The playoff mentality came early at UMS-Wright this year.

After a slow start to the season, the Bulldogs knew they needed to play well down the stretch in order to reach the postseason. They made a strong step in that direction Friday night, beating Class 5A, Region 1 rival Citronelle 24-0.

It was the Bulldogs’ first shutout in the last 18 games.

“We told our guys that we had to win these last three games. That’s No. 1,” said UMS-Wright coach Terry Curtis, who has never missed the playoffs in his 25 years at the school. “We played hard, and we controlled this game. I can see our confidence growing.”

The UMS-Wright defense was stellar from start to finish, limiting Citronelle to 16 rushing yards on 19 attempts. The Wildcats finished with 111 total yards and committed one early turnover that proved costly.

On the second play of the game, UMS-Wright junior Charley Jeffery tipped a pass over the middle of the field that teammate William Tanner was able to intercept and return to the Citronelle 29. The turnover led to a 32-yard field goal by Kingston Phan.

The lead increased to 10-0 midway through the second quarter on a 4-yard touchdown run by Jake Jaye, who finished the night with 96 yards on 17 carries.

Quarterback Joe Lott scored two short touchdowns in the second half to complete the scoring.

UMS-Wright is now 5-3 overall and 4-2 in region play. Four teams now have two region losses each (UMS-Wright, Faith Academy, B.C. Rain and Vigor) behind undefeated Gulf Shores. Citronelle dropped to 4-4, 2-4.

By The Numbers: UMS-Wright finished just shy of 300 total yards. The Bulldogs rushed 46 times for 215 yards, while completing three passes for 81 yards. Citronelle ran the ball 19 times, with no rush going for more than 6 yards. Fifty-eight of the Wildcats’ 111 total yards came on two pass plays of 34 and 24 yards.

Play of the game: Citronelle quarterback/punter Landen Snow had a punt that lost 20 yards but was still one of the most impressive plays of the night. The deep snap sailed over his head and deep into the end zone. Snow chased it down, avoided two rushers and got the punt away. It went out of bounds on the Citronelle 9. UMS-Wright eventually turned the possession into a touchdown, but the effort was still remarkable.

Game ball: Troy commit Joe Lott rushed the ball 17 times for 90 yards and two touchdowns. He also completed 3 of 7 passes for 81 yards.

Coachspeak: “We’ve got to be able to run the ball,” said Citronelle coach Jason Rowell. “We left our defense on the field way too much because we couldn’t move the ball.”

They said it: “That was a big momentum swing,” said William Tanner of his early interception. “We had been scouting all week that RPO, so we were ready for it. Coach Curtis has been preaching to the defense to get the ball for the offense in good position, and that’s what we were able to do.”

Next week: UMS-Wright is at Faith Academy in another critical region matchup. Cirtronelle is at LeFlore.