ROYAL CITY – In a winning streak that’s spanned nearly four years, there's always another player set to burst onto the scene for top-ranked Royal.

Friday night, that was junior running back and linebacker Jackson Flood.

Flood rushed for 119 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and the six-time defending Class 1A state champions shook a sluggish start to beat third-ranked Cashmere 28-10 in a SCAC showdown at David Nielsen Memorial Field that will echo throughout the state.

The victory gives the Knights 50 straight victories. It’s the second 50-game winning streak for the program, which has won 14 state championships, 13 of those during the 28-season tenure of Hall of Fame coach Wiley Allred.

Royal won 53 straight games spanning the 2014-2018 seasons. Only Bellevue, which won 67 games in a row, owns a longer streak.

Like its last two matchups with the Bulldogs – an overtime victory last regular season and a one-point win in the 1A final in December – the Knights needed a spark.

“The offense and defense was a little off,” said Allred, whose team trailed 10-7 at the intermission after scoring on its first drive. “Our kids did a better job in the second half, and offensively, I settled down and stopped calling so much stuff.”

With Flood and senior back Dax Jenks, who keyed last year’s title run with 662 total yards and nine TDs in the playoffs, it sure helps.

Jenks had 74 total yards Friday, and took a direct snap three yards for a score early in the third quarter to regain the lead.

Then, it was Flood’s turn. His shiftiness helped him dodge defenders, and his apparent time in the weight room helped him break tackles, too.

The highlight of the night was a 31-yard scoring scamper in which Cashmere seemingly had him surrounded, only to have Flood reverse course and scoot down the sideline for the score.

“He’s a dude; he’s another one,” Allred said. “There was nothing on that last touchdown, they flew to that, and he made a great cut back.”

For Flood, the move was instinctual, and all part of the game plan.

“We were expecting to have a tough game,” he said. “In the second half, we figured some things out up front and started dominating the run.”

Royal’s defense also stiffened, pitching a shutout in the second half and forcing two turnovers after the break.

Cashmere junior Mac Carlson, making just his second start, was up to the moment, completing 20 0f 23 passes for 177 yards and a score, and also scoring on a 1-yard plunge.

The Knights, though, got a leaping interception from Fischer Livingston on the Bulldogs’ first play after Flood scored on a 17-yard run to give the Knights a 21-10.

On Cashmere’s next possession, Royal linebacker Easton Eilers chased down Carlson on a fourth down attempt to force a fumble, which the Knights recovered.

In the final minutes, Ethan Bessonette pulled in a 20-yard touchdown pass after the ball was tipped by Knights defensive back Manny Ruvalcaba.

The Bulldogs have lost just five games in the last three years, all of those at the hands of the Knights.

Cashmere coach Bryan Brember is hesitant to call the matchup a rivalry until the Bulldogs have beaten the champs.

“I’m proud of the effort, I keep saying that, and someday I hope I’m proud of the effort with the win,” Bremer said. “It’s frustrating because of how hard these kids work, and we do everything in our power to put them in successful spots, and I got to figure out what that recipe is.”

For Royal’s seniors, the 50-game winning streak is a legacy they’re looking to preserve and pass on.

“It awesome to be part of,” Knights quarterback Grant Wardenaar said. “When we leave, hopefully we leave something for the younger generation to keep them going and to motivate them.”

And for Allred, it’s on to Week 3.

“I just want to get the next one,” he said. “What’s fun is when you’re doing it against a quality team like this. I think they’re every bit as good as they were a year ago, and I think we’re every bit as good – but for a while we didn’t show much.”