MOULTRIE — With the second round of Region 1-AAAAA games beginning tonight, the Colquitt County High baseball team finds itself with some momentum and the realization that it is still very much in the hunt for a state playoff berth.

That was not necessarily the case when the Packers traveled to Tift County a week ago tonight to meet the Blue Devils.

Tift was 4-1 in the region. The Packers were 1-4 and in the midst of a streak that saw them give up 12 or more runs in six of their previous seven games.

But the Packers knocked off the Blue Devils 9-4 that night at the Devil Diamond and coach Eric McCranie says the win could not have come at a better time.

Colquitt will be at Ike Aultman Field at Packer Park at 7 tonight to meet Houston County’s Bears, who, like the Packers, are 2-4 in the region.

Houston won the first meeting between the two teams back on March 16, taking a wild and windy 22-21 victory.

That game featured nine Colquitt County errors.

“To score 21 and lose … that’s not good,” McCranie said.

But the Packers first-year coach likes his team’s improved play.

“We’ve played the last two out of three pretty well,” McCranie said. “We’re acting like we want to be out there.

“And our defense has come a long way. I’m real pleased with that.”

In the victory over Tift County, the Packers got strong pitching, got timely hitting and, perhaps most importantly, were solid defensively.

And if the Packers play their next six region games like they did against the Blue Devils, they can make a run at the postseason.

“We’re only one game out of third and two games out of second,” McCranie said. “Lowndes might be in (the playoffs), but everybody else is fighting to get in.

“There is not one team that is a whole lot better than anyone else.”

McCranie said that either John Michael Harrison or Andrew McDowell would start on the mound tonight against Houston County. Both are left-handers.

Harrison pitched the final 3 2/3 innings to get the win against Tift County, giving up just one run and striking out six Blue Devils.

The sophomore pitcher/outfielder also has been one of the team’s better hitters of late.

Harrison, who is the Packers leadoff hitter, is batting .344 with a pair of triples and a home run.

“John Michael has been doing a better job of getting on base for us,” McCranie said.

Matt Weaver continues to lead the team in hitting with a .527 batting average.

The senior first baseman/pitcher has seven doubles, two triples and a home run, the first by a Packer player at the new Ike Aultman Field.

Weaver leads the team in runs batted in with 25, just four more than pitcher/outfielder Andrew Wallace, whose three-run homer put the Packers ahead to stay in the victory over Tift County last week. Wallace is hitting .352 and has five doubles, a triple and two home runs.

Carter Jones also has begun to swing the bat better in recent games and has his average up to .421. He has four doubles and a triple and has drive in 16 runs.

Blake Cato is hitting .453, but McCranie is even more pleased with his shortstop’s .567 on-base percentage.

Senior catcher Spenser Richardson will take a .441 batting averge into tonight’s game. He has a pair of doubles.

Bo Williams, the Packers other catcher, is 5-for-19, but has draw nine walks and has an on-base precentage of .500.

McDowell is hitting .423 and has four doubles among his 11 hits.

The Packers will take a team batting average of .356 into tonight’s game.

Houston won its first two region games, defeating the Packers 22-21 and Warner Robins 9-7.

But since then, the Bears have lost four region games in a row, including a 6-5 decision to Lowndes last Friday.

Also in region games tonight, Warner Robins (3-3) will be at Valdosta (2-4) and Tift County (4-2) will travel to Coffee (3-3).

Lowndes (5-1) is off tonight. The Vikings defeated Lee County 16-13 on Wednesday, coming back from an early 10-3 deficit.

On Tuesday, the Packers will travel to Valdosta,Warner Robins will be at Houston County and Coffee will go to Lowndes. Tift County will be off.