THOMASVILLE – The Thomas County Central Yellow Jackets continued their stretch of rivalry matchups on Friday night as they took on the Cairo Syrupmakers.

It was an excellent game for the Jackets, who handed the Syrupmakers their third loss and picked up their sixth win in a 78-56 victory.

The Yellow Jackets needed a good win, coming off a pair of questionable performances that saw Central beat rival Thomasville by one and lose to Worth County by double digits. They got that and more on Friday night with an excellent offensive showing.

The Jackets had three players secure double digits in the scoring column, led by junior Colby Mullinax’s 19 points. In addition, only one Yellow Jacket shooter was below 40% from the field. Mullinax finished the night with a double-double, securing 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Junior Quincy Anderson led the team in field goal percentage with a remarkable 63%, which netted him 14 points on the night. Anderson also hit a team-leading four threes and went four for six from beyond the arc.

The only area of concern for the Yellow Jackets on Friday night was defense. Despite holding Cairo to 56 points, it is the third-most points Central has given up all year and the most the Syrupmakers have scored in their four games played. The points allowed should not overshadow Central’s win, the fact that they scored a season-high 78, or that they shot the lights out. However, it is something to be watched closely.

The Central girls squad defeated the Syrupmakers as well, 56-27, and have been proving many doubters wrong. The very young Lady Jackets team that was not expected to make much of a splash this year is now 4-3 and has won three straight. With multiple freshmen getting important minutes, Central has been able to rely on junior Jaida Pinkins and freshman phenom Jaden Crews to help lead this young team to a surprising start to the season. Central will face a tough Dougherty team on Thursday.