Worth County Rams prepare for No. 2 Jeff Davis after closing out Pope Park

SYLVESTER — The Worth County Rams (22-9) are preparing for a rematch with region champion and No. 2-ranked Jeff Davis (28-4) in the second round of the GHSA Class A state playoffs on Thursday in Hazlehurst. After being swept in the regular season series, the Rams are hoping for a different outcome this time.

“Jeff Davis has an excellent team,” said Worth County head coach Will Smith. “They can compete at any level, from Single A to 6A. They’re ranked No. 2 for a reason. But we can be competitive.”

The Yellow Jackets dominated the regular season series in early March, winning 8-0, 5-1, and 10-0.

“That was six or seven weeks ago,” Smith said. “Hopefully, we have matured with game experience and earning our first playoff wins for a lot of these guys. We made a lot of mistakes that we don’t normally make. One of our team’s strengths is defense, but in that first game at Hazlehurst, we made three errors in the first two innings. I think we gave up only one earned run—everything else was unearned. So we’re going to focus on playing solid defense.”

The Rams earned their trip to the Sweet 16 by sweeping Dublin in Friday’s first-round doubleheader. In game one, senior Caden Emerson threw a one-hitter to lead Worth County to a 10-0 win. The Rams broke open a tight game with a six-run fourth inning—scoring all six with two outs.

Third baseman Carson Cervantes sparked the rally with a clutch single, followed by a two-run base hit from Avery Kilcrease. Luke Rogers doubled, and two more runs scored on a Dublin error off a sharply hit grounder by Emerson.

In game two, Dublin jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning after a Worth County throwing error, but the Rams’ offense quickly took control. Worth County racked up 15 hits, including home runs from Brady Weaver and Hayden Short. Weaver, Short, and Rogers each drove in three runs. Rogers also added a double and a triple, while Cervantes continued his hot day with three more hits and two RBIs.

Kilcrease earned the win on the mound, pitching six innings and allowing six runs on six hits. He walked four and struck out five.

“To be competitive at Jeff Davis, we’ve got to have good pitching, solid defense, and timely hitting,” Smith said. “Those two-out hits were huge [against Dublin], and we’ll need that again.”

Friday’s sweep also closed a meaningful chapter in Worth County baseball history. The Rams are expected to move to a new baseball facility next season, which means their final high school games at historic Pope Park ended on a winning note.

Pope Park, believed to be the oldest continuously used high school baseball field in Georgia, has been a fixture in Sylvester since the Pope family donated it to the city in 1910. The Worth County school system has used the facility since the area schools consolidated in 1961.

“I respect the history,” Smith said. “I’m not sure how much of it is true and how much is folklore, but I’ve heard stories that some of the old-time greats, like Ty Cobb, might have played at Pope Park. As the story goes, the teams traveled by train, and when the train stopped in Sylvester, they’d get off, play a game, and then ride on to Tifton or Waycross.”

“I’ve spent 25 years on this field,” he added. “I love what we’ve been able to do here, but it’s time for a new chapter. If you want to be a beacon for industry or a beacon for families, you have to invest in young people—and that’s what our school board has done by allowing us to build this new park. We’ll be one of just four schools in South Georgia with a turf field. We’re really excited about what’s happening.”