NATCHEZ — Following a state championship berth, Cathedral High School baseball players haven’t had much leisure time.

Like most schools in the area, half of the baseball players play football and are preparing for the upcoming football season, but as for the other half, they’re still practicing and playing alongside one another.

Cathedral assistant coach Brett Hinson has taken the liberty of coaching Gary Farmer’s Cathedral Cubs this summer, which is mostly made up of Cathedral players.

Playing in the state championship game was a great experience for the players, Hinson acknowledged, but the assistant coach wants to build off of it.

“When we went down to the state tournament, all I heard from our players was, ‘man, I can’t believe how big that kid is,’” Hinson said. “Next year, I want to go in and hear people say, ‘those kids from that 1A high school are really big.’ I don’t want to just be there. I want to go up there and take it.”

“Bigger, stronger, faster” starts in the weight room, and Hinson’s rubbing elbows with each of his players hitting the weights. Hinson’s thought-process behind the extra work and tournament participation this summer is to get his players more comfortable and used to seeing athletes that can throw high 80s, like Trenton Stringer of Stringer High School, who the Green Wave had to beat twice to advance to the state championship.

Hinson’s team will travel to Brandon High School, outside of Jackson, today to play in a two-day tournament, starting at 2:30 p.m. This will be one of many tournaments Hinson hopes to schedule for the Cubs.

Meanwhile, accolades for Green Wave players continue to assemble, as well, with the latest being an invite to the Mississippi Elite Underclassmen Showcase sponsored by BSN in Tupelo on July 11 and 12.

Players Andrew Beesley, Sam Parker, Craig Bradley and Zac Flattmann each received an invite to be four of the 112 Mississippi high school players that will attend. From classes 2015 to 2018, 28 players from each respected class will form two 14-player teams. Beesley and Parker will be playing with one of the 2016 teams on July 11, while Flattmann and Bradley will play on one of the 2017 teams on July 12.

Head coach Craig Beesley was elated to have so many coaches in the state voted for his players to participate.

“It’s an honor just to get nominated, and I’m thrilled to have four actually make it,” Beesley said.

The invite further fuels Hinson’s reason for working hard in the summer, acknowledging the quality athletes he has to work with.

“I think that alone talks about the caliber of the kids that we do have in this area,” Hinson said. “They are young, and we have a lot to build off of.”