TIFTON — Tift County’s track teams showed why they are a team on the rise Friday.

The Lady Devils were second at the Colony Bank Fitzgerald Invitational, according to head coach Gregg Segraves and the Blue Devils finished fourth at the meet. Twenty different schools sent squads to Fitzgerald.

“We’re working hard,” said Segraves, “and coming together as a team.”

Tift had three first place finishes Friday and five more second places.

Allison Stone and Rylee Watson finished 1-2 in the 300 hurdles. Stone ran it in 49.88 seconds, Watson in 50.88. Kiera Green was the other Lady Devil that finished in first, taking the gold with a throw of 106’3” in discus.

The Blue Devils’ winner was J.D. Bengston in the 1,600, which he finished in 4:44.06.

The girls 4×100 was runner-up in 50.32 seconds as was Emily Golden in the 3,200-meter run at 12:15.96. J.D. Bengston’s time of 2:07.45 earned him second in the 800. Chad Williams threw the shot put for 48’9.5” for second place.

“They showed a lot of heart,” said Segraves. He added that Bengston ran neck-and-neck in the mile run. Bengston won by three-hundredths of a second over Cameron Watson of Coffee, whose time was 4:44.09.

Amazingly, Segraves said Tift is still missing some athletes.

“I’m hoping Sara Beth Sledge can get healthy.”

Sledge has experience in pole vault. Thankfully, the Lady Devils have gotten Caitlin Carr to fill in in the event and Cali Conner has expressed interest in trying it as well.

Others who finished in the top five were:

Girls 1,600: Golden (3rd).

Girls 100 hurdles: Watson (3rd).

Girls 4×400: 4th.

Girls high jump: Conner (3rd) and Stone (5th).

Girls triple jump: Nicky Jones (4th).

Girls shot put: Green (4th).

Boys 400: Shamel Johnson (3rd).

Boys 110 hurdles: Mike Jones (3rd).

Boys 4×400: 4th.

Boys triple jump: Otis Jackson (4th).

Tift County has a quad meet scheduled for this afternoon at home. Saturday, they head to Lowndes to participate in Harmon’s Invitational.