Jackets Sweep Bacon County
Jeff Davis High School’s baseball team won a pair of Region 2-AA games against Bacon County last week to finish in second place in the region, and earning a spot in the Class AA State Championship Playoffs. It is the 17th consecutive year that Coach Paul Glass and Coach Steven Wilcox have guided the Yellow Jackets to the playoffs.
The wins over Bacon came by identical scores of 7-4, last Tuesday in Hazlehurst and Thursday in Alma. The wins upped Jeff Davis’ overall record to 17-11 and their region record to 9-5.
This Thursday and Friday, a best-of-3 series against Fitzgerald will be played in Hazlehurst in the first round of the state playoffs. The Hurricanes, 14-13, are the No. 3 seed from Region 1-AA.
Last Tuesday’s game was senior night and the last regular season home game of the year. Seven of the Jackets’ 10 seniors started the game as the twins Ross and Ryan Rush formed the battery, Ross on the mound and Ryan behind the plate. Other senior starters were first baseman Chandler Davenport, third baseman Seth Graham, and outfielders Garrett Baucom, Hunter Foster and Alex Sanders. Other seniors honored in pre-game festivities were Will Moseley, Cristian Torres and Austin Lewis.
The Jackets spotted the Raiders to a 1-0 lead but built a 4-1 lead for themselves after four innings. Bacon closed to within a single run at 4-3 but the Jackets scored three more runs to carry a 7-3 lead into the final inning. The Raiders got a lone run in the seventh but it wasn’t enough.
Davenport had a double, a single and two RBI to lead the Jacket offense. Designated hitter Jashaun Kirby had a double, a single and one RBI, Sanders had a double, a single and a stolen base, Foster, Baucom and second baseman Garrison Miles each had singles. Baucom had a sacrifice, Ryan Rush drove in a run with a sacrifice fly and Foster was 2-for-2 in stolen bases.
Ross Rush started on the mound and went five innings. Both runs scored off Rush were unearned. He yielded five hits, walked none, hit one and struck out five. Davenport earned a save pitching the final two innings. He gave up one run on two hits, walked none and struck out one.
Thursday in Alma, the Jackets scored their seven runs in the first four innings to build a 7-0 lead. Alma scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth and two in the last inning.
The Jackets out-hit the Raiders 12-5, led by Sanders with a triple, two singles and an RBI. Davenport, Baucom and catcher Colby Marchant each had a double, a single and an RBI, Miles singled twice and drove in a run, and Kirby added a single. Marchant also had an RBI.
Sanders was the winning pitcher, going 3 1/3 innings. He gave up two runs on four hits, four walks, a hit batter and five strikeouts. Miles pitched 2 2/3 innings, giving up two unearned runs on one hit, two walks and three strikeouts. Davenport again earned a save, pitching the final inning and retiring all three batters he faced, one by strikeout.
Score by innings:
BCHS 0 1 0 0 2 0 1 -4
JDHS 0 1 3 0 1 2 x -7
JDHS 2 2 1 2 0 0 0 -7
BCHS 0 0 0 2 0 0 2 -4
