Davis named 1-6A’s Player of the Year
Published 11:00 am Monday, May 5, 2025
- Becky Taylor/The Tifton Gazette John Davis sprints in from the mound to catch a Valdosta bunt popped up in Tuesday's first inning.
TIFTON — John Davis is Region 1-6A’s top baseball player. That was the opinion of coaches in the region as the Tift County High senior earned 1-6A’s Player of the Year in awards announced recently.
Davis hit .455 for the Blue Devils in 2025, leading the squad in average, hits (45), runs scored (36), doubles (10), triples (2) and steals (23) on offense. On the mound, he recorded six wins, with a 2.80 ERA over 50 innings. Davis had 73 strikeouts.
Though Davis spent half the season hitting in the leadoff position, he was also second on Tift in RBIs at 32 and blasted four homers.
Lowndes’ Ryan Page won Coach of the Year for leading the two-time defending state champions to yet another region championship. The Vikings featured in one individual player award, Pitcher of the Year, which Brinson Rountree shared with Richmond Hill’s Aiden Pluff.
Braeden Lampkin of Valdosta was 1-6A’s Defensive Player of the Year.
Four Blue Devils were named to the first team: Mason Grist, Drew Hembree, Tyler VanSumeren and Ryan Whitley. All but VanSumeren are seniors.
Whitley joined Davis as a six-game winner in 2025. He fanned 62 over 50 2/3 innings pitched and had a 2.35 ERA.
Becky Taylor/The Tifton Gazette
Ryan Whitley holds on to a pop-out to end the fourth inning as Tyler VanSumeren provides backup. Lowndes loaded the bases with no outs, but came away scoreless in Whitley’s gem.
In his first season starting, Grist was a defensive standout at first and second base. He also scored 19 runs and drove in 12.
Hembree missed some early-season games with injury, but came back strong, hitting .308 for the year. Able to play all over the infield, Hembree scored 18 times.
Becky Taylor/The Tifton Gazette
Drew Hembree reacts after being hit by a Vikings pitch in the first game. Hembree’s HBP drove in Jake Spurlin with the bases loaded.
VanSumeren had an outstanding all-around season for TCHS. He was the team leader in RBIs at 40 and second only to Davis in nearly every other offensive category.
VanSumeren hit .407, scored 30 runs, hit six home runs and doubled seven times. As a pitcher, he started and came out of the bullpen, recording a 3.60 ERA while striking out 42. VanSumeren won five games.
Second-team selections for the Blue Devils were Landon Parrish and Will Pridgen.
Pridgen, whose season ended early after breaking both wrists on a diving catch, was already up to 30 strikeouts with an ERA of just 1.59. He was hitting .309 as a leadoff hitter at the time of his injuries, with 12 runs scored and 9 RBIs.
Becky Taylor/The Tifton Gazette
Mason Grist kicks up the dust and scores on a Trey Dorminey single. Grist had two hits in the opener.
Parrish, like several Tift players, starred on the mound and in the batter’s box. He was the team’s top power hitter, sending a team-high 7 over the fences. Parrish finished at 29 RBIs and 24 runs scored. On the hill, his ERA was 1.84.
