By D’VENNIO WARNER

The Natchez Democrat

NATCHEZ — St. Aloysius put a damper on Cathedral High School’s homecoming Friday night, defeating the Green Wave 45-15 at D’Evereux Stadium.

Perhaps it was a bit of revenge on the part of St. Aloysius, since the Green Wave (4-3, 1-0) entered the match-up having won the last four meetings with the Flashes (2-5, 2-1).

The contest appeared to have the makings of a classic showdown until all the momentum shifted St. Aloysius’ way when the Flashes made a fumble recovery at an opportune time.

With 5:33 remaining in the second quarter, Thomas Trichell of St. Aloysius recovered a fumble on the 4-yard line and returned it 96 yards for a touchdown, giving the Flashes a 14-7 lead.

“We lost the momentum early on when it was a 7-7 game, and we were driving in and the officials called the play a fumble on a 50-50 call,” said Cathedral head coach Chuck Darbonne. “They brought it back for a touchdown and at that point we hung our heads and never bounced back.”

After that turnover and touchdown, the Flashes went on to score 31 consecutive points before the Green Wave scored late in the fourth quarter.

Despite the loss, Cathedral is still in playoff contention, but Darbonne said a few factors are keeping the team from peaking.

“The defense didn’t give up 45 points tonight, the special teams and offense gave up about half of them,” Darbonne said.

Despite two touchdown passes from quarterback J.T. Taylor Jr., a 130-yard rushing performance from senior Tyriek Lee, and an additional 100 rushing yards from Kendall Washington, “There were no positives tonight,” Darbonne said.

The win keeps St. Aloysius’ playoff hopes alive, but the Flashes head coach Michael Fields said he isn’t satisfied.

“It means more to the St. Aloysius community and the kids,” Fields said. “It’s just another win for me, but we have to keep going.”

The Green Wave will host Adams County Christian School (7-0, 1-0) in a pivotal MAIS District 5-AAA game Friday at 7 p.m.