By Andy Pounders

BEAR CREEK — Tharptown earned its first win of the season in impressive fashion with a 44-20 victory at Phillips. It is the first time the Wildcats have beaten the Bears.

Tharptown (1-2, 1-1) got on the board with a 6-yard pass from Kelby Hallmark to Nathan Gray to put the Wildcats ahead 6-0 midway though the first quarter.

Hallmark was tackled in the end zone for a safety midway though the second as Phillips cut the score to 6-2.

Brandon Cothrum found Timothy Bryant for a 40-yard touchdown pass to extend the lead to 12-2 with 1:21 to play in the second quarter.

Phillips (0-3, 0-2) scored 40 second later on a 28-yard run, but failed on the 2-point conversion. Tharptown took a 12-8 lead into halftime.

Tharptown pulled away in the third quarter with three touchdowns in the first eight minutes of the quarter. Hallmark hit Cothrum for an 85-yard scoring pass while Nathan Gray scored on a 13-yard run and Jacob Parker scored on a 15-yard run.

Phillips added a touchdown late in the third, but Tharptown answered in the fourth with a 18-yard touchdown run by Parker.

The Bears scored again to cut the Tharptown advantage to 38-20, but Gray put the game away for Tharptown with a 5-yard run with 1:25 remaining in the game.

The Wildcats host Shoals Christian next week.