By Kevin Eckleberry

Sports Editor

COLUMBUS - The streak is over.

The Troup Tigers came into Thursday’s game at Kinnett Stadium having lost 12 straight games to the rival Shaw Raiders.

For the first time since 1996, though, it was Troup getting to do the celebrating after the Shaw game.

Brandon Worle had a 47-yard touchdown run in the second half, Kendrick Ward returned an interception for a touchdown in the first half, and Troup’s defense was stingy all night in a 14-8 victory.

It was an important win not just because of Troup’s history against Shaw.

The win moves the Tigers (5-3 overall) to 3-1 in Region 2-AAA and keeps them in line to snare one of the top two spots in the region.

Troup plays Kendrick next week before closing the regular season against LaGrange.

“It feels great,” said Worle, who had 115 yards on 14 carries. “The team pulled together when we needed to.”

Added senior quarterback Jaquante Holloway: “It feels great. It’s been over a decade since we beat them. Man, it’s a great feeling right now.”

Even though Shaw came into the game with a 1-7 record, Troup head coach Bubba Jeter didn’t expect things to come easily.

Jeter noted that Jamie Fox, who took over the head-coaching duties after a loss to Northside dropped the Raiders to 0-6, is “a defensive guy.”

“They played well,” Jeter said. “I watched them play Carver, and I knew their defense was good.”

Troup’s defense was better, though.

Led by defensive lineman J.C. Copeland and freshman linebacker Reuben Foster, who was dominant despite wearing a cast and a heavy cushion on his arm, Troup’s defense was up to the challenge.

“The defense, they’ve been doing it all year,” Jeter said.

Fox said the defense ” kept us in the game and gave us a chance to win. I was proud of the way we competed for four quarters and never gave up.”

It was the defense that gave Troup the lead.

Late in the first quarter, Foster got his hand on a Chris Baker pass, and the ball deflected to Ward, who took it 35 yards for the touchdown.

Jordan Vann made the first of his two extra points to give Troup the 7-0 lead.

The Tigers’ lead was still seven points when they took over at their own 40 after a failed fourth-down conversion by Shaw.

Moments later, after he’d already carried the ball three straight times, Worle took a handoff from quarterback Jaquante Holloway and went nearly untouched for a 47-yard touchdown.

Vann’s kick was true, and Troup was up 14-0.

It looked like Troup was on the verge of putting the game away, but Shaw would have none of that.

The Tigers had to kick off from their 20 following a penalty on the touchdown, and Markus Miller returned the kick 40 yards deep into Troup territory.

It could have been a touchdown, but Vann made a textbook tackle to drive Miller out of bounds.

Shaw scored anyway, though, with Baker capping the short drive with a 4-yard touchdown run, and  Baker then completed a two-point conversion pass to Miller.

Suddenly, with just seconds remaining in the third quarter, Troup’s lead was down to 14-8.

The Tigers twice drove into Shaw territory in the fourth quarter, but those possessions ended in a punt and a lost fumble.

The fumble came on the Shaw 22-yard line when the Tigers were slicing through the Shaw defense.

It didn’t matter.

Copeland sacked Baker on first down for an 8-yard loss, and the Raiders were unable to convert the first down, and the ball went back to Troup with 1:34 left.

The Tigers ran out the clock, and that was that.

“It’s a big win. It’s been a long time,” Jeter said. “We needed that one.”