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NATCHEZ — The 62nd installment of the “Holy War” was finished in the first quarter. Cathedral (1-1) took a three-touchdown lead early in the game to win 46-8 over longtime rival St. Aloysius from Vicksburg.

Afterwards, the Green Wave players lifted the Al Camp Cup and celebrated with head coach Joshy Loy. 

St. Aloysius (0-2) had a tough first half with the opening kickoff sequence taking three attempts. A face mask, encroachment penalty and a fair catch inside the 4 yard line  left the Flashes with a long opening drive. 

Then, Cathedral’s Owen Jordan tackled a St. Al ball carrier in the end zone for a safety to take an early lead.

It didn’t take long for Cathedral to score again at 10:02 in the first quarter on a 15-yard rush by Cam Tanner. He would finish the night with four touchdowns. 

“It feels good to come out here and win our first home game. It is our first trophy too so we want to keep it going and keep the tradition going next year,” Tanner said. “It was not all me tonight. I had some great blocks and I trusted my O-Line. It is all thanks to them and God.”

Quarterback Tristan Fondren scored three minutes later on a 15-yard rush to give Cathedral a 16-0 lead. A turnover on downs gave the ball back to Cathedral and Tanner scored on a seven-yard rush. 

St. Aloysius quarterback Carson Smith threw an interception to Matt Kaiser who returned the pick to Cathedral’s 41. Thirty seconds later, Cathedral scored on a four yard rush by Tanner to take a 32-0 lead. Grayson Gay had a long reception to set up the play. 

Thompson Fortenberry had one of a few bright points for the Flashes in the second quarter. He made an interception to prevent a touchdown. Cathedral got the ball back and Tanner scored on a two-yard touchdown rush.

It looked like a comfortable first win for Loy, but he said hard work, preparation and tradition helped build expectations for the game.

“It is very exciting. These kids have worked hard, and we had guys come in this week to tell them their St. Al story. We tried to hammer home the importance of the game,” Loy said. “They played a great game and we really showed what we are capable of doing. Our defense was lights out and we established the run early.” 

Loy said his team did get a little sloppy towards the end of the first half. Fortenberry would later help lead his St. Al team down to the red zone and set up a touchdown run by Smith. St Al still trailed 38-8 at half with the late score. 

Cathedral was fired up coming into the second half and entered the field with the mantra of “Finish them.” 

Wide receiver Grayson Gay out maneuvered the St. Al defender with a leaping catch to advance the drive, followed by a 15-yard scoring pass by Fondren. The Green Wave converted the two point conversion to extend their lead. Cathedral scored its last touchdown to take a 46-8 victory over St Aloysius. 

Loy said it was nice to see his team finish out the win. 

“We hammered it home in the locker room that we wanted to make sure the game was over. It doesn’t matter what the score is, we have to finish the job,” Loy said. “It wasn’t done at halftime. I wanted us to refocus and finish the job and we did. I’m happy for them. They have worked extremely hard for me. I’m glad they had success tonight.” 

Cathedral plays at Hartfield next week. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.