ASHLAND, Ky. – What do Joe DiMaggio and the Ashland Tomcats basketball program have in common?

They both have 56-game streaks.

DiMaggio has the unbreakable 56-game hitting streak for the New York Yankees from 1941 that remains one of the most elusive records in sports. Meanwhile, the 1959-63 Ashland Tomcat teams put together a remarkable 56-game winning streak against regional competition that remains the best mark in region history.

They have a challenger in the current run of Tomcats, who have a 41-game winning streak against 16^th Region competition that ranks as the third-best mark in region history. Ashland has the potential of 10 region games remaining, including district and regional tournaments.

Should they win all those games, including if the Russell game is rescheduled, the Tomcats’ streak that started in February 2019 would reach 51 and be tied for second in region history. Ashland started a streak in the 1975-76 season that lasted until the district tournament in 1980 when Holy Family defeated the Tomcats, 69-64, to snap it at 51.

The 1959-60 Tomcats started the 56-game streak with the first game of that season. Ashland didn’t lose again until Jan. 29, 1963, when Russell downed the Tomcats 55-52 in the Red Devils’ gym.

Ashland has recorded eight streaks of 20 or more, including 39 (1927-30) that ties for fourth.

Boyd County had streaks of 26 (1994-96) and 24 (1980-82) and Clark County owned streaks of 39 (1947-50) and 28 (1956-58). Elliott County had a 30-game streak (2008-09), Olive Hill recorded 24 (1958-59) and Fleming County 21 (2013-14).

Ashland has been undefeated against region competition in the 2019-20 and 1920-21 seasons, going 19-0 and 15-0 respectively, under coach Jason Mays. The Tomcats are 4-0 so far this season. The current streak includes three wins from the regional tournament in March 2019.

Kudos to area sports historian Curtis Crye who tabulated these statistics.

ASHLAND, Ky. – Marty Thomas almost apologetically admitted he wasn’t aware of the Distinguished Tomcat Award given annual at the Ashland Invitational Tournament.

When a committee member told him of the prestigious honor and that he was the recipient of the award, he was stunned and humbled.

“Complete surprise,” he said. “I said, ‘Oh my goodness. Are you sure? Me?’ Because I don’t think of myself as that person. It’s an incredible recognition. I’m grateful and honored.”

It’s not that much of a surprise to anyone who watched Thomas player for the Tomcats from 1992-94 when he put up more points than any player in Ashland history. His 1,873 points still ranks as No. 1 although current Tomcat Cole Villers isn’t far behind.

It also won’t be the first time Thomas has received an award during the AIT. He was chosen as one of the top 50 players in AIT history during a recognition several years ago.

“The swimming pool was there at that time, and we were stretched out in this single file line going through,” he remembered. “I was waiting for my name to be called and walk out to halfcourt. I know Jeff Hall, my coach, was just behind me. Him and Ervin Stepp from Phelps were jawing at each other, and I was caught in the middle (between them). It was like these guys were about to suit up for a high school game. Jeff silenced the crowed by showing his (NCAA) championship ring. I was thinking these guys are going to get wet.”

Thomas said that honor of being one of the best to ever play in the AIT was a great honor in itself. “That tournament gives you goose bumps,” he said.

Thomas will have the spotlight to himself this time. He will be honored before Ashland plays its opener in the AIT on Dec. 28.

Thomas helped the Tomcats to a 16^th Region championship his junior season under coach Wayne Breeden when he averaged 27.7 points per game – the highest single-season scoring average in Ashland history. He also holds the record for a single game, scoring 54 points against Jellico, Tennessee, in a tournament in southeastern Kentucky.

Ashland won 121-33, which is the most points scored in a game in Tomcat history.

“I remember everybody telling me to shoot it,” he said. “Everybody was passing me the ball and saying, ‘keep shooting it.’ I remember their coach was very upset because this guy keeps making these shots. I don’t know how players describe being in a zone but that’s probably the best description.”

Thomas was in the zone a lot. He had 14 games of 30 or more points in his career, scored 38 in a pulsating 16^th Region championship win over Russell in 1993 and followed that up with a 31-point performance in a loss to Shelby County in the Sweet Sixteen.

He was All-State as a junior and senior and a member of the Kentucky All-Stars in 1994. He was a two-time All-AIT performance and the All-Area Player of the Year as a senior. Thomas went on to play at Eastern Kentucky University before a back injury ended his career.

Being the scoring king for going on 27 years is something Thomas holds onto with pride. People still mention it to him, he said.

“I’ve heard it a lot in the workplace, or at Kroger or I’ll run into someone at the gas station,” he said. “I’ve been introduced that ay to friends. I’m not the type of person that I ever led with that in a conversation. People are like, ‘You didn’t tell me you’re the all-time leading scorer at your school?’ Not that I’m not proud of it, I’m just not somebody who talks about himself much.”

His humble beginnings started with Thomas and his brother dribbling on a gravel driveway with only a homemade hoop. They would shoot at the sundeck which had an X put on it or a box nailed to it. “If the ball rolled off the driveway, it went down the hill quite a bit,” he said. “We still got out there and dribbled.”

Marty said his father, the late Maynard Thomas, would be moved by the honor. “I know he’d give me a big warm hug and say he’s proud of me. My father’s words were there is always somebody out there better. You need to work harder. He would add to that you need to work harder so when you meet that person, you’re able to compete.”

Thomas has dabbled in coaching and currently is the middle school and junior varsity girls coach at Raceland. He hopes all 26 members of the team will go out to midcourt with him when he’s recognized.

Thomas is married to Wendy Thomas and five children – Kiyara Thomas, Chasity Thomas, Gabby Lawson, Tyler Evans and Whitney Evans. He also has two grandchildren, Hudson and Lucy. The family will join him at midcourt when Tomcat PA announcer introduces him as the recipient of an award that Thomas is quickly learning about.

“There are so many great names in Tomcat history on that list,” he said. “It’s humbling to say the least.”

Distinguished Tomcat Award honorees

2001-Ralph Felty, All-State football player in 1937 for the Tomcats who went on to play in the Rose Bowl for Duke.

2002-Charlie Reliford, major league baseball umpire who is still regarded as the best “rules man” in the game.

2003-Brandon Webb, major league baseball pitcher and the 2006 Cy Young Award winner for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

2004-Bob Wright and the Lynch family, a state championship coach of the famed ’61 Tomcats and a family whose talent – and class – was unmatched in Ashland sports. Billy and Bobby Lynch are two of the greatest athletes to ever wear maroon and white.

2005-Salyers family, Greg, Phil and Bryan, all great basketball players and great people who loved their Tomcats.

2006-Conley family, George, Larry, Joe and Linda. Some of the best of the best be it coaching or playing.

2007-Jerry Henderson, one of the greatest all-around athletes in Tomcat history and one of the greatest gentlemen in Ashland history.

2008-Harold Cole, outstanding basketball coach who knew how to win.

2009-Dr. Garner Robinson and David Green, who helped Ashland become the state’s first school with certified trainers.

2010-Dr. Loren Ledford, a diehard Tomcat who starred in basketball and was later a passionate supporter and team doctor.

2011-David Payne, Mr. Tomcat. Need more be said? Dirk Payne did more for the Tomcats than anybody on this list, period.

2012-Dicky Martin, The Voice. He is a strong part of the tradition and will fight you if you say anything bad about a Tomcat. He can say it because he’s family. But don’t you try it around him.

2013-Mike Johnson, football and baseball player for the Tomcats who gave much back to Ashland’s youth as a baseball coach.

2014-Herb Alban, a 60-year Tomcat fan who has seen a lot during his 98 years. An amazing man whose life could be a movie.

2015-Steve Gilmore, whose lifetime has revolved around the Tomcats as a coach, teacher, administrator, superintendent and now huge fan as he works as mayor of the city.

2016-Herb Conley, an all-sport athlete and a football coach whose legacy is unmatched. Anybody else have a statue?

2017-Mark Maynard, sports historian and former sports editor and editor of The Daily Independent who has written 11 books including eight with Tomcat ties.

2018-Vic Marsh, the all-time winningest coach in Ashland Tomcat football history. He led the Tomcats to the 1990 state championship.

2019-Frank Sloan who coached Ashland teams to regional championships in baseball, girls basketball and soccer.

2020-COVID, no selection.

2021-Marty Thomas, who starred in basketball from 1992-94 when he became all-time scoring king with 1,873 points. He also had the single-game record with 54 points and averaged 27.7, an all-time best, his junior season.

What do Mickey Mantle, Bevo Francis, Joe DiMaggio, Jody Hamilton, Don Gullett, Kevin Bair and a football team called JAWS have in common?

They are just a few of the many stories in “Mark My Words 2,” a collection of stories from Ashland historian Mark Maynard. This is Mark’s 11^th book since 2010. The first book was “Mark My Words” published by the Jesse Stuart Foundation. JSF also published his second book, “Teamwork,” and the rest of come through Right Eye Graphics.

The latest is a greatest hits list of stories from Maynard, most of them coming from his popular MarkMyWords2.com blog.

He covers the 33-0 Tomcats perfect season in 2019-20 and the 1928 national champion Ashland Tomcats. He writes about the night Bevo Francis lit up Ashland Junior College for an astounding 114 points and Kevin Bair’s home run for the ages that won a state championship for East Carter High School in 1984.

His stories deal mostly with the Ashland area and include some reflections on some of her greatest people and athletes.

Ginny Carter, who was a mother to so many in Ashland American Little League in the 1960s, is featured in the book and the day his father-in-law, Fred Boggs, scored his one and only ace at the age of 87.

There are also one-on-one interviews with Putnam Stadium (you read that right), and obits on the press at the Ashland Daily Independent and Armco Steel.

The stories will make you laugh and some will make you cry.

If you’re interested in purchasing a copy email Mark at mainrod@windstream.net or visit PayPal and include payment ($24 with shipping) and address. Mark’s Paypal address is mainrod@windstream.net

Locally, books are available at Pollock’s Jewelry and the Trophy House (formerly Ashland Sporting Goods). Call (606) 571-1031 for more information.

ASHLAND, Ky. – The Ashland school board voted unanimously last Monday night to begin studying more deeply the possibility of building a vocational school.

Superintendent Sean Howard said the time is now to expand opportunities for students in the Ashland system. A citizen’s group called “Ashland’s Generation Next” led the charge to begin considering it as a possibility since Ashland is the only school in the state without a vocational school.

The citizens group spent countless hours in research and emails to state officials including Sen. Robin Webb and Rep. Scott Sharp, both who were supportive. Howard has interacted with Rocky Adkins, a special advisor to Gov. Andy Beshear, for additional support.

The motive of the citizen’s group is to give all students a better career path and to have a workforce developing for future growth in Ashland. And, hopefully, to work on ending the “Brain Drain,” where the best and brightest leave Ashland for other areas because of few opportunities here.

Three “Ashland’s Generation Next” members shared the good news to the Ashland City Commission on Thursday. Mayor Matt Perkins, City Manager Mike Graese and the four commissioners were all in agreement that the potential of a vocational school would be a benefit to the city and promised to work with Howard in helping with the project.

At the school board meeting on Monday, Howard asked to assemble the 20-member Local Planning Commission, which decides projects that the school system most needs, and hopefully move vocational school to the top of the priority list. A group of school officials and one of the citizen’s group toured Johnson Central and Lawrence County facilities on Wednesday to learn more about what was ahead.

Students in every other school system throughout the area have access to vocational schools on their own campus or in a nearby one in the case of Fairview Independent and Raceland Independent, which can attend Russell’s vocational school. However, an Ashland student would have to transfer to attend Boyd County, Greenup County or Russell’s vocational schools.

Beshear was traveling the state last week to present checks to Kentucky school districts to renovate local Vocational Education Centers. The grant funding was approved through the Kentucky School Facilities Construction Commission Board and approved in the last legislative session.

Beshear on Friday presented $10 million to the Johnson County Board of Education to fund the construction of a new Local Area Vocational Education Center, which will be connected to the new Johnson Central High School, a news release said.

An existing career and technical education center in Johnson County currently offers 27 training majors and has almost 1,000 students enrolled, Beshear’s office said.

Beshear also handed out more than $4.3 million to the Magoffin Board of Education to finance a new vocational education center.

Officials say the current vocational education building, built in the 1970s, has inadequate electrical wiring, outdated security systems and various space issues.

The construction board voted to offer grants to nine schools districts which operate Local Area Vocational Education Centers (LAVEC) programs. Funding can be used to cover the cost of renovations which would include updating, expanding, repairing and replacing or rebuilding a structure.

Six districts received $10 million grants including Johnson County. Lawrence County received $9,280,350 and Magoffin County will get $4,369,318 in grant funding.

Here is the breakdown for the school districts that have been approved for LAVEC grants by the commission:

• Magoffin County will receive $4,369,318
  
  
• Christian County will receive $10 million
  
  
• Bardstown Independent will receive $10 million
  
  
• Johnson County will receive $10 million
  
  
• Lawrence County will receive $9,280,350
  
  
• Fayette County will receive $10 million
  
  
• Knox County will receive $10 million
  
  
• Trigg County will receive $10 million
  
  
• Ballard County will receive $68,896

Twenty-two other school districts that applied did not receive funding but have hopes of being approved during the General Assembly session that starts in January.

Until recently Ashland didn’t qualify for the grant because it wasn’t designated a LAVEC program. Because of what the school was doing already with nursing, engineering and agriculture on the Blazer campus, they were eligible to be a LAVEC and Howard applied with the state to gain that status.

More work needs to be done, including writing a grant, before the General Assembly session starts in January. The governor will be reviewing qualified projects for potential funds in the budget that will be submitted for January.