The Vicksburg Gators’ goal this season was to finish their season under the bright lights of Mississippi State’s Davis Wade Stadium on the first Saturday in December.

Instead, it ended about 170 miles further north and three weeks sooner under the relatively dim stadium lights at Lake Cormorant High School.

Brian Jackson ran for two touchdowns as Lake Cormorant beat Vicksburg 24-10 on Friday night in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs.

Lake Cormorant (9-4) advanced to face Clarksdale next week. Vicksburg (9-4), which had aspirations of a breakthrough run in the playoffs and even a state championship game appearance in Starkville next month, still has not won a playoff game since 2008.

“I felt like all our losses this year were self-inflicted wounds. No one showed up and just beat us off the field,” Vicksburg coach Marcus Rogers said. “We’re right at the top of the hill, and we just have to get over the hump.”

Vicksburg was fighting an uphill battle from the start Friday night. Jackson ripped off a 69-yard touchdown run on the second play of the game, and then the Gators went three-and-out on their first possession. Lake Cormorant blocked the ensuing punt to set up a short field goal that gave it a 10-0 lead just 3 ½ minutes into the game.

Later mistakes proved costly as well.

In the third quarter, running back Marlon Hodge fumbled inside the 5-yard line with a clear path to the end zone. In the fourth quarter, quarterback Joe Johnson threw two interceptions. One led to the clinching touchdown after a pass interference call on Lake Cormorant was waved off.

Johnson finished the game 14-of-25 passing for 148 yards and a touchdown, and also ran for 95 yards. It was only the second time this season that he failed to throw a touchdown pass.

Hodge ran for 96 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries.

“It felt like the Germantown night,” Rogers said, referring to a 33-13 loss in the Gators’ first region game. “We fumbled going into the end zone, we had an interception. We also had two tipped passes that ended up as interceptions. Joe Johnson played a hell of a game. We just didn’t do enough around him.”

Vicksburg did battle back from its rough start to tie it. Marlon Hodge scored on a 3-yard run and Greg Hayden kicked a 37-yard field goal to even things up.

Lake Cormorant, however, went back in front on a 26-yard touchdown pass from Will Guest to Brandon Smith with 3:59 left in the second quarter. A short touchdown run by Jackson early in the fourth gave the Gators from north Mississippi a two-touchdown lead, and the Gators from south Mississippi faded down the stretch.

“Once we tied it at 10, I felt like we were going to go on one of those streaks like we’ve done,” Rogers said, “and then we turned it over and we didn’t.”