Natchez High’s varsity softball team got five triples from four players and survived a late rally by Cathedral to defeat the Lady Green Wave 13-9 Tuesday at the Natchez Girls Softball Complex.

Dalisa Lewis went the distance for the Lady Bulldogs for the win, allowing nine runs and 10 hits while striking out three and walking none.

&uot;I was concentrating and throwing the ball across the plate,&uot; Lewis said. &uot;I was putting more arch on the pitch because I’ve been throwing flat lately.&uot;

Leslie Patrick had two triples and teammates Kelly Fuller, Crystal Brown and Latoya Patterson had one each for Natchez.

&uot;I was listening to the coach,&uot; Patrick said. &uot;I was thinking about beating Cathedral and doing it for my mom and dad.&uot;

&uot;Leslie’s an emotional player,&uot; said Natchez head coach Sue Johnson. &uot;When she busts out, she busts out.&uot;

After the two teams battled to a 4-4 tie in three innings, Natchez opened up the game with a seven-run fourth inning.

After Patrick tripled and scored on a triple by Patterson, Rosetta Ikard singled to score Patterson.

Fuller then walked with the bases loaded to bring in Ikard, which was followed by RBI singles by Deanna Butts and Chrystal Sylvester.

Butts had another solid performance at the plate, going 2-for-3 with a walk and four RBI.

&uot;I was nervous,&uot; Butts said. &uot;I was just trying to stay focused. I just waited for the pitch to come across the plate and belt it.&uot;

Cathedral, however, would not go away easily.

The Lady Green Wave closed the lead to five in the top of the fifth on a two-run triple by Krystal Groom.

Groom also had a solid performance at the plate as she went 2-for-4 with five RBI.

After Natchez scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth to take a 13-6 lead, Cathedral scored three runs on two errors and had a runner on third with only one out in the seventh.

Groom then grounded out to second base and Leighton McDaniel flied out to left center field to end the rally.

&uot;We were a little flat,&uot; said Cathedral head coach Lynn Ogden. &uot;We didn’t hit the ball like we usually do. We had some costly errors on defense. They (Natchez) played well.&uot;

&uot;Cathedral played a hard-fought battle. It was a championship within a championship,&uot; Johnson said. &uot;I’m proud of them. We’re on a mission. We’ve got to stay focused.&uot;

Cathedral (8-4) plays at Wesson in the District 7-2A finale Thursday at 6 p.m.

Natchez (14-5) plays at Vicksburg Thursday beginning with the junior varsity game at 5 p.m. followed by the varsity game at 6 p.m..

Both teams will play in the Brookhaven Tournament Saturday.