NATCHEZ &045; Franklin County and&160;Natchez High weren’t supposed to play each other until late January in Meadville. And after what happened Friday night, perhaps Natchez&160;High wished they didn’t.

It all started with the FCHS Lady Bulldogs coming away with a 46-36 win over Natchez High’s Lady Bulldogs, thanks in part to a stifling defense.

For most of the game Franklin County (2-0) went to either a full-court press or a half-court trap that confused and frustrated Natchez (1-3) througout the game.

&uot;We have no true center, so we try to extend the court and use our athleticism,&uot; Franklin head coach Charles Moore said.

Actually the game was a turnover fest as both teams combined for 56 turnovers &045; 34 by Natchez, 22 by Franklin County.

&uot;When you have (34) turnovers in a game, you don’t deserve to win,&uot; Natchez head coach Mary Irving said.

Shonique Gibbs, who led Franklin County with 14 points, hit a pair of early 3-pointers as the Lady Bulldogs took a 16-6 lead with about 2:00 left in the first quarter.

But Natchez responded with a 6-0 run in next three minutes to cut the lead to four early in the second quarter.

Franklin County extended its lead to 20-12 before Tahiti Brown came off the bench for Natchez and helped key an 11-0 run to take a 23-20 halftime lead even though the home team had 20 first-half turnovers.

Brown single-handedly outscored the visitors 8-4 in the second quarter. She finished with 12 points and 13 rebounds.

&uot;At times we looked good and at times we looked bad,&uot; Moore said. &uot;Last year we were a young team. This year we’re still young. We have no seniors.&uot;

But Franklin County went back to its defense, as well as Gibbs, Ashley Weathersby and Victoria Hunt, to help get the momentum back and put the game away.

In the boys game, Natchez High seemed to everything in control after taking a 31-19 lead early in the third quarter, only to see Franklin County change its defense, which helped the visitors take a shocking 46-36 win.

In the first half, the visiting Bulldogs used a man-to-man defense and the host Bulldogs took advantage to take a 25-17 halftime lead.

&uot;We stayed behind the whole time we were in man-to-man,&uot; Franklin County head coach Chris Jordan said.

But in the second half, Franklin County went to a 2-3 zone that gave Natchez fits and kept the home team from getting it inside to their big guys.

With 5:35 left in the third quarter, a basket by Eddie O’Quinn gave Franklin County its first lead of the game, 37-35.

&uot;They’re a well-coached team,&uot; Natchez assistant Mike Pizzo said. &uot;They executed well. We started executing well, and in the second half they got the momentum.&uot;

O’Quinn finished with 13 points and Zachary Thomas had a game-high 15 points to go with eight rebounds and three blocked shots.