COTTONWOOD — With the 4A conference state tournament less than a month away, Grand Canyon region teams in northern Arizona are jockeying for position as they ready themselves for a potential state playoff run.

NO. 9 FLAGSTAFF

Led by longtime skipper Kenny Macias, this group made a surprise run to the 4A state championship as the No. 14 seed a season ago.

The Eagles (12-5-1, 7-1 4A Grand Canyon) sit atop the Grand Canyon region currently with only one loss, an 11-10 offensive battle to Lee Williams in an April 4 doubleheader in Kingman.

Macias said the Eagles need to “keep our bats more consistent” if they are to make a run like 2025.

“Our pitchers also need to raise their strike-to-ball ratio and we need to clean up our baserunning,” Macias said.”

Macias said the fight for the region crown will be close between Prescott, Bradshaw Mountain, Mingus and his club, but so far, it’s the Eagles looking like they’ll be coming out on top.

Watch for Will Carpenter, Cullen Callander and Jace Adams to stand tall in April.

Remaining Schedule:

April 11 at ALA-Queen Creek, 11 a.m.

April 14 vs. Prescott, 3:45 p.m.

April 16 at Prescott, 3 p.m.

April 18 vs. Estrella Foothills, Noon

April 20 at Coconino, 4 p.m.

April 22 vs. Coconino, 3:45 p.m.

April 24 vs. Saguaro, 3:45 p.m.

April 27 at Goldwater, 3:45 p.m.

The Flagstaff baseball team is ranked No. 9 in the 4A state power point rankings and are currently the favorite to win the Grand Canyon region, however Prescott, Bradshaw Mountain and Mingus may have something to say about that over the next month prior to the state playoffs getting underway May 2. (Brian M. Bergner Jr./AzPreps365)

NO. 15 PRESCOTT

After two difficult losses to rival Bradshaw Mountain on March 30 (8-5) and April 1 (4-3), Prescott has won three straight including two against Lee Williams as they look to potentially host at least a state play-in game April 29.

Led by Travis Gates and Matt Hepperle, the Badgers (14-7, 6-2 4A Grand Canyon) continue to fight for position within the region and need to work on getting better at “the little things,” coach Jason Hutchens said.

“We have yet to have a game this season where we played all facets of the game well, and we seem to have problems with a different part of our game every time out,” Hutchens said March 27, a few days prior to the two losses to the cross-town rival Bears.

“We graduated 11 seniors last year, so we are short on varsity experience. The boys are just starting to understand how much faster the varsity game is and how little the margin for error is on that larger stage,” Hutchens said. “If we continue to get better every day, I expect us to be in the mix.”

Remaining Schedule:

April 14 at Flagstaff, 3:45 p.m.

April 16 vs. Flagstaff, 3 p.m.

April 20 vs. Mingus, 4 p.m.

April 22 at Mingus, 4 p.m.

April 25 vs. ALA-Gilbert North, 2 p.m.

Prescott players celebrate during a 10-2 win over Deer Valley on March 9, 2026. The Badgers are ranked No. 15 this season in the power point rankings and are fighting to host a state play-in round game, which begins April 29. (Prescott Athletics/Courtesy)

NO. 22 BRADSHAW MOUNTAIN

After the Bears (7-13, 5-2 4A Grand Canyon) swept rival Prescott and then outscored Mohave 33-4 in a two-game series, they lost two straight to Flagstaff and now find themselves nearly out of state play-in round contention sitting at No. 22 in the power point rankings.

Sophomore Ty Young leads the group with three home runs and 15 RBIs this season to go along with his .352 average as Bradshaw Mountain averages just a tick over five runs per game in 2026.

The Bears will need to improve on their overall team ERA (5.71) if they are to make a move in May and their schedule is favorable with four of their final six games at home.

Remaining Schedule:

April 13 at Mingus, 3:45 p.m.

April 14 vs. Coconino, 3:45 p.m.

April 16 at Coconino, 4 p.m.

April 22 vs. Lee Williams, 1 p.m.

April 22 vs. Lee Williams, 3:30 p.m.

April 27 vs. Poston Butte, 3:45 p.m.

NO. 24 COCONINO

The Panthers (7-12, 3-3 4A Grand Canyon) struggled to begin the season, losing nine of their first 12 games but have been playing better recently after a split with Lee Williams and two close games with Prescott before sweeping Mohave to begin the month of April.

Coconino hasn’t played since April 2 in an 11-1 over Mohave, which might have been exactly what the boys from Flagstaff needed to turn things around.

“We have to limit the slow starts and lack of urgency in those early innings,” coach Cristo Tabares said. “[We have] guys not attacking strikes early and putting themselves in bad counts when hitting.”

Tabares said he feels strongly about remaining in the Top 24 and earning a state play-in round game, and potentially even advancing.

“We are right in the thick of it and we know we haven’t played our best baseball for seven innings,” Tabares said. “If we can maintain strong pitching and defense, once the bats start going for this team, we are going to really surprise some [people].”

Remaining Schedule:

April 10 vs. Mingus, 4 p.m.

April 14 at Bradshaw Mountain, 3:45 p.m.

April 16 vs. Bradshaw Mountain, 4 p.m.

April 17 at Mingus, 3:45 p.m.

April 20 vs. Flagstaff, 4 p.m.

April 22 at Flagstaff, 3:45 p.m.

April 27 at Independence, 4 p.m.

NO. 25 MINGUS

Playing .500 baseball for much of the season, Mingus (11-9, 4-3 4A Grand Canyon) opened the season with four straight losses against quality opponents and have since started to pick things up, winning five of their last seven including two big wins against Lee Williams at the end of March.

With seniors Derek Alvarez and Kaden Pusl playing well, along with junior Carter Wacker, the Marauders could surprise some people if they can get into the state play-in round.

“We just have to continue to play clean competitive baseball and stick to our gritty identity,” coach Erick Quesada said. “We have played well, but struggled to finish games early in the year. We need to collectively play a clean game from start to finish and see what the scoreboard reads at the end of the game.”

Remaining Schedule:

April 13 vs. Bradshaw Mountain, 3:45 p.m.

April 15 at Eastmark, 3:45 p.m.

April 17 vs. Coconino, 3:45 p.m.

April 20 at Prescott, 4 p.m.

April 22 vs. Prescott, 3:45 p.m.

April 27 at Mesquite, 3:45 p.m.

NO. 28 LEE WILLIAMS

The Volunteers (7-12-1, 2-6 4A Grand Canyon) will likely need to win their remaining games on the schedule if they are to sneak into the Top 24 and earn a state play-in round spot in the 4A come April 29.

Led by Lincoln Lewandowski, who is hitting .472 with 15 RBIs and 16 runs scored this season, Lee Williams has lost seven of eight and are looking to turn things around.

Remaining Schedule:

April 14 vs. Mohave, 3 p.m.

April 16 at Mohave, 4 p.m.

April 20 at Cesar Chavez, 3:45 p.m.

April 22 at Bradshaw Mountain, 1 p.m.

April 22 at Bradshaw Mountain, 3:30 p.m.

April 27 at Copper Canyon, 3:45 p.m.

NO. 42 MOHAVE

Not a lot has gone right this season for the Thunderbirds (0-18, 0-10 4A Grand Canyon) who remain winless this spring, scoring only 19 runs compared to allowing 285 runs.

Despite the dismal record, a few young players have stood out this season including freshman Logan Vavra’s .350 average and sophomore Benjamin Cotter, who leads the team in hits with a .303 average.

Remaining Schedule:

April 10 at Glendale, 4 p.m.

April 14 at Lee Williams, 3 p.m.

April 16 vs. Lee Williams, 4 p.m.

April 24 at Westview, 3:45 p.m.

April 27 vs. La Joya Community, 3:45 p.m.

STATE

The 4A conference state play-in round is scheduled for April 29 at the high seed. Rounds 1A and 1B of the 4A state playoffs begin May 2 at 11 a.m. Watch AzPreps365.com for brackets.

Brian M. Bergner Jr. has covered professional, collegiate and high school sports for more than 20 years. Follow him on X at @AzPreps365Brian or on Facebook at @Five2MediaWorks. Have a story idea? Email Brian at bbergner@azpreps365.com.