NATCHEZ — When the Trinity Episcopal Saints defeated Tri-County Academy 46-14 Friday afternoon in the MAIS Class A state championship game, they didn’t just prove themselves the best team in Class A, they proved themselves the best team in the entire MAIS.

Or at least the Trinity players think so.

“With all the talent we have on this team, we feel like we can compete with anybody in MAIS,” Trinity running back and defensive back Kent King said. “We’ve just got a special group of players on this team.”

And who can argue with King? After all, Trinity won its four playoff games by an average of 33 points, and it could have been much worse if the Trinity starters didn’t sit out most of the second half of three of those games.

And in the state championship game, which is supposed to be the classifications’s two best teams, Trinity led 28-0 after one quarter and 40-7 at halftime.

In fact, Trinity defeated the MAIS Class AA champion River Oaks by 21 points in the regular season.

Trinity also beat Class AA defending champion Brookhaven Academy in the regular season, ending the Cougars’ 22-game winning streak.

“We beat the best teams in Class A, we beat the best teams in Class AA, and we even beat a AAA team (East Rankin) this year,” Trinity receiver and defensive back Tip McKenzie said. “I feel like we could will all three (classifications) this year.”

Alas, unlike in basketball where the champions of all classifications play each other in the Overall tournament, fans will never know just how Trinity would rate against AAA Division II champion Pillow Academy or AAA Division I champ Jackson Academy.

But Saints quarterback and linebacker Givonni Dent thinks he knows how that would turn out.

“We may be ranked behind Jackson Prep and Jackson Academy in the polls, but we feel like we’re the best team in MAIS,” Dent said. “We are really, really good.”