The Warriors’ season ended Friday in the Class 5A regional semifinals with a 20-8 road loss.

Indian River High School and Nansemond River High School met in the regional semifinal for the second consecutive year. Unfortunately for the Warriors, they won’t have a chance to defend their 2017 regional championship crown.

Nansemond River got off to a fast start and scored their only points of the game in the first quarter. A 60-plus yard touchdown run from Quijoun Gordon put the Warriors up 6-0 and, with a two-point conversion, 8-0.

But Indian River didn’t waste time getting on the board with a run early in the second quarter. The Braves eventually ran off with 20 unanswered points to go into halftime with a 20-8 lead.

Neither team scored in the second half.

If there was a silver lining to Friday’s game, it was that the Warriors were able to hold Indian River to its lowest point total of the season so far. In the second half, the Braves weren’t able to notch a first down. Penalties hurt the Warriors throughout the night, which they acknowledged they couldn’t have against a team like the Braves.

“I think we played way better than we did last game,” Coach Justin Conyers said. “We just didn’t execute when we needed to. Defensively, we played as well as we could. Offensively, we were driving, but we just couldn’t finish them off.”

Nansemond River will finish the season with an 8-4 record. Conyers will finish his first year as a head coach for Nansemond River with a winning record. Last week was his first time winning a playoff game as a head coach. The Warriors also took back possession of the city title this season.

“We did a lot of good things this year,” Conyers said. “These kids fought hard and played hard and did what they were supposed to do. I couldn’t have asked for a better group.”