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After losing by nine runs on Tuesday, Flagstaff baseball (9-6, 6-4 Grand Canyon) came back and won at home against Prescott, 7-6, on Thursday.

The Eagles held the Badgers to zero runs until the sixth inning. Flagstaff had eight hits compared to Prescott’s six. Both teams had four RBIs.

Eagles manager Kenny Macias said because there are only three more games left in their regular season, the win against Prescott was significant for their rankings.

“That’s a huge win,� Macias said. “I told the boys after we lost at Prescott to throw a big wrench into that engine and cause some problems in the rankings.�

The Eagles are No. 20 in the 4A Conference and third in the Grand Canyon Region standings. They have two more region games against Coconino next week and will end the regular season hosting Barry Goldwater on April 28. The conference play-in will have the No. 9-24 seeds play each other on April 30.

The road to victory was strenuous toward the end of the game. Prescott scored three runs in the sixth inning and three more in the seventh -- which put immense pressure on Flagstaff's defense.

In the top of the seventh inning, with a score of 7-3, Brody Hanna from Prescott singled to first. Flagstaff’s pitcher Connor Iniguez then walked the next batter and hit another, loading the bases. There were still zero outs, and with Prescott on the cusp of scoring, Iniguez was switched out for Jace Adams.

“It was super stressful,� Adams said. “Coming in with the bases loaded, I mean it’s a hard role, zero outs. It came close, but we got the job done.�

Adams immediately walked the next batter, and the score crept up to 7-4. The Badgers scored two more runs afterwards to cut Flagstaff's lead to one. Finally, after over 10 minutes without recording a single out, the Eagles turned a double play, inching their way closer to the end of the game.

The next Prescott batter stepped up to the plate, and Adams said he felt immense pressure to strike him out. With three balls and two strikes, Adams threw his last fastball toward home plate and struck out the batter, ending the game.

“It was super exciting,� Adams said. “We all felt that energy, and I think it was a really good way to end the game.�

Macias said the players felt calmer at their home field -- which was why they won this time around.

Flagstaff is 7-2 at home versus 2-4 on the road.

Both the defense and offense improved because they were more level-headed, he said.

“We’re pretty strong at home because obviously you practice on your field a lot and you know what you can do,� Macias said.

Flagstaff’s Brody Johnson was 3 for 3, hit one double, scored one run and had one RBI. Sean Pabst, Cullen Callander, Canyon Kirkman, Will Carpenter and Adams all scored one run as well. Aeneyes Clerry, Anthony Rosales, Johnson and Adams had one RBI each.

Adams said rather than improving on batting or defense, he and the Eagles went into the second game against Prescott with a more positive mindset. They knew they had a home-field advantage this time around and wanted to improve the team's power rankings with the end of the season around the corner.

“It’s super important,� Adams said. “Especially with how our season’s been going, we haven’t had the best winning season, so every game is important from now on and these wins are huge to get us to state.�

Flagstaff is hosting the first of two crosstown rivalry games on Monday against Coconino, with the rematch scheduled for Wednesday.