Appling County defeated Thomson 21-7 in the quarterfinals of the AAA Georgia High School State Playoffs on Friday, Nov. 26, at The Brickyard.
The Appling County Pirates got the ball first but failed to score on their opening drive. Appling would pin the Thomson Bulldogs offense at the one-yard line with a great punt by Dawson Griffis.
Both teams failed to score after one quarter and no score would come on either of their first three drives.
Thomson quarterback Taymarion Martin got the Bulldogs in scoring position midway through the second quarter with a 39-yard rush and was brought down inside the Pirates’ 5-yard line.
After a couple of penalties that moved Thomson back, Martin put the Bulldogs ahead with a 9-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Ashton Perry. Askew added the extra point to make the score 7-0 with 6:26 remaining in the second quarter.
The Pirates’ offense got one more chance to score before the end of the half with 1:30 remaining in second quarter. Running back Jarvis Mims took off for a 39-yard touchdown run and kicker Alex Garcia added the extra point to tie the game 7-7 going into the second half.
Appling drove downfield on their first offensive drive of the second half and scored on 2-yard touchdown run by Mims, adding his second touchdown of the game. Garcia added the extra point to make the score 14-7 in favor of the Pirates.
The Bulldogs would fail to covert on fourth and three on their next offensive drive and Appling took advantage of it, adding their second touchdown of the third quarter on a 4-yard run by Taylen Crosby. Garcia made the extra point, putting the Pirates ahead 21-7 with 2:48 remaining in the third quarter.
Thomson drove downfield late in the third quarter all the way to the Appling 16-yard line but failed to score as Martin threw his first interception of the game.
Martin and the Bulldogs offensive got one more chance in the fourth quarter to score, but the Appling defense applied pressure to the quarterback and forced Martin to throw his second interception of the game. Thomson’s offense failed to score and lost 21-7, eliminating the Bulldogs from the playoffs.
Appling County (12-1) advances to the semifinal round of the playoffs and will face Cedar Grove (10-3) on Friday, Dec. 3.
Chris Rickerson is a Sports Contributor for The Augusta Press. Reach him at CRICKERSON@augusta.edu.
