NATCHEZ — Four interceptions, two of which were returned for touchdowns, doomed the Natchez High Bulldogs in their clash with 6A Warren Central Friday night.

Despite holding the Vikings to under 300 total yards in the contest, the Bulldogs were unable to find a rhythm offensively and fell 42-20.

“We have to stop making the small mistakes,” Natchez head coach Henry Garner said. “We weren’t mentally prepared for this game, and it really worked against us later in the game. We have to get ourselves completely prepared for these games.”

Warren Central head coach Josh Morgan said his team’s performance was up and down, but he was happy to escape Natchez with a win.

“We knew Natchez was going to be explosive and things of that nature, and that we would have our hands full trying to contain them for four quarters,” Morgan said. “I’m proud of us, though, for holding up until the end.”

Warren Central took command of the game early, jumping out to a 21-0 lead.

DJ Knight put the Vikings on the board with the only score of the first quarter, a one-yard run, to push the lead to 7-0.

Warren Central then stopped a Natchez fake punt, setting up a short field for a touchdown drive that culminated in another Knight touchdown run, this time from three yards out.

On the next Viking drive, quarterback Brooks Boolos found Joe’vontae Shorter from nine yards out to put Warren Central up 21-

But the fight wasn’t out of Natchez yet. On the ensuing drive, Chris Scott connected with Travez Lyles from 36 yards out to put the Bulldogs on the board with just over a minute left in the first half.

Although Natchez had found life, it was quickly taken away on the first drive of the second half, when Chris Scott was intercepted by Derrick Dixon, who returned it 34 yards for a touchdown, pushing the Viking lead to 28-6.

Natchez would answer, though, two drives later when Scott tossed his second touchdown of the game, this time to Jaylin Pollard a seven-yard pass. The Bulldogs converted on the two point conversion, and found themselves down just two touchdowns with 5:23 left in the third quarter.

The Bulldogs continued to have things go their way, with Warren Central fumbling on the next drive and Natchez recovering. But once again, the momentum was killed when Scott was intercepted on the first play of the drive by Kamren Ellis.

Warren Central would go on to score on their next drive on a nine-yard touchdown pass.

Down 35-14, Garner decided to shake things up offensively, and he sent his freshman backup quarterback Paul Hargrave into the game.

“Things weren’t working out too well with Chris and he was getting rattled some,” Garner said. “We figured a change of pace might help us out. Once they get used to one quarterback, if you change the tempo a little bit, sometimes it’ll be for the better, so we decided to take a shot.

Garner’s shot worked on the first drive, as Hargrave led the Bulldogs down the field and threw his first varsity touchdown to Malik Byrd from 20 yards out to pull the Bulldogs within 15, 35-20.

“The first hit I took woke me up, but to come back in the fourth quarter and score, that was fun,” Hargrave said. “It felt really good and Byrd is just a good receiver.”

After forcing a punt on the next Warren Central drive, the Bulldogs appeared to have a shot at potentially beginning a comeback, but on the first play of the drive, Hargrave was intercepted by Alexander Shaw, who returned it ten yards for a Warren Central touchdown to seal the 42-20 victory

Hargrave finished the game 9-of-17 for 73 yards with a touchdown and interception.

Although 42 points were on the scoreboard the Vikings at the end of the game, Garner said he was pleased with the way his defense played.

“I thought they played a pretty good game tonight,” Garner said. “We had a few setbacks, but I think we’ll bounce back. We should be OK.

Ultimately, Garner said the tussle with Warren Central will be an excellent learning experience for the Bulldogs.

“It shows us we have to take care of the little things,” Garner said. “The team we played is fundamentally sound. They stuck to their game plan. They have solid technique and do the fundamentals well, and we have to get there.”

Despite losing, many Natchez players said the game was a good showing of how far they have come.

“I think we are better than we were in the past,” Natchez defensive back Shavoke Herrington said. “We are going to learn what our weakness is. We played a good team, and they showed us a different level. We are going to watch film and fix our problems.”