TIFTON — Tift County won the first game of the Camden County Region 1-6A series. Now, the Blue Devils need to win two more, and get things to fall their way in the Colquitt County/Richmond Hill series.

Tift won 13-5 over the visiting Wildcats on Wednesday. They’re seeking a home series in the upcoming Class 6A baseball tournament. To do that, they Colquitt and Richmond Hill to split games in a Friday doubleheader, and the Devils also need to sweep Camden in Kingsland. Colquitt won their Tuesday game with Richmond Hill, 16-8.

Tyler VanSumeren and Jake Spurlin homered for the Devils Wednesday in a contest not as close as the score.

Spurlin may be the hottest hitter on the planet right now. He now has hits in last 12 at-bats and has raised his average by 126 points. He’s sitting at .295 currently.

He led off the third with a solo shot well over the right field fence. Spurlin’s streak has been filled with power: three doubles and the homer.

Starting pitcher John Davis exited after three innings, well within the pitch limit should head coach Greg Williams need him on Friday. Camden scored all five off Tift’s bullpen, but Spurlin worked a solid seventh to keep the comeback from advancing any further.

Tift scored in every inning: four in the first, one in the second, and two in each of the next four frames.

VanSumeren got the Devils kicked off. After Davis walked to begin the game, VanSumeren more than crushed a pitch, with a sound off the bat to match the speed at which it left the park.

Up 2-0, the Devils kept going, batting around in the inning. Drew Hembree, Mac Brooks and Spurlin filled the bases before Landon Parrish earned a walk to drive in a run. Mason Grist drove in Brooks with a sac fly.

One inning later, Davis walked, stole second and moved to third on an error on the throw. VanSumeren lifted a sacrifice fly to right to make it 5-0.

Spurlin led off the third with his blast. Grist provided the other run on a single by Sam Pritchard.

Hembree and Brooks crossed in the fourth. Spurlin drove in the former with a single, then started a delayed double steal that gave Brooks more than enough time to touch home.

Camden got four of its runs in the fourth.

Up with the bases loaded, Titus House drove in Colby Benge with a single. Parker Riendeau reached on a fielder’s choice that saw Grist throw to Pritchard to force the runner at home.

Fabian Laboy brought in Caden Napier and House on a base hit before Preston Conrad singled in Riendeau.

Tift got two of the runs back in the bottom half of the fifth. Pritchard tripled into the right field corner before scoring on a single by VanSumeren up the middle. Spurlin doubled in VanSumeren to make it 11-4.

Elijah Cox walked with the bases loaded in the sixth to drive in Johnathan Brown, but Graysan Del Toro stopped the damage the there with a strikeout to end the inning.

Tift’s last two runs came without the courtesy of a hit. Trey Dorminey and Pritchard walked, with Brodie Law running for Pritchard. Davis was hit on the back with a pitch, juicing the bases.

VanSumeren drove in Dorminey on a flyout and another delayed double steal saw Law touch the base moments before Davis was tagged out.

The Blue Devils recorded 11 hits in 23 at-bats. Spurlin had three of these, with Pritchard, Brooks and VanSumeren each at two. VanSumeren drove in five runs and Spurlin knocked in three.

Davis earned the win. Jace Long, Del Toro and Spurlin provided relief. Long picked off consecutive runners at first base in the fourth.