TIFTON — Tift County’s tennis season started Tuesday with a pair of victories over Irwin County.

The Blue Devils defeated the defending Class A (public) champions, 3-2, with the Lady Devils winning by the same score over the Irwin girls.

Calvin Chee won his match, 6-0, 6-1 at No. 1 singles and Mason Layfield won 6-0, 6-2 at No. 3 singles. Lee Hancock and Samuel Lawson secured the team win with a 3-6, 6-4, 11-9 victory at No. 2 doubles.

Mason Lewis dropped his match, 6-1, 6-0 as did Jacob Smith and Travis Harper at No. 1 doubles, 6-4, 6-2.

The Lady Devils had singles wins from Laura Clark (6-2, 6-0) and Macy Weldon (6-4, 6-3) and in doubles from Katie Kemeness and Lilly Turner, 6-4, 6-6 (10-3 tiebreaker).

Kerrigan Turner fell in singles, 6-0, 6-0 and Elizabeth Fallin and Taylor Walker lost, 6-2, 4-6, 6-10.

“We’re young,” said Ivey Vickers earlier this week. “The girls are going to be very young.”

“We have some work to do,” she said.

Tift County starts the season with a bang. Besides the Irwin matches, they start region play today at 4 p.m. against Camden County. Next week they will host Colquitt County Tuesday before heading to Camden on Friday.

Vickers said the region was going to be “tough” this year.

Tift is in Region 1 with Colquitt, Camden and Lowndes. Lowndes has been a dynamic program in recent years and Vickers marveled their talent year-in and year-out.

Other matches this year are scheduled against Lee County, Brantley County and Bleckley County West Laurens, Coffee, as well as Lowndes’ annual invitational tournament in March.

Lady Devils this season are Fallin, Katie Kemeness, Anna Bowen, Clark, Lilly Turner, Myia Jordan, Walker, Rachel Whidden, Haley Burns, Dana Wells, Emily Rowland, Weldon, Kerrigan Turner, Hayden Carr, Kirstyn Thacker and Jessi Vance.

Blue Devils are Smith, Harper, Brandon Thompson, Lawson, Lewis, Caleb Rice, Lee Hancock, Logan Ewing, Chee, Blake Chitwood, Josh May, Bryce Hancock, Layfield, Tanner Green, Hays Jones, Seth Jones, Cole Cordle and Lleyton Callison.