Chargers sweep conference doubleheader Saturday at South Georgia State

Georgia Highlands swept a Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association doubleheader Saturday in Douglas winning 15-0 in the opener and 7-5 in the second game.

GEORGIA HIGHLANDS 15, SOUTH GEORGIA 0

Johnny Dow dominated on the mound and the Chargers’ offense overpowered South Georgia in the opening game, 15-0.

Dow pitched a complete-game, four-hitter without a walk and struck out eight in seven innings.

Meanwhile, the Georgia Highlands offense pounded out 21 hits and scored in every offensive frame except the fifth.

David Smith went 5-for-5 with two doubles. Connor Todaro was 4-for-5 with one RBI. Palmer Sapp finished with three hits and three RBIs. Trenton Parker doubled twice and drove in two runs. Joe Sutton had two hits with one RBI and Trace Twardoski contributed a pair of hits with five RBIs.

Omar Daniels, Gavin Harmon (RBI), and Max Kops (2 RBIs) rounded out the offensive production in the opening game with one hit each.

GEORGIA HIGHLANDS 7, SOUTH GEORGIA 5

The second game of the day was close throughout before the Chargers pulled away in the final two innings.

Georgia Highlands took a 3-1 lead in the second inning but South Georgia knotted the score 3-3 in the bottom of the third.

The Chargers and Hawks traded single runs in the fifth and seventh innings to tie the score again at 5-all.

Georgia Highlands’ Ben Olson smacked a solo home run to left field with one out in the eighth inning for the final go-ahead run and Joe Sutton drove home Connor Todaro in the top of the ninth for an insurance run.

Five different pitchers toiled for the Chargers.

Jacob Ryan started and worked the first five innings. Zack Valentine (1 IP, 1H, 1BB), Garrett Sagro (1 IP, 1ER, 0H, 1BB, 1K), Matthew Silka (1 IP, 0R, 1H, 1BB, 2K), and Chase Townsend (1 IP, 0R, 0H, 2K) all worked in relief.

Sutton finished with three hits and one RBI. Todaro also had three hits including a double. Olson had two hits including his solo home run. Trenton Parker contributed two hits including a double with one RBI. Palmer Sapp had two hits and two RBIs. Brandon Prince (2 RBIs) and David Smith added one hit each.

The losses drop South Georgia State to 19-6 overall and 2-4 in the GCAA.

Georgia Highlands (25-3, 4-0) will host a conference doubleheader with Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College Tuesday at LakePoint starting at 2 p.m.