Twelve seniors will suit up in a Bulldog uniform for the final time tonight when Natchez High School takes on Brookhaven High School in its regular-season finale.

First-year coach Roy Rigsby said tonight’s tilt will have mixed emotions as he’s excited about playing a game but also disappointed knowing it’s going to be the final game of the year.

“It’s been a learning experience for me,” Rigsby said. “Sometimes it hasn’t been easy, with different personalities and implementing different schemes, but the changes (in the program) have begun, and I’m glad we’ve gone through it. You’re losing a group of seniors, so you have to deal with those emotions as well.”

Natchez (1-9) enters today on the heels of playing perhaps its best game since a season opening win Aug. 19. The Bulldogs fell to West Jones High School last week, 26-20, but Rigsby said he saw incremental improvement in his squad’s performance.

“The way the guys played was promising,” Rigsby said. “With the competitiveness and physical nature that they played with, that’s something we want to become more consistent with. We want to be more consistent overall.”

Brookhaven (7-3, 4-2) enters tonight having won three of its past four games.

“They’re a very sound team, they play well and they play well together,” Rigsby said. “When you look at what (BHS coach Tommy Clopton) has done and the system they’ve established. He was in my shoes 3-4 years ago, and he’s a established a program and the kids have bought into it. The program has grown and become a lot better.”