The accolades keep coming for Denzel Gowdy after a remarkable senior season. After being named Region Player of the Year for 1-AAAA and signing a scholarship to play baseball with the Darton Cavaliers next spring, Gowdy was picked as one of 24 players from Southwest Georgia to compete in the All-State game in Columbus at the end of May. As Rams Head Coach Will Smith explains, “It’s a very elite group.”
The grouping includes all classifications from 1-A through 6-A and the region stretches from Columbus over to Macon and down to Tifton. “It is quite an honor to make it,” Smith says.
On Friday, May 29, Gowdy was one of eight sluggers to compete in the homerun derby. Each player gets 10 opportunities to knock one out. While no one was able to clear the yard in the derby, the Sylvester player turned some heads and had the crowd yelling “Get out!” in unison as he drove the longest ball of the day to bounce off of the outfield fence.
In Friday’s game, the Rams coach says Denzel was swinging the bat well, but he went 0 for 2 on the day with a ground out to third and long fly caught in left field. After the first game ended, the players are treated to a nice banquet and awarded plaques for their participation.
Then, in Saturday’s game among South Georgia’s best athletes, Gowdy came up with a big hit in the sixth inning to tie up the game. The teams played again on Sunday, May 31.
Overall, Coach Smith commented on his former player,
“Denzel had a really good weekend. He came up with a couple of big hits. He represented us well, and his character stood out on the field. All of the coaches complimented his behavior and mannerisms and how much of a gentleman he was, and those are the things that we really strive for.”
In other Worth County baseball news, the Rams started summer league play in early June as they traveled to Ashburn for a game against the Turner Rebels. Coach Smith assures that the team will have a different look than fans have seen recently.
WCHS Baseball Coach Will Smith stands with Denzel Gowdy in Columbus last month.