Thomasville running back Mario Cherry lunges forward for more yards as Bulldog teammates Vantez Gordon (24) and Helon Hammonds look on.

The streak lives on and Thomasville has Mario Cherry to thank for that.

Riding their senior running back, the Bulldogs edged Cook 21-14 at Veterans Memorial Stadium on Friday night. The Hornets’ last win at Thomasville was in 1950.

Cherry made sure that streak didn’t end on his watch in the Region 1-AA opener. After Cook (2-2, 0-1) tied the game less than two minutes into the fourth quarter, Thomasville began to grind out a win.

Taking more than six minutes off the clock, THS (3-2, 1-0) used 12 plays to cover 55 yards to take the lead for good. Nine of those 12 plays were on the ground as Cherry carried it eight of those times. In all the senior toted it 36 times for 213 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winner from 15 yards out with 5:00 left in the game.

“Tough kid, isn’t he?” Thomasville coach Leroy Ryals said about his star. “And on a wet surface. On a couple of runs, if he had a dry surface, he could have put his foot in the ground.

“He’s just a tough young man. He does a good job staying behind his pads, and he’s such a good young man.”

That run came just two plays after Thomasville lined up for a 37-yard field goal. However, following a Cook timeout, the Bulldogs faked the kick and converted the fourth-and-1 when Henri Abrams hit Lewis King for 5 yards.

 

See Saturday’s edition for more details