NATCHEZ — The Trinity Saints clinched a district title in a 30-28 thriller against Wilkinson County Christian School Friday night.

After a 4-yard touchdown run by WCCA’s Rodney Boyd, WCCA went for the two-point conversion to tie the Saints with 1:45 left to play in the game.

Trinity head coach Zach Rogel dialed up a blitz with Saints linebacker David Jackson on the two-point try.

“When D.J. shot through the line, it was exactly how I envisioned it,” Rogel said. “He dropped him for a six yards loss.”

Despite WCCA’s 1-6 record, Rogel said he expected a tough battle, especially with the way his Saints were at mentally going into the ballgame.

“Believe it or not, I expected it because we had a very poor week of preparation,” Rogel said. “With the district championship on the line, I was expecting a battle.”

WCCA struck first in the championship encounter on two short runs by Rams quarterback Hutch Holden. Holden scored on a two-yard run in the first and came back and scored on a 1-yard run in the second quarter. After both 2-point conversions were successful, the Rams went up 16-0, but the Saints showed resolve.

Trinity’s Cade Wells scored on a 5-yard run shortly after Hutchin’s score, and after Kevontaye Caston connected with Tommy McCoy on the 2-point conversion, the Saints trailed 16-8.

Wells and the Saints struck again quickly after, on a 43-yard touchdown pass from Caston with two minutes remaining in the half. The score was tied at 16 going into the half after Caston converted the two-point play.

“We mixed it up, we ran the ball heavy,” Rogel said. “That’s something we wanted to do all week. We wanted to establish the run.”

Trinity finished the game with 200 rushing yards, while WCCA had no trouble establishing the run either with 362. Boyd led them with 173 yards on 15 carries.

“Boyd switched between tailback and fullback throughout the game,” Rogel said. “He put his shoulders down, and he was tough to stop.”

After a scoreless third quarter, Trinity took the lead on an 18-yard touchdown reception by McCoy. Boyd answered on the ensuing drive to tie the game at 22.

Trinity’s Cortez Adams gave Trinity the lead with four minutes to play and a two-point conversion by Wells would end up being the difference maker.

After the game, Rogel celebrated a district championship with his team.

“It feels great,” said Rogel, whose Saints have now won five in a row. “I’m really excited for the boys. Three months ago, we had five guys and we didn’t have a football team. Now, we’re district champs, and everybody is involved. This is for everybody associated with Trinity.”