TYLERTOWN — Cathedral head coach Craig Beesley wasn’t sure how many times quarterback Preston Edwards would be able to throw the ball when the Green Wave took on Salem in a Region 4-1A game Friday night.

Beesley was hoping Edwards would have been able to open up the offense more than he did in Cathedral’s 23-0 win over Dexter the week before.

Even though the field conditions were bad enough to warrant the Green Wave going to more of a running game after all the rain fell because of Hurricane Gustav, Edwards threw for over 200 yards and one touchdown in their 16-14 win over the Wildcats.

Edwards completed 13 of 28 passes for 204 yards with one interception. His 41-yard touchdown pass to Kole Junkin with 2:39 to go in the first quarter helped give Cathedral a 9-0 lead.

Jeb White made a defensive play that turned out even bigger than expected. His tackle of Salem’s tailback in the end zone for a safety with 4:00 remaining in the opening quarter gave the Green Wave the first two points of the game. That also turned out to be the margin of victory.

“We’re glad we made it through. We were able to pull it out,” Beesley said. “But it wasn’t easy.”

Khiry Smith got the Wildcats right back in the game with a 3-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter as the home team trailed by just two points at halftime.

White, who had 24 carries for 109 yards, gave Cathedral (2-0, 2-0) a 16-7 lead with a 3-yard touchdown run of his own nearly midway through the third quarter. Harrison Burns was successful on both of his extra points in the game.

Rio Davis, who led Salem’s rushing game with 12 carries for 87 yards, scored on an 8-yard run with just 5:32 left in the game. But when Cathedral got the ball back, the Wildcats were unable to force a punt or a turnover which would have given them a chance to win the ball game.

“We got some crucial first downs at the end,” Beesley said.

In addition to the safety, White had four solo tackles and four assists. Stowers Mohon led the Green Wave defense with six solo tackles, six assist and three tackles for loss. The defense held the Wildcats to just 156 yards of total offense and forced two turnovers.

Cathedral will travel to Pelahatchie to take on the Chiefs in Region 4-1A action next Friday at 7 p.m.