"It was a tough loss," coach Erik Skone said. "We came out flat and played flat ... got smacked around and didn't respond well."
Alex Sampson led the way for the White Swan, running for three TDs and throwing for a 2-point conversion.
The game was scoreless in the first quarter, but the home team put two touchdowns on the board in the second to take a 14-0 lead at the half.
With his team down by two scores, and unable to get anything going, Skone spoke to the Cougars during intermission and reminded them to remain focused at the task at hand.
"I told them the game was like a heavyweight boxing match," he said. "You're going to get socked in the mouth, but you are not going to roll over. But when you do get hit, you have to hit back."
The pep talk worked as Warden put seven points on the board in the third and fourth quarter to make a game out of it.
But White Swan answered back with 20 points to win the game 34-14.
"We came out and played more consistent in the second half," Skone said. "But we were unable to overcome some fundamental mistakes and that hurt us."
The loss drops the Cougars record to 1-1 and 4-1 overall in the 2B Central Washington South conference.
Warden travels to Kittitas to take on the Coyotes Friday.