NATCHEZ &045; Wins aren’t supposed to be this tense.

Here are the Adams Christian Lady Rebels sitting at 8-1 on the season and 1-0 in district after Saturday’s 44-37 win over Central Hinds, and head coach John Gray still has to wipe sweat off his brow.

His Lady Rebels got cold in the fourth quarter and couldn’t account for a field goal, but defense and a calm presence at the free throw line sealed the deal for the district win.

&uot;We just lose focus,&uot; Gray said. &uot;They play some good and some bad. I guess the word is &045; and I keep saying this &045; just inexperienced high school ball players. I just think we lose team unity. But I’m really pleased with their effort. They’re hustling and making great improvement.&uot;

The Lady Rebels were able to really run their offense against Central Hinds, who kept the game tight to about midway through the second quarter before getting down by as many as 15 in the third.

The Lady Rebels finished the second quarter on a 12-1 run to take a 24-13 lead at halftime. Meghan Austin had three of those buckets down on the block, including the last one that couldn’t have been any more open.

&uot;Coach Gray has helped us a lot with our shooting,&uot; said point guard Brittany Gamberi, who led AC with nine points. &uot;That’s what he used to do back in the day. I think our defense has really helped us a lot. We’ve got to get our offense going. We’re kind of an inside team.&uot;

Ferriday boys 54, Vidalia 31

VIDALIA, La. &045; The Trojans jumped out to a 13-6 lead by the end of the first quarter and led 22-11 at half before outscoring Vidalia 15-6 in the third to lead 37-17 heading into the fourth quarter.

Sicily Island boys 52, Block 35

VIDALIA, La. &045; Sicily Island led 13-7 at the end of the first and held a 15-8 edge in the second to lead 28-15 at halftime.

Block girls 61, Sicily Island 24

VIDALIA, La. &045; Block led 21-0 at the end of the first quarter before outscoring Sicily Island 20-4 in the third quarter.

Ferriday girls 59, Vidalia 22

VIDALIA, La. &045; Jameca Garrison’s 23 points kept the Lady Trojans buzzing, and their 30-9 lead at halftime was comfortable heading into the second half.

Cathedral boys 82, Central 44

MONTEREY, La. &045; Cathedral led 18-9 at the end of the first and outscored Central 28-10 in the third to lead 63-28 heading into the fourth quarter.

Cathedral girls 54, Central 8

MONTEREY, La. &045; The Lady Wave led 16-4 by the end of the first quarter, 25-4 at half and 41-8 heading into the fourth quarter.

CPS boys 40, Trinity 37

The Saints had their chance to win the game.

With seconds left in the game, desperation three-point attempts by Gervoni Ware and Wyatt Craig missed the mark. Either shot would have sent the game to overtime and given Trinity new life.

Instead, the Saints lost 40-37 to Central Private in a game that was back and forth for most of the way.

Wilkinson girls 68, Natchez 59

NATCHEZ &045; Latasha Williams took over in the third quarter and the Lady Wildcats got major contributions from Kim Griffin and Nakia Stewart while the Lady Bulldogs seemingly fell apart, especially on the offensive end, once the second half started.

Williams finished with 26.

Claiborne 63, Tensas girls 48

MONROE, La. &045; Led by Megan Bauerle, who led Tensas with 26 points, the Lady Chiefs did a better job on their end of the court in the second half.

Harrisonburg 46, Monterey 44

MONTEREY, La. &045; With the game on the line, Jasmine Dunbar made probably the most important shot of her career as she made the game-winning shot at the buzzer as the Lady Bulldogs took home first place at the Monterey tournament.

Dunbar finished with 11 points for Harrisonburg, which was led by Randy Hamner with 15 points. Brittany Woodruff and Amanda Smith led the Lady Wolves with 16 points each.

H’burg boys 59, Monterey 27

MONTEREY, La. &045; The Monterey Wolves were no match for the Harrisonburg Bulldogs, who got 14 points from Ethan Boothe and 12 from A. Jordan in a win Saturday night.

to take first place at the Monterey Round Robin Tournament.

This game was pretty much over in the first quarter, which Harrisonburg dominated from start to finish en route to an 18-1 lead. The Bulldogs never looked back after that. Cody Wulfkuhle and Brian Calkens led Monterey with seven points each.

Patrick Jones