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Warren Central defenders stop a Columbus ball carrier during Thursday's game at Viking Stadium. Warren Central won, 41-6. (Walter Frazier/For The Vicksburg Post)

Warren Central running back Teryn Green (3) runs behind the block of teammate Eric Collins Jr. (20) during Thursday's game against Columbus. Green scored on a 14-yard run in the first quarter to help the Vikings to a 41-6 victory. (Walter Frazier/For The Vicksburg Post)

Warren Central's Garrett Orgas (15) is tackled by a Columbus player at the end of an interception return during Thursday's game. (Walter Frazier/For The Vicksburg Post)

Warren Central running back Eric Collins Jr. tries to put a move on Columbus' Quinton Martin (6) during Thursday's game. Collins scored two rushing touchdowns to lead the Vikings to a 41-6 victory. (Walter Frazier/For The Vicksburg Post)

Warren Central's Zack Evans (0) returns a punt for a touchdown Thursday against Columbus. Evans had two punt return touchdowns, and also caught a touchdown pass in the Vikings' 41-6 victory. (Walter Frazier/For The Vicksburg Post)

Warren Central's Jonah Artman (14) kicks a PAT out of the hold of Nash Morgan (10) during Thursday's game at Viking Stadium. (Walter Frazier/For The Vicksburg Post)

Warren Central running back Aden Greer (6) stiff-arms a Columbus defender during Thursday's game. (Walter Frazier/For The Vicksburg Post)

Warren Central didn’t want to cruise into the postseason, but it did it anyway.

Zack Evans returned two punts for touchdowns and also caught a touchdown pass, and Eric Collins Jr. scored a pair of rushing touchdowns as the Vikings demolished Columbus 41-6 on Thursday in their regular-season finale.

“We just handled the business and all the momentum and everything, and finished our district schedule the way we wanted to finish. We feel good about our team going into this (playoff) run,” Warren Central coach Josh Morgan said.

Warren Central (8-2, 5-0 Region 2-6A) went undefeated in region play for the first time since 2004, which was also the last time it won a region title. It will open the Class 6A playoffs next Friday at home, against Saltillo (4-7).

Columbus (1-10, 0-5) had already been eliminated from playoff contention.

“We’ve earned the right to play at home, but that’s just where we’re playing at,” Morgan said. “We’ve got to get ourselves ready to play playoff football. We worked mighty hard to get homefield advantage and now we’ve got to take advantage of it.”

Warren Central had already clinched the Region 2-6A championship and did not have anything tangible to gain from Thursday’s game, but still closed the regular season with an impressive performance.

After a competitive first quarter, the Vikings blew the game open by scoring 21 points in the second to take a 27-6 lead.

Collins’ 5-yard TD run with 10:30 left started the avalanche, and he added a 1-yard run with 3:05 to go to finish it. Evans had a 55-yard punt return touchdown in between.

“We did a good job there. We got a turnover early, and then you hold them and return a punt, it gets that momentum going,” Morgan said. “And we had a goal line stand with our twos and threes at the end of it. I was proud of that, too.”

Evans, a senior, caught a 34-yard touchdown pass from Nash Morgan in the third quarter, and then returned a second punt for a 52-yard touchdown with 4:13 left in that period to make it 41-6.

Evans’ punt return touchdown in the second quarter was the first by a Warren Central player since Shaun Walton did it on Sept. 30, 2016 against Greenville.

“He made some good decisions,” Josh Morgan said. “The first one, he caught it and we set up a really good wall for him. The second one, it was kind of like they thought he was fixing to down it and he caught it and made a couple of them miss. He got outside of their coverage unit and we were able to wall them up after that. He made two special plays on those returns.”

Columbus’ only touchdown came on a 30-yard pass from Dkyren Henderson to Antonio O’Neal late in the first quarter.

Teryn Green had Warren Central’s first touchdown, on a 14-yard run midway through the first quarter. The Vikings’ defense had four takeaways, including interceptions by Garrett Orgas and Roosevelt Harris.

It was exactly the kind of solid all-around performance Morgan was hoping for to ensure the Vikings don’t miss a beat going into the postseason.

“We had some big plays. This was a really good night. It was exactly what we needed,” Morgan said. “I thought our guys had good energy and attacked the game the right way. I was proud of our execution all night.”

MHSAA Class 6A playoffs
First round – Nov. 10
Saltillo at Warren Central
Vicksburg at Grenada
Callaway at South Panola
Center Hill at Neshoba Central
Hancock at West Jones
Terry at George County
Forest Hill at Picayune
Pascagoula at Hattiesburg

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