NATCHEZ &045; If there’s anyone who knows who to turn it up a notch and keep it, it’s Charlie Lane.

But the hard-hitting lefty can tell you a thing or two about falling down and struggling to get back up. Like some hitters in the Cathedral lineup, he’s battled his ups and downs this season &045; more ups than downs, if you’re keeping track &045; but may have broke out of it a good bit in Monday’s 11-1 win over Enterprise.

Now it’s just a matter of getting everyone else going with only two weeks left in the regular season.

&uot;A couple of games ago I started getting in a slump and struck out four times in two days,&uot; said Lane, who had three hits while coming into the game as the team’s leading hitter well over .550. &uot;I just started working on it. You’ve got to focus up there and not thing about anything else. We’re in kind of a slump right now.&uot;

That’s hard to figure out with an 18-2 record and a win away from claiming the Division 7-1A crown again, but that’s how the Green Wave is feeling heading into Thursday’s game at St. Aloysius. There’s something to being hot at the plate and taking it to another level this late in the year where there is no letdown and everything is working for you.

Just ask Lane.

&uot;It’s just a rhythm,&uot; he said.

Yep, rhythm. Something that still may be lacking despite the won-loss record.

&uot;The next five games we’ve got are going to prove whether or not we’re really an 18-2 team,&uot; CHS head coach Craig Beesley said. &uot;It looks like we’re not peaking at the right time. I was disappointed in the lack of intensity we had in tonight’s game. With us being 18-2, everybody thinks we’re playing real well right now. I just have a feeling we’re not showing up ready to play.&uot;

Things were sluggish through the first five innings as the Wave (7-0, 18-2) held a 7-1 lead, but some key hits finally started to come to put the game away in six innings. Jeremy Davis drove in Patrick McDonough and Ellard with a triple to right center, and Lane walked and later stole second.

Drew Burns singled in Davis, Zack Calhoun was intentionally walked and Lane scored on a fielder’s choice when the throw to second to get Calhoun was a tad too late.

&uot;When somebody gets a hit, we all pick up,&uot; Lane said. &uot;We get confident at the plate. We’ll come out here confident like we’re playing a Vidalia or somebody. Once we get out of that first inning, we’ll normally beat them pretty good.&uot;

The bats finally erupted after the Green Wave put up four in the first and went quiet in the middle innings. Lane led the way with two singles and a double to spark a top half of the lineup that struggled a bit in the win over St. Aloysius last week.

The junior singled in a run in the first, doubled in the second with one out before scoring on an error and singled in Davis in the fifth.

&uot;He’s a gap hitter &045; singles and doubles &045; but he’ll turn on one every now and then,&uot; Beesley said. &uot;He hits line drives. He’s a solid hitter. You won’t know it, but he’ll be 3 for 4. He’s a good, solid hitter and a good hitter to have behind Jeremy. He’s protecting Jeremy pretty good right now. He had some good swings Saturday against West Lincoln, and he had some good swings tonight.&uot;

The four-run sixth late sunk the Yellow Jackets, who hung around despite struggling at the plate against CHS pitchers Zack Calhoun and Alex Middleton. Enterprise starter Peyton Greene had that rough first inning but settled down &045; the two CHS runs in the third were unearned.

But he had no support. The Jackets struck out nine times and had just two hits.

&uot;At times we still make errors,&uot; EHS head coach Chris Smith said. &uot;If we make the routine plays, things might be different. We didn’t hit the ball tonight. That was only (Greene’s) second game to start. He’s a young kid, but he has a lot of potential. We’ve got to work on some things, but overall he didn’t do a bad job.&uot;

Neither of the two hits factored into the Jackets’ lone run in the third when Alex Powell scored from second when a pickoff throw sailed into center field. Matt Floyd singled with two outs in the first but was left stranded, and Ky Mathas singled in the fourth off Middleton with one out before the left-hander struck out the next two batters.

Calhoun went only three innings but struck out five and walked four.

&uot;He’s been struggling with his control lately, but his arm got a little sore in the third inning,&uot; Beesley said. &uot;Sometimes he looks like he tries to overthrow. If he would settle in and throw strikes, he’ll be an effective pitcher.&uot;