NATCHEZ — There will be a new MHSAA Class 5A state champion in girls basketball for the first time in two years.

South Jones High School overcame a 14-point deficit in the fourth quarter to upset Natchez High School 62-59 Monday night.

South Jones advances to the second round of the state tournament against West Harrison Friday.

“We’re just looking forward to next season,” Natchez coach Alphaka Moore said. “We’re focusing on moving on.”

Natchez had control of the game early after an 8-0 run in the first quarter, a eventually opened up a 16-7 lead. Natchez’s lead was up to 10 points at halftime and the Lady Bulldogs led by as much as 14 points in the third quarter.

South Jones began to make its run at Natchez in the final quarter. Moore said she saw the game swing in favor of South Jones toward the end of the third quarter.

“Mid-third quarter is normally our cold point,” Moore said. “We tried to hold it but South Jones did a good job of pressuring and causing commotion towards the end.”

South Jones cut Natchez’s lead to five points with less than five minutes to play. Moore called a timeout at that point.

The Lady Braves rattled off six straight points, taking their first lead since the first quarter with 3:36 remaining. Kelsi Jackson hit two free throws to give South Jones a 51-50 lead.

Natchez battled back, taking a 56-55 lead with under one minute left, but a pass out of bounds gave South Jones the ball and the Lady Braves retook the lead 60-56 with 20 seconds remaining.

Natchez had a chance for a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer with less than a second to play, but Keyara Hinton blocked an inbound pass intended for Ernesha Chatman as time expired.

South Jones had 32 points after three quarters. The Braves scored 30 in the final quarter to beat the Bulldogs.

“As with any team, it’s tough,” Moore said. “They have a bright future. It’s about learning this one tough lesson and moving on to the next.”

Natchez ends the season on back-to-back losses — in the regional finals against Provine High School and now in the first round on the state playoffs.

Natchez lost one of its strongest interior players Zyaire Ewing to an ACL injury in January, forcing her to miss the final month of the season.

Moore commended her team’s ability to step up and fill Ewing’s role.

“The girls did a good job under the circumstances,” Moore said. “Anytime a team loses a player due to injury it’s tough.”

Chatman led Natchez with 24 points, four assists and four steals. Kirdis Clark had 18 points and four steals for the Lady Bulldogs. Skylar Morgan led the Lady Bulldogs in rebounding with 10, in addition to 11 points, Asia Carradine and Destiny Lyles both added six.

Jackson led the Lady Braves with 19 points. Hinton added 18 points for South Jones.

“The biggest thing was scoring,” Moore said. “However they got in it, they did a really good job of doing that.”