MOULTRIE — Colquitt County’s first-round playoff sweep of Harrison on Ike Aultman Field at Jerry Croft Stadium last week was satisfying all by itself.

But it meant a little more to a team and program that has struggled in recent years.

Not only did the Packers get to advance to the second round, good fortune enabled them to play the second round at home as well.

Colquitt will play host to Alpharetta starting with a 5 p.m. doubleheader on Tuesday.

If the two teams split, the deciding game will be played Wednesday.

Coach Brandon Brock was tickled that his Packers, the No. 2 team from Region 1-7A, got a chance to play at home again.

“You always want to play at the house,” said Brock, whose team is now 16-14. “But this is for the community. That really makes me happy.”

The Packers had not won a home playoff series since dispatching Wheeler in the first round in 2018.

Now the team has set its sights on a berth in the Elite Eight.

Last time Colquitt County accomplished that?

Back in 2013, when the Packers eliminated Harrison and Luella to reach the quarterfinals before dropping two straight games to Parkview.

The Packers reached the playoffs this year by going 14-14 overall and 6-6 in the region and then played two of their best back-to-back games of the season against Harrison.

Except for issuing 11 walks in the doubleheader — including seven combined in the final two innings of the two games — Colquitt got outstanding pitching.

Starters Cameron Summerlin and Mason Moore allowed just five hits between them.

Bryce Monk, who threw in relief in both games, gave up just one.

The three Packers gave up just four earned runs.

Summerlin allowed just three hits and struck out nine in 6.1 innings in the 6-3 Game 1 win.

Moore retired the first nine Hoyas he faced in Game 2, which the Packers won 9-2.

“We held them at bay,” Brock said of his pitchers’ work against Harrison. “But we had too many walks. We’ve got to clear that up.

“And we’ve got to learn how to pitch when we are ahead.”

The Packers also hit the ball well, with 10 hits — all singles — in the first game and 11, including doubles by Cam Cook, Hayes Lightsey and Cole Whatley, in the nightcap.

Cannon Whatley was especially productive, going 5-for-7 in the doubleheader, scoring three runs and driving in two.

“He seems so calm and patient out there,” Brock said of his senior first baseman, who raised his batting average to .396.

Cook had two RBIs in each game and now has a team-leading 35 for the season.

Brock traveled to DeKalb County on Thursday to watch the deciding first-round game between Region 7 champion Dunwoody and Alpharetta, the No. 4 team from Region 5.

The Raiders got a walk-off single by Logan Racine to win Game 2 on Wednesday to tie their series.

Alpharetta jumped out to a 4-0 lead in Game 3 and held on for an 8-6 win and a trip south to Moultrie.

The Raiders, who will bring a 15-16 record to Packer Park, are playing for coach Marc Lassiat, who got his 300th career victory in 2019.

One of Lassiat’s assistants is former Packer Colin Kirkland, son of former Colquitt County head coach Tony Kirkland.

The Raiders got solid offensive work in the three games against Dunwoody from Cooper Mendiger, who was 5-for-10 with a homer and three RBIs, and Colby Camps, who was 4-for-7 and drove in four runs, including at least one in each of the three games.

Brock is not looking past the Raiders.

“I don’t care if you are a four-seed,” he said. “In baseball anybody can get hot. You see it all the time.

“We still need to continue to get better. But except for the walks, if we play like we did the other night, we can run with anybody.”