NATCHEZ — It was a question that stumped Cathedral senior linebacker Adam Kaiser, at least for a few minutes.

What does the Cathedral-St. Aloysius rivalry mean to those involved?

“I’m trying to think of a nice way to say this,” Kaiser said before coming up with the most succinct answer he could think of. “No one likes anybody. It’s going to be a good game to watch and be at.”

And it normally is fun to watch when the two Catholic rivals resume their hotly contested and sometimes cantankerous rivalry, which they will do Friday night in Vicksburg.

St. Al has won four in a row in the rivalry, but the last three victories have been by a total of 11 points, including the Flashes’ 10-7 overtime win last year.

“We want to beat them pretty bad,” Kaiser said. “We had them beat the last few years, but they came back and beat us in the final seconds or in overtime. Last year hurt really bad, but that just makes us more pumped up and focused for this game.”

Fellow senior receiver Semmes White knows how important the game is, not just because it’s a region contest, but because he doesn’t want to end his high school career without a win against his arch-rival.

“This is one of the most important games of my life,” White said. “We’re going to come out strong and stay strong throughout the game. We’ve got to take care of business.”

But Cathedral first-year head coach Ron Rushing said the streak has nothing to do with this year’s game.

“It’s some good motivation for the kids, but we’re not worried about the past,” Rushing said. “We’re focused on just this game.”

On paper, Cathedral looks like a solid favorite to end the streak.

The Green Wave are in the middle off their best season since 1997, having started the season 6-1 and 3-0 in Region 4-1A.

St. Al, meanwhile, is in rebuilding mode and comes into the game with a 3-4 overall record and 1-2 mark in the region.

St. Al’s 7-6 win over Salem last week ended a three-game losing streak which included a 53-6 loss to Bogue Chitto and 28-7 loss to Dexter.

But Rushing said his team knows better than to overlook the Flashes.

“This is a very important district game we need to win,” Rushing said. “(St. Al) is a young team, but they are a good team. They are very well-coached and will always be in the right spot.”

And Rushing doesn’t expect Friday’s game to be any different than the normal exciting game that goes down to the wire.

“I’m looking for the same thing,” Rushing said. “It’s going to come down right to the fourth quarter.”

And White expects nothing less in this intense rivalry.

“We’re going to be playing our hardest to win and they are going to be playing their hardest to win,” White said. “It’s going to be a dog fight to the end.”