NATCHEZ — Winston Churchill once said, “Never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense.”

Although Churchill’s words aren’t being spoken or referenced by the Cathedral School football team, head coach Craig Beesley’s description of his players’ work ethic can easily cause someone to have a recollection of those words.

So far, it has not been a memorable season for the Green Wave (1-6, 1-3). According to Beesley, however, that hasn’t stopped his kids from putting everything they have into finishing the season strong.

“They’re still working hard,” Beesley said. “They’re giving 100 percent in hopes of pulling out a win late (in one of our remaining games).

“They’ve been battling all year. I can’t be disappointed in the effort being given. We just can’t seem to get over the hump in close games. Every game we’ve played has been close except the first one (against Loyd Star).”

Cathedral is coming off a bitter 10-7 overtime loss to rival St. Aloysius School last Thursday, and Beesley said his team’s chances of sneaking into the playoffs have diminished even more after that game.

“Any loss is tough, but when it’s an overtime loss against your rival, it’s especially tough,” Beesley said. “A win against St. Al could have put us back in the district race.”

Despite the odds being stacked against the Green Wave, they still have an outside chance of making the postseason. Beesley said he’s looking to create a three-way tie between his team, St. Al and Bogue Chitto School, which the Green Wave will face on the road Friday.

Both Bogue Chitto and St. Al are 2-2 in Region 4-1A. Since Bogue Chitto defeated St. Al earlier in the season, Cathedral can cause the three-way tie if it defeats Bogue Chitto Friday.

Bogue Chitto came out five points ahead of St. Al when the two teams faced, and St. Al’s victory over Cathedral was only by a three-point margin. Thus, if Cathedral beats Bogue Chitto by at least five points, it would earn the tiebreaker amongst the three teams.

“We’re still trying to get into that fourth slot in our district,” Beesley said. “If we win by 5 or more, we’ll be in good shape.”

Regardless of a win Friday, all of this would become moot if either St. Al or Bogue Chitto ends up with a better regional record than Cathedral at the end of the regular season. Thus, Cathedral is hoping for some help from the rest of the teams on both schools’ schedules.

Topping Bogue Chitto appears to be a tall task for the Green Wave, Beesley said, as it will try to confuse the Cathedral players with its rushing attack.

“Their offense uses three running backs and creates a lot of misdirection,” Beesley said. “This week in practice, we’re trying to make sure everybody knows their assignments, so that we’ll hopefully be able to run to the ball and contain those running backs.”

Beesley also said that he expects the Bogue Chitto defense to be tough despite a size disadvantage.

“Their front seven is pretty good. They’re fast and physical, even though they’re not as big (as other teams we’ve faced). That could pose problems for us getting to our blocks.”

Beesley added that he thinks ball control and moving the chains will be key for his offense.