Devils go deep twice in win over Baker County

Published 11:00 pm Friday, March 4, 2022

TIFTON – Friday afternoon was a special treat for Tift County Blue Devils baseball fans. Not only did they see their team triumph in a 5-3 score against Baker County (Fla.), they saw something they had not seen in a long time.

Lino Acosta and Landon Parrish homered, the first time anyone from Tift had done so at Devil Diamond since Feb. 12, 2020.

Acosta’s two-run blast to left field were the go-ahead runs in the 3rd. Parrish, homering for the second time this year, added an insurance tally in the 6th.

Earning the win Friday was Connor VanSumeren, who threw five innings of two-run ball. Ryan Whitley worked the 6th before giving way to Brady Moretz in the 7th. Moretz picked up the save.

Tift picked up two quick runs in the 1st inning.

John Davis led off with an infield single to deep short and Tyler Holmes walked in the two-spot. Both moved up a bag on a wild pitch before John Dorman notched an RBI on a groundout to third.

Cody Williamson walked, putting runners at first and third. There, the Devils worked a little baserunning magic, with Williamson taking off for second. As he was making it safely to that bag, Holmes dashed home for a delayed double steal.

Baker’s Wildcats responded with a single run in the top of the second. Jayden Givens singled in Jamil Jones with two outs in the inning. Jones had initially reached on a walk.

VanSumeren stranded a runner at third in the 3rd, then Tift found a way to give him a bit of cushion.

Holmes immediately reached in the bottom of the 3rd on a single, but with two outs, was still at first.

Acosta stepped to the plate. Holmes stole second to put himself in scoring position, but had to continuously stop and start as Acosta was extending the at-bat.

Five pitches, then six and seven. Finally, eight pitches in with the count full, Acosta got one he could handle. The ball sailed over the left field fence and Tift had a 4-1 advantage.

The score held until the 5th, when Baker County halved the advantage when Davion Dean trotted in on Tucker Kennedy’s bases loaded single.

VanSumeren stopped the damage there, though, coaxing a grounder to Dorman at third to end the inning.

Both teams had opportunities to score in their next at-bats, but each saw them ended when infield fly balls turned into double players when runners wandered too far off bases.

In the midst of this, however, the Wildcats closed to 4-3. Jones took advantage of a throwing miscue score from third after an out.

Tift was looking at a nail-biting top of the 7th after Easton Stevens retired the first two men of the 6th with ease.

Parrish then stepped up and walloped a ball over the right field fence. The Blue Devils had their insurance. Fortunately, they wouldn’t need it.

Jase Knabb began the top of the 7th with a walk, causing head coach Greg Williams to switch his relief arm to Moretz.

Knabb stole second on Moretz’s first pitch, but that would be where he stayed. A strikeout, fly to the mound and grounder to short ended the game.

Tift hitters collected five hits for the game, two of them the big home runs. They were the only two hits to go for extra bases.