COLUMBUS, Ga. — The Bainbridge Bearcats cruised to a 48-7 region win over Northside-Columbus at Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Ga., on Friday night.

Cameron McDowell returned the opening kickoff 30 yards, to the Bainbridge 45.

Bainbridge running back Terry Lewis followed with a 16-yard carry, and quarterback Damian Bouie then ran 20 yards, from the Northside 29 to the 9.
But on the next play, the Bearcats fumbled and the Patriots recovered at their own 5-yard-line.

The Patriots caught a pass but the receiver fumbled — Bainbridge’s Cameron McDowell recovered at the Northside 34.

Bouie rushed for 13 yards to the Northside 21. On the next play, Lewis rushed 21 yards for a touchdown with 7:39 left in the 1st quarter. Daniel Provence’s extra point attempt was no good, making the score 6-0.

Starting their next drive from their own 27, the Bearcats drove down the field. Bouie rushed 8 yards for a touchdown with 18.3 seconds remaining in the first quarter. Provence’s extra point made the score 13-0. Key plays on the drive were Bouie rushes for 10 yards and 16 yards, and a 13-yard run by Lewis.

The Bearcats were forced to punt on their next possession. The Patriots’ D.J. Moore returned the punt 42 yards to the Bainbridge 28. T.J. Moore then caught a 28-yard pass from Northside quarterback Jonathan Karastury, with 8:07 left in the second quarter. Sammy James’ extra-point kick narrowed the score to 13-7.

With 4:28 left in the first half, Bainbridge’s Tremain McCray ran 10 yards for a touchdown, making the score 20-7. Key plays in the drive included Bouie rushes for 9 and 5 yards, and McCray rushes for 8 and 13 yards.
The Patriots started the last drive of the first half from their own 40.

On a fourth down from the Bainbridge 35, T.J. Moore caught a 27-yard pass from Karastury to take it to the Bearcats’ 8. Two plays later, Kendrick Smith ran 5 yards.

With 4.6 seconds left in the first half, and the Patriots facing a fourth-and-goal, Caleb Harbin attempted a 19-yard field goal, but it was wide left, so the halftime score remained 20-7 in the Bearcats’ favor.

With 7:18 left in the third quarter, Bouie ran in 10 yards for a touchdown, to make the score 27-7. Lewis had rushes of 25 yards and 15 yards during the drive, which started at the Bainbridge 33, following a punt. Bouie had a rush of 14 yards to start the six-play, 60-yard drive.
Bainbridge’s McDowell and Devon Hubbard broke up what would have been a Northside touchdown pass on a third-and-1 at the Bainbridge 25. A fourth-down rushing attempt did not move forward, giving the ball over to the Bearcats on downs with just over four minutes left in the third quarter.

With 3:19 left in the third quarter, Lewis raced 56 yards for a touchdown to make the score 34-7. One play before, McCray rushed for a 19-yard gain.
With just over two minutes to go in the third quarter, Lewis ran 60 yards from the Bainbridge 20 to the Northside 20. Bouie then ran 8 yards to the Northside 12. A delay-of-game penalty moved the ball back to the 17, but on the next play, Lewis rumbled forward 17 yards for a touchdown, to make the score 41-7 with 50.9 seconds left in the third quarter.

On the next drive, with their backup offense in, the Bearcats started at their own 24 following a punt.

Several plays later, Bainbridge’s Isaiah Brown ran from the Northside 30 to the 9. Backup quarterback Preston Norris then rushed 8 yards. With 6:51 left in the fourth quarter, Brown ran in the end zone, to make the score 48-7. A key play earlier in the drive was a 12-yard rush by Brown.

Freshman quarterback Hayden Guy, the son of former Bainbridge head coach Greg Guy, came in for the Bearcats’ final drive, as the game wound down to its conclusion.

With the win, the Bearcats are 2-2 in Region 1-AAAAA and 5-3 overall. Next Friday, Bainbridge will host Dothan (Ala.) at Centennial Field.