SGTC Alumni and Sophomore Day celebration a big hit

March 3, 2026
Many of the SGTC alumni and retired faculty and staff members that came out for the SGTC Alumni-Sophomore Day event are shown above along with some SGTC current faculty and staff.
Many of the SGTC alumni and retired faculty and staff members that came out for the SGTC Alumni-Sophomore Day event are shown above along with some SGTC current faculty and staff.

     South Georgia Technical College (SGTC) gave away nearly 500 t-shirts to SGTC alumni, retirees, current faculty and staff, friends and supporters at its annual Homecoming, Alumni, and Sophomore Day Celebration recently in the James S. Peters gymnasium in conjunction with the Jets and Lady Jets basketball games.

   All South Georgia Technical College alumni and former faculty and staff members were encouraged to come out and join in the celebration.  Alumni from at least five of the last seven decades were present at the celebration which also recognized the 2025 – 2026 Jets and Lady Jets sophomores between the two basketball games.

Americus-Sumter County Chamber of Commerce members along with Dave Tucker from Imerys are shown above preparing for the tailgate lunch.  The group cooked and served the free hamburgers and hot dogs during the tail-gate for alumni, faculty and staff.

    Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) Commissioner Greg Dozier and TCSG Chief of Staff Mark Peevy were on hand for the festivities.  SGTC President Dr. John Watford recognized the Commissioner prior to the Sophomore Day presentations and presented him with a Lady Jets GCAA State Conference Ring from the 2024 – 2025 season along with an autographed basketball signed by the 2025 – 2026 Jets and Lady Jets.

Shown above with SGTC President Dr. John Watford and TCSG Commissioner Greg Dozier are the Jets and Lady Jets sophomore players and family and friends.

    The Homecoming Alumni Day Celebration kicked-off around 10 a.m. with the FREE Skills camp for youth between the ages of 8 – 14.  Then at 12 noon the Sumter County Chamber of Commerce and Imerys sponsored a free Hot Dog and Hamburger cookout and Tailgate event for faculty, staff, alumni, and students.  The event ended around 5:30 after a full day of activities.

     The tailgating event led into a Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association (GCAA) Division I double-header with the Jets and Lady Jets basketball teams facing off against Albany Technical College.  The Lady Jets defeated the Albany Tech Lady Titans in the opening part of the doubleheader 80 – 54 and then the Jets defeated the Albany Tech Titans 89 – 57 for a complete sweep.

   Both teams will now host the NJCAA Region 17 tournament games.  The Lady Jets are in first place in the GCAA with a 13 – 1 record.  They will receive a bye in the opening round of the tournament and then host the other top three teams on March 12 and 13.  They have one more regular season game on March 4th at 6 p.m. against the Andrew College in Cuthbert. The final NJCAA Region XVII tournament women’s game will be held at 6 p.m. on Friday, March 13th at South Georgia Tech.  The brackets have not been set yet.

    The Jets are currently in third place in the GCAA regular season standings behind Central Georgia Tech and South Georgia State.  The 9 – 5 Jets will host a quarter-final game on Tuesday, March 10 at 7 p.m.  They still have two additional games on the road before the tournament schedule can be finalized.  The Jets will travel to Georgia Highlands on Wednesday, March 4 at 6 p.m. and then to Gordon College on Saturday, March 7 for a 3 p.m. game.

   A total of nine Jets and Lady Jets sophomores were spotlighted during the intermission between the two games with Albany Tech, including the Lady Jets Nyla Buyck from Suitland, Maryland; Taja Bennett from Dallas, Texas; Jada Jones from Fort Lauderdale, Florida; and Jaidyn Elam from Pontiac, Michigan.  The five Jets to be recognized included sophomores: Jalexs Ewing from Augusta, Georgia; Marc Ferdy from Orlando, Florida; Dwight Brown from Conyers, Georgia; Ilich Yacaman from Orlando, Florida; and Matt William Mbole from Yaounde, Cameroon.

   Each of the Jets and Lady Jets were presented with a sophomore poster depicting their images and accomplishments while playing for the Jets and Lady Jets.  They were escorted to half-court by family and friends and recognized by SGTC President Dr. John Watford, Technical College System of Georgia Commissioner Greg Dozier, SGTC Athletic Director and Lady Jets Head Coach Jason Carpenter and SGTC Jets Head Coach Chris Ballauer.

   In addition to the SGTC Jets and Lady Jets sophomores, alumni and SGTC faculty and staff were also recognized at half-court during half-time of the Jets game and the Basketball Skills participants were recognized during the half of the Lady Jets game.

    Special alumni/sophomore t-shirts were available at no cost while supplies lasted during the SGTC Homecoming, Alumni Day Celebration. Admission to the games and the tailgating events were free.  A large crowd was in attendance. 

   South Georgia Technical College would also like to highlight the success of its alumni.  If you or someone you know are an alumni of South Georgia Technical College, please share your story by contacting Su Ann Bird at 229-931-2248 or sbird@southgatech.edu.  Also if you share information on social media, please use #SGTCAlumni.