By By Tim Cottrell
After four years of blood, sweat and tears, Escambia Academy's Zack Thomas is very close to fulfilling all his goals.
The senior small forward for the Cougars eclipsed the 1,000-point mark for his career two weeks ago in a game against Sparta Academy and three days later set the single-game school scoring record against Jackson Academy with 46 points.
"He's been a great leader for us," Cougar head coach Jason Allen said. "He really expects to win. That rubs off on our other players and if you've got 12 guys who expect to win you're in pretty good shape."
Thomas realizes his leadership on the court is a vital part of the Cougars' program.
"I feel like I'm a big help," he said. "I really feel like we are in good shape to repeat as state champions. I want to win another one before I graduate."
Allen said that there was no resentment of Zack's achievements – or his getting a majority of shots.
"He's a great student, a good person and a great leader," Allen said. "His teammates – and even his classmates really – have a lot of respect for him."
Thomas also praised his teammate's supportiveness.
"In the Sparta game they wouldn't stop feeding me the ball," Thomas said. "They even started yelling at me when I didn't make free throws."
Thomas has only three goals for the rest of this year.
"I want to win another championship," Thomas said. "I'd also really like to be player of the year in AISA (Alabama Independent School Association). That's always been a goal of mine. I also really hope I can find a place to play in college."
Thomas and the Cougars will face Jackson Academy on the road Friday night.