With the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association (GCAA) Conference on the line, the South Georgia State College Hawks hosted their last regular season home game Thursday, April 26, 2023, against Gordon State College. After a final score of 18-8 in eight innings in favor of the Hawks, SGSC secured the regular season title and remains in the first place standing for the GCAA.
Hawks Head Coach Jeff Timothy says, “Winning the conference title is a great accomplishment. This group has put in the work, and it shows. We plan to use the momentum we have now, especially after winning 10 of the last 11 games, to move us forward. Once we get into the tournaments, we want to keep the winning streak alive and make it to the NJCAA World Series. These guys deserve to make it that far, and we plan to do what we can to get there.”
The final home game started off slow for the Hawks with the Highlanders racking up eight runs in the first five innings. Trailing 8-0 and on the verge of losing by run rule, the Hawks pulled away from Gordon by scoring 11 runs in the bottom of the fifth. The bats stayed hot giving the Hawks what they needed to stay ahead.
The pitching staff on both teams had their hands full, frequently dealing with runners on base. The Hawks collected 18 hits and Gordon State had 11. Christian Campbell, Dylan Butler and Bradley Wilson each had three hits to lead the Hawks, followed by Kyle Shivers, Matthew Mebane and Terrell Milner with two. JR Lonon, Mason Poole and Trey Jeffers contributed one hit each. Mebane led the Hawks in RBIs with four by driving in runs on a single in the fifth, a single in the sixth and a sacrifice fly in the eighth.
Owen Powell started the game on the mound for the Hawks. He lasted three innings, allowing six hits and three runs while striking out two and walking none. Dylan Speakman took the win for the Hawks. He stayed on the mound for one and two-thirds innings, allowing two hits and zero runs while striking out one and walking one. Randan Rigdon and Shaun Munoz entered the game out of the bullpen and helped to close out the game in relief.
The Hawks went on to play ABAC at their field in Tifton on Saturday and left with a 16–4 victory. The final two regular season games will be held on Tuesday, May 2 at Georgia Highlands and Thursday, May 4 at East Georgia State College.
The Region 17 Conference Tournament will be in Cartersville Monday, May 8 – Thursday, May 11. The winner will move on to compete in the East Central District Tournament Wednesday, May 17 – Friday, May 19 with the location dependent upon the winner. The East Central District winner will advance to the NJCAA World Series which will be held the week of May 27 in Grand Junction, Colorado.