St. Al returns to Winston for rematch in the MAIS Class 4A playoffs – The Vicksburg Post

Things didn’t go well for the St. Aloysius Flashes on their first trip to Winston Academy.

Fortunately, they get the chance to make things right.

St. Al (2-8) returns to Winston Academy (6-4) on Friday for a first-round matchup in the MAIS Class 4A playoffs, just a week after the teams played each other in the regular-season finale. It’s a rare opportunity for immediate redemption that coach Walker Mosby said the Flashes will embrace.

“It’s nice to play them again. You definitely have a good quality movie to watch,” Mosby said with a laugh. “I’m excited to play them again. They are a good football team and we have a chance at redemption by trying to walk away with a win and advance to the second round of the playoffs.”

Winston won last week’s game 27-12, but Mosby was encouraged by the way his team finished. After trailing 27-0, the Flashes scored two second-half touchdowns on passes from Carson Smith to Walt Andrews.

The late scores only made last week’s score even more respectable, but Mosby said they provided some confidence and momentum heading into the rematch. Cleaning up a few mistakes made earlier in the game, and seeing some of the tricks and tactics Winston uses, could bring things closer this time around.

“When we watch this film, I think we will see mistakes that we made that would certainly have helped us a lot. We’re going to try to make the corrections and I think we can beat them,” Mosby said. “They are a good, quality football team with great players and they don’t really make mistakes. But I think if we can also make the corrections, we have a chance to beat them.”

This will be St. Al’s first postseason appearance since 2020, while Winston has been there four years in a row, reaching the Class 5A semifinals in 2023.

However, the Flashes live in the moment and not in the past. Despite being the underdog, Mosby was confident his team had more than just a puncher’s chance.

“I think our guys definitely have the confidence in themselves that we can win,” Mosby said. “They know it’s a rare opportunity to get a chance at redemption.” They will be able to see on film that if we correct the mistakes we made, hopefully we can come home with a win.”

SPACE GAMES FRIDAY
All matches start at 7:00 PM
p-MAIS playoff games
p-St. Already at Winston Academy (Radio: 101.3 FM)
p-Park Place at Porter’s Chapel (Radio: 104.5 FM)
p-Marvell Academy at Tallulah Academy
Columbus in Vicksburg (Radio: 107.7 FM)
Callaway at Warren Central (Radio: 105.5 FM)
South Pike in Port Gibson
Madison Parish in Oak Grove, La.

About Ernest Bowker

Ernest Bowker is the sports editor of The Vicksburg Post. He has been a member of The Vicksburg Post’s sports staff since 1998, making him one of the longest-tenured reporters in the paper’s 140-year history. The New Jersey native graduated from LSU. During his career, he has won more than 50 awards from the Mississippi Press Association and Associated Press for his coverage of local sports in Vicksburg.

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