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THREE RIVERS EDITION/RIVER VALLEY & OZARK EDITION OF THE ARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE DIAMOND ROUNDUP
SUNDAY, MARCH 22, 2020
FLAGG continued from 34SS
Flagg heads into his senior season with a 76-16 high school record — a winning per- centage of .826.
The new coach said he learned quickly that Flagg had many strengths.
“First of all, he comes from a great fami- ly,” Cope said. “His parents (Todd and Misti Flagg) did a great job raising him. He has the work ethic. He’s someone you can trust off the field and in the classroom. You don’t have to worry about him one bit. He works hard and doesn’t take anything for granted. He just shows up every day and has a blue-collar attitude.”
Any weaknesses, Cope said, would be cleaned up with maturity.
“He’s just a well-rounded kid and baseball player,” the coach said. “He’s what you look for.” Flagg chose UCA over offers from
Arkansas State, the University of Arkansas- Fort Smith, Crowder (Okla.) College and Seminole State (Okla.) College.
“I didn’t want to go too far away, and I really love the coaches there,” he said of UCA. “It’s a good atmosphere for me, and
I’m also interested in the education side of things. UCA has a very good academic program, and their baseball program is very good as well.”
He said he would enroll in summer classes to get a head start on college life after graduat- ing with honors from high school in May. He expects to finish with a grade-point average of better than 4.0.
But before then, there’s one final baseball season with his best friend — and a new coach. Cope succeeded Tye Glover, who en- tered private business after three seasons at Greenbrier.
“We’ve got a couple of new people who moved in, and we have a lot of talent in the younger classes as well,” Flagg said. “We’ll be very good defensively. We’ve got a lot of pitch- ers. We’ll be able to spray the ball around. We’ve still got our main two hitters with me and Cayden.
“I’m very confident and looking forward. A lot of people have been kind of doubting us, so it puts a little chip on our shoulder. Everybody’s doubting, and we want to prove them wrong. There’s a lot of good com- petition, but I think we’ll be able to push
STACI VANDAGRIFF/RIVER VALLEY & OZARK EDITION
Connor Flagg had a perfect fielding percentage as catcher for the Panthers, who finished 19-5 last year after a loss in the opening round of the Class 5A State Tournament.
through. We have a lot of trust in our coach.” Coach Cope feels the same way about
his players.
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GREENBRIER BASEBALL continued from 35SS
and work ethic, Cope said, but the Panthers will lack experience in various positions. Cope said Wallace, who has had profes- sional scouts coming in to watch him, will have a decision to make — college or pro-
fessional baseball — following the season. “I told him to enjoy his senior year,” Cope said. “That’ll take care of itself. He’s doing a
good job of handling it.”
Cope succeeded Tye Glover, who spent three
seasons at Greenbrier. Cope came to Faulkner County following 10 years at Watson Chapel.
“It’s a good place to raise a family, a good academic school, and there’s a tradition in baseball,” Cope said of the move to Green- brier. “It felt right.”
So does his first Panther squad.
“I like this team,” Cope said. “I don’t ever put expectations out there, but I think this team can be as good as they want to be. They’ve practiced since August; I’ve pushed them hard.
“If we stay healthy and our 10th-graders stay up and play above 10th-graders, I think we’ll be OK.”
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