After winning its first four games of the season, Cathedral High School football coach Chuck Darbonne only had one way to describe his team following Friday night’s matchup with Simpson Academy.

“We became the teams we beat the last four weeks,” he said.

Cathedral (4-1) dropped a lopsided battle to the Cougars, 48-27, ending the Green Wave’s win streak and suffering its first loss this year.

“I was expecting them to come out the way that Simpson did playing physical, with no worries, and with a lot of confidence,” Darbonne said. “We were just less physical and less confident. It just really wasn’t a good night.”

Cathedral held Simpson Academy (2-3) on its first drive after a holding penalty in the red zone put a halt to its early rhythm. The Cougars were still able to strike first after regaining momentum by intercepting Cathedral on its first offensive attempt.

“I thought we had them in the right positions,” Darbonne said. “I really don’t know. It was one of those things where the responsibilities slipped a little bit.”

Darbonne said Cathedral’s biggest fault on the night was its effort on special teams.

The Green Wave allowed numerous explosive runs on kickoffs, including one returned for a 75-yard touchdown late in the second quarter.

The Cougars led at halftime, 35-7.

“We had a few with a lack of effort that cost us. The way they returned the ball passed the 50 every time really put our defense in bad shape to start,” Darbonne said. “I don’t know if it was every drive, but it seemed like it. Any momentum we gained from doing anything positive offensively was taken away every time we kicked.”

J.t. Taylor led the offensive effort for Cathedral, rushing for 118 yards on five carries. He found the end zone on runs of 38 and 46 yards.

Greg Moore added 121 yards on the ground on 14 carries with a 60-yard touchdown.

Despite falling in what Darbonne said was Cathedral’s first real test of the season, he said he still thinks his team is on the right track.

Cathedral ended last season with a record of 3-8, and Darbonne is hopeful Friday’s loss will teach the Green Wave a lesson.

“I still think that we are progressing forward,” he said. “This step was a smaller step than we wanted to take, but from last year to now the mentality of our kids and the way they can bounce back from things like this is great. This was the first true test of how they are going to react to a bad situation and how they can make it better. We are going to be positive about it, and we are going to play it the right way.”

Cathedral’s final score came on a 5-yard pass to Sam Mosby from Taylor in the final minute of the game.

The Green Wave will travel to Copiah Academy next Friday night.