Reece Watson beats a Camden throw to the plate for Tift County's fourth run of game one.

TIFTON — Tift County baseball head coach Kyle Kirk said he gave some advice to Owen Manning in the bottom of the seventh inning Friday.

“I told him to keep chopping,” said Kirk.

When Manning stepped to the plate, the score was 0-0 and the Blue Devils had the bases loaded with one out. Moments later, Manning was the recipient of a Gatorade shower from his teammates after he hit a sacrifice fly to left field deep enough for Reece Watson to score from third.

The 1-0 win was Tift’s second of the Region 1 doubleheader against Camden County. They began the day by beating the Wildcats, 6-4. The bases were loaded for the end of that one, too, but Blue Devil relief pitcher Trey Barfield coaxed a fly ball to Jake Pettis in centerfield to end the game.

Friday’s nightcap was a pitcher’s duel from the first batter to the last. Joseph Pittman was on the mound for Tift and Chris Mobley pitched for Camden.

Pittman worked a complete game, striking out 12 hitters. Even more impressively, he struck out the first man he faced every inning.

“He wanted the ball,” said Kirk.

Pittman surrendered three hits. Only three men reached as far as second against him, all on errors. Mobley was nearly his match. He gave up five hits total and struck out nine. The end of his night came in the bottom of the seventh after a no-out walk to Watson. An inning earlier, Mobley had worked out of a bases loaded, two-out jam with a strikeout.

Camden brought in a new pitcher. Almost immediately, Watson made his way around to third after a miscue on a pickoff attempt. After a groundout, Gauge Domingue intentionally walked. After he stole second, Camden opted to intentionally walk Thad Weldon, who had a 1-1 count. Manning came to hit and got the walk-off RBI.

“That was huge,” said Kirk.

The opening contest had plenty of its own drama.

The Blue Devils took a 2-0 lead in the first inning on a sacrifice fly by Manning that scored Pettis and a single by Barfield that drove in Colby Gann. They tacked one more in the second when Watson walked and stole second before coming around on a groundout by Domingue.

Camden knotted the score at 3-3 in the top of the fourth. Corey Dowdell’s two-run single with the bases loaded had brought them closer in the third inning before Colten Thrift’s single scored Ryan Bohner.

Tift got the run back in the bottom of the frame in an unusual way. Watson struck out on a ball in the dirt, but reached first anyway on an errant throw to the bag. He stole second, moved to third on Bryce Stephens’ sacrifice and touched home ahead of the throw on a grounder by Pettis.

Iain McBee tied the game for Camden in the top of the fifth on a sacrifice fly, but the Devils scored two in the bottom half.

Manning singled on a bloop over first and Mason Avant reached on an error. Pittman walked to load the bags. Watson singled past second to bring in Manning, then Avant scored on a wild pitch.

Avant was also Tift’s starting pitcher. He fanned 11, which included the side in the sixth. After Dowdell singled with one out in the seventh, Kirk brought in Barfield.

Camden put runners on second and third on a hit by Tim Parker with one out. Barfield came back to strike out his next man before Wainwright was intentionally walked to load the bases. Barfield then got a fly ball for Tift to hold on to the 6-4 win.

Kirk said defense was a major part of the first game.

“We didn’t beat ourselves,” he said. Kirk said his players have bought into the program and play unselfishly. Combined with a tough pre-region schedule, it’s been enough to have them on a winning start.

Weldon, Manning, Barfield, Pittman and Watson all had hits in the opener. Watson scored twice.

Camden got two hits from Dowdell. The Wildcats also had a scary moment when Luke Parker took a pitch to the helmet in the fourth inning. Kirk immediately rushed over to him. After a couple of minutes, Kirk, Tift trainer Steven Goldman and Camden coaches helped Parker back to the dugout. Bohner came in as his replacement and came around to score.

At 2-0, Tift is off to its best region start since 2016, when they also began 2-0 in the conference.

“It’s just the start,” said Kirk.

Tift has a tough week ahead of them. The Devils host Jeff Davis Wednesday before traveling to Lowndes for another region doubleheader next Friday. Lowndes is also 2-0, having swept Colquitt County.

Kirk rated the game two win as among the best games he has been involved in at Tift. Also making his list was a 2013 state tournament game against Walton, one Tift won 2-1 on a Jonah Reyes sacrifice fly to bring in Zeke Dodson.