Monroe comes up short in 20-14 loss to Cook County

ALBANY — With their postseason still in the balance, the Monroe Tornadoes came into Friday night’s matchup against Cook looking to extend their season and make the last home game for their seniors a positive one.

Cook had other plans, however, as they defeated Monroe 20-14 at Hugh Mills Stadium.

The Hornets kept the Tornadoes off balance throughout the first half. On their opening drive, Cook moved up field and found themselves facing a fourth and 1 in the redzone. The Hornets sold the fake and pitched it to No. 17 Tre Williams, who ran it in for an 11-yard score. After the ensuing point-after, Cook led 7-0 with 7:14 left in the first.

Cook then went for an onside kick, surprising Monroe. The Hornets recovered and got started on their second drive. The Tornadoes got their arms around Cook’s backs, but had trouble bringing them to the ground as several plays appeared to be dead before a Hornet runner broke free for positive yardage. As a result, Cook would move into Monroe territory and ultimately score on a three-yard touchdown run by No. 10 Brandon Doe.

Monroe had a chance to cut the lead in half when Ulysses Williams found a wide-open Keith Teague in the back of the end zone for a 35-yard touchdown, but officials ruled he was out of bounds.

Monroe’s Tyreke Stephens intercepted a Cook Hail Hary pass to end the half but still went into the break trailing 14-0.

The Tornadoes got on the board with 5:37 left in the third quarter when David Dilliard found Williams in the corner of the end zone for a five-yard score. The PAT made it a 14-7 game.

Cook answered after a series of strong runs by Doe ended with him reaching the end zone from a yard out. The Hornets went for two and were unsuccessful, making it a 20-7 game with 9:15 left.

The Tornadoes had another scoring drive in them, flipping it to Theodore Harrold, who took it 25 yards necessary for a score. After the PAT, Monroe had a fighting chance, down 20-14 with 6:33 left in the game.

The Tornado defense came up with a huge stop, giving the offense the ball back with 1:40. Monroe threw a series of quick passes but never made it pass midfield. Its final drive ended with a turnover on downs about three yards short of the first.