After 2 the Greyhounds would lead 6-4. Mathis would settle in on the mound and keep Glynn in it. Pope ended up scratching a few more across with a double by Parker Troughton and single by Jensen Morneau. Bobrowski settled in as well and made pitches when he needed to. The Red Terrors had some life with the bases loaded, but Jacob Sammis just missed one for a fly out to deep center that would end up sealing the deal for the Greyhounds.

Huddy Takeaway:
This was an exciting series for me to attend with it only being my 2nd look at Pope this season and 1st of Glynn. We got a chance to see a ton of the Glynn guys in the preseason. Conner Ellis was one that stood out then and he came through with a couple huge hits in both games. Braden Milkwick really impressed as well, going 4 for 4 in game 2. This was my first in-game look at Keegan Mathis, and safe to say he could be an arm that could really click over the next year or so. As for Pope, it is nothing new. They threw strikes, didn’t make mistakes and came up with big hits when they were needed. They will head south to Houston County for a rematch to punch their ticket to the championship game.

Cherokee @ Parkview

Scores:

GM 1: Parkview 11 Cherokee 8

GM 2 : Cherokee 3 Parkview 1

Standouts:

Malachi Washington, CF, 2026, Parkview


Ellis Appling, OF/2B, 2026, Parkview


Grant Lambert, 3B/OF, 2026, Parkview


Andre Sweet, OF/SS, 2026, Cherokee


Caden Mcghee, SS/OF, 2027, Cherokee

GM 1: This series started with plenty of fireworks, as both offenses came out of the gates firing and setting the tone for a high-energy matchup. In the bottom of the 1st, Malachi Washington showed patience at the plate by working a long at-bat and drawing a walk to get things started for Parkview. Santos Wade followed with a hard-hit single to put two runners on for Ellis Appling, who delivered the first big swing of the night. Appling got the bat head out on a pitch over the plate and launched a three-run HR to LF, giving Parkview an early 3-0 lead and bringing energy to the dugout. Cherokee wasted no time responding in the second inning, putting together one of the biggest offensive frames of the game. The Warriors exploded for six runs behind quality at-bats and timely power. Caden McGee came through with the biggest hit of the inning, unloading on a grand slam that completely shifted the momentum. Andre Sweet followed right behind him with a solo HR of his own, as Cherokee quickly turned a deficit into a 7-3 lead heading into the third inning. Parkview continued to compete and never let the game get away from them. Malachi Washington sparked the offense once again with a solo HR, showing his ability to impact the game in multiple ways. Santos Wade continued his strong night at the plate by working another deep count before driving a double into the gap to put runners in scoring position. Joseph Mendez followed with a clutch two-run double that brought Parkview right back into the game. The Panthers continued to apply pressure throughout the middle innings, forcing Cherokee into a few miscues while stringing together quality at-bats and consistently putting traffic on the bases. With the momentum beginning to shift, Parkview grabbed an 8-7 lead heading into the 5th inning and never looked back. The lineup continued to grind out competitive AB’s and add insurance runs late, while the pitching staff settled in and made key pitches in big spots to slow down the Cherokee offense after the early innings. Parkview fed off the home energy and continued to make winning plays on both sides of the ball, eventually pulling away to secure an 11-8 victory in game one of the series.

GM 2 : Game two was the complete opposite of game one, as both pitchers settled in early and turned this matchup into a tightly contested pitcher’s duel. Cherokee handed the ball to Aidan Cifuentes, and the right-hander attacked hitters from the first pitch. He filled up the strike zone with a good mix of pitches, changed speeds effectively, and kept Parkview hitters off balance throughout the night. Cifuentes worked with confidence and consistently got ahead in counts, allowing his defense to work behind him. Parkview threatened early on multiple occasions but could never come through with the big hit needed to break the game open. On the other side, Grant Benefield was equally impressive for Parkview. The right-hander showed good feel for the zone with a firm FB and mixed in a quality breaking ball that generated weak contact and chase swings out of the zone. Benefield competed every inning and gave Parkview a chance to stay in the game against a dangerous Cherokee lineup. Parkview finally broke through in the top of the 3rd inning when Grant Lambert came through with an RBI single to RF, giving the Panthers a 1-0 lead. Cherokee answered immediately in the bottom half, as Brandon Holstein and Josiah Davis both delivered base hits to put runners in scoring position. Brennan Roth followed with a clutch RBI single to even the score at 1-1 and shift momentum back toward the Warriors dugout. The game remained tight into the later innings, with both teams battling for every run. Cherokee capitalized on a Parkview miscue in the 5th inning to plate two runs and take a 3-1 lead. From there, the Warriors leaned on their pitching and defense to close things out. Parkview made one final push in the top of the 7th, loading the bases with two outs and putting the tying run on base. With the pressure mounting, Cherokee stayed composed and recorded the final out on a ground ball to second base, securing a hard-fought 3-1 victory to even the series.

Takeaways: This was a competitive series between two solid ball clubs. Parkview showed the ability to get the timely hit and come through with runners in scoring position to send them to the Final 4. Cherokee played hard throughout the series and did the little things right to keep themselves in every ball game. Parkview’s pitching staff attacked the zone and trusted the defense behind them, while the lineup continued to string together quality at-bats in big moments. The energy and toughness from both teams made this a fun and highly competitive series to watch. Expect Parkview to keep playing with confidence and momentum as they head to the Final 4 to face another very talented opponent in North Paulding.

Saturday

Houston County @ Woodward Academy

Score: Houston County win, 8-7

Standouts:

Kaiden Harvey, 3B, 2029, Houston County


Myles Tate, 1B/3B, 2028, Woodward Academy


Ethan Kenney, 1B, 2026, Houston County


Spencer Norman, OF, 2028, Woodward Academy


Noah Odom, OF, 2026, Houston County


Khalon Davis, 3B, 2026, Woodward Academy


Isaiah Galason, SS, 2026, Houston County


Keeler Edwards, OF, 2026, Woodward Academy


Davian Hammonds, OF, 2027, Houston County

Key Moments: Houston County set the tone early and took a 2-0 lead early after a Raymond Byrd double and an Isaiah Galason RBI single. The Bears got on the board again after Tyson Ganas doubled and Kaiden Harvey drove him in on an RBI single to make it 3-0 in the 2nd inning. The War Eagles answered back as Khalon Davis and Myles Tate blasted back-to-back home runs as it was now a 3-2 deficit. Kaiden Harvey tacked on another run in the 4th with an RBI single after an error and a single from George Bassett as the Bears now led 4-2. Woodward rallied with 2-outs in the 5th and put a run on the board after a Keeler Edwards RBI single as it was now 4-3. Myles Tate came through in the clutch for Woodward as he stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and 2-outs in the 6th. The sophomore ripped one down the LF line for the go-ahead 3 RBI double to take a 6-4 lead. Houston County responded in the top half of the 7th as Isaiah Galason got things started with a lead-off single followed by a Noah Odom RBI double to make it a 6-5 deficit. Peyton Nauss followed Odom with a single of his own and then Davian Hammonds delivered with a 2 RBI single into LF to take a 7-6 lead as he came around to score as the Bears now led 8-6. Woodward tacked on a run in the bottom half of the 7th after a sacrifice fly. The final score remained 8-7 as the Bears were able to cling on and punch their ticket to the final-four.

Avery’s Takeaway: This was an instant playoff classic with multiple back-and-forth lead changes that came down to the wire. Houston County proved that they were a battle-tested bunch after surrendering the lead in the bottom half of the 6th. The Bears would rally and go onto put up 4-runs in the top half of the 7th to take a lead as they were able to cling on and advance to the final-four. The depth of the order stands out with a quartet of seniors that pace the offense including Raymond Byrd, Isaiah Galason, Ethan Kenney, and Raymond Byrd. A pair of freshman including Kaiden Harvey and George Bassett V have made significant contributions and carry huge roles in the order. Other names to note that can push this team over the hump are a trio of juniors including Tyson Ganas, Peyton Nauss, and Davian Hammonds. This is one of the more potent lineups in all of 5A and if the pieces on the mound can continue to come together the Bears could find themselves back in Gwinnett. But it all starts with a final-four date against a familiar opponent the Pope Greyhounds. The two 5A heavyweights have met multiple times late in the playoffs over the years and looks to be yet another highly competitive series.

St. Pius X @ Cartersville

Score: Cartersville win, 4-3

Standouts:

David Vargas, SS, 2028, Cartersville


Nolan Elrod, 1B/LHP, 2026, Cartersville


Gianni Gandy, 3B, 2028, Cartersville


Cole Crawford, C/RHP, 2027, Cartersville


Pete Kostopoulos, SS, 2027, St. Pius X


Nolan Newsham, OF, 2027, St. Pius X

Key Moments: The Golden Lions would jump out to an early lead as they would put multiple runners on base in each of the first three innings highlighted by an RBI 2B from Pete Kostopoulos and some quality small ball. Cartersville would begin their comeback in the 5th after 3 consecutive walks would help push two runs across and cut the lead to one late. Clutch baseball from the Canes would continue in the 6th as Nolan Elrod would come through with the huge RBI 1B to score Cole Crawford and set up a brand-new ballgame heading into the 7th. Elrod would flash the two-way profile in the next inning as he would sit the Lions down 1-2-3 in the top half of the inning and keep the momentum rolling. Sure enough, the first four would reach base for the Canes in the bottom of the 7th with former Junior Future Gamer Gianni Gandy sending the home crowd into a frenzy with the walk-off 1B to RF.

Ian’s Takeaway: The playoff energy is at a different level as we get now into Final Four time, and Cartersville showed why they’ve now made it 3 years in a row with an instant classic on Saturday. Coach Tucker continues to show he can get it done with different roster constructions and this year was no different. David Vargas has quickly grown into a leader for this team both offensively with double-digit hits in these playoffs and with the glove as one of the best SS in the sophomore class. Brayden Logan and Cole Crawford are impact bats that surround Vargas in the lineup while the likes of Nolan Elrod, Cooper Reynolds, and Clint Hosea continue to come through in clutch moments. A matchup with Kell, who may be the battle-tested team in the 4A bracket looms on the horizon and the Canes will need their best baseball to put himself back in the state championship final once again.

FOLLOW PREP BASEBALL GEORGIA THROUGHOUT THE SPRING

+ Prep Baseball Georgia on X
+ Prep Baseball Georgia on Instagram
+ Prep Baseball Georgia on Facebook
+ Podcast: Peach Fuzz on YouTube

UPCOMING EVENTS