NATCHEZ — The Cathedral High School girls didn’t lack effort Friday night against Hinds AHS, they were simply outmatched athletically.

And the scoreboard reflected that, with the Lady Green Wave falling 49-15, with 10 of Cathedral’s points not coming until the fourth quarter.

The Lady Green Wave’s McKenzie Milligan led the team with 10 points, but Cathedral had a tough time stopping the Lady Bulldogs’ speedy athletes on defense.

“They play like what we try to teach our girls to play like,” head coach Randy Smith said. “They fake well and they don’t look where they’re throwing it. We’re working on that. Our girls tried hard; no one gave up. We’re still young.”

Cathedral fell behind 14-4 in the first quarter, with all four points being scored by Milligan. The second and third quarters were the point of no return for the Lady Green Wave, as Cathedral managed just one free throw with 1:45 left in the second during that timeframe.

The Lady Bulldogs’ aggressive, in-your-face style of defense kept the Lady Green Wave at bay for the most part, and Smith said his team could never get comfortable offensively.

“They intimidated our girls,” Smith said. “They played with quite a bit of what I like to call physical athleticism. Those girls only play basketball, so that makes a big difference. Our girls play a lot of sports, this just happens to be what they’re doing right now.”

With a 38-5 lead after three quarters, Hinds AHS began subbing in the rest of its bench in the fourth, and Cathedral did the same. Things finally started picking up for the Lady Green Wave when Milligan hit a layup with 5:25 left, Cathedral’s first points since the second quarter.

After the Lady Bulldogs’ Nya Williams hit a free throw at the 4:16 mark, MacKenzie Watts scored a field goal with 3:44 left. Milligan scored again with a two-pointer with 3:36 on the clock, but Hinds AHS rallied off six straight points after that. Milligan scored her final basket of the night with a field goal at the 2:23 mark, and Crystal Beckwith rounded out Cathedral’s scoring with a two-point basket with 19 seconds left.

“I was happy with the youth,” Smith said. “Everyone got to play. That way, they won’t be scared when they come (into the game) next year. These girls getting in as freshmen will help them.

Adrienne Burks led Hinds AHS with 12 points, and Eugena Grigsby tallied 11 points.

Cathedral fell to 0-9 on the season, 0-1 in regional play.

Hinds AHS 51,

Cathedral boys 48

The Bulldogs’ 14 points in the fourth quarter compared to the Green Wave’s 11 made the difference as Cathedral fell to 5-6 on the season and 0-1 in its region.

D.J. Perry led in scoring for Cathedral with 20 points, and Carl Hammitte added 10 points. The Bulldogs’ Deandre Bolton tallied 11 points.

Cathedral will play at ACCS next Thursday.