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NATCHEZ — Cathedral fended off a seventh-inning rally to beat St. Al 4-3 on Monday in a pivotal MAIS District 4-5A game, continuing a Green Wave rally that began last week with a sweep against a cross-town rival.

Owen Jordan and Doug Smith each pitched into the seventh inning for Cathedral High School as the Green Wave rallied from a pair of 2-0 deficits to defeat MAIS District 4-5A and cross-town rival Adams County Christian School 9-2 in Game 1 and 10-4 in Game 2 last Friday night at Papa New Field on the ACCS campus.

Jordan got the start in the opener and went six and one-third innings, giving up two runs, one of them earned, on three hits with eight strikeouts, five walks, and two hit batters.

In the nightcap, Smith pitched six and one-third sold innings, allowing three runs, two of them earned on just one hit with four strikeouts, three walks, and two hit batters.

“Both pitchers worked into the seventh inning before giving way to Eli Wilson to close the game out,” Cathedral head coach Andrew Beesley said. “As long as we stay ahead in the count and stay in the strike zone, we will be OK. The only time we get in trouble is when we get into predictable pitch counts.”

And that was the case for Jordan in the early stages of Game 1. An error by the Green Wave gave the Rebels a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Then Jordan walked Ethan Givens to bring in a run to give the home team a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning.

However, the tandem of Jordan and Wilson shut the doors on ACCS’s offense the rest of the game. And that allowed Cathedral’s bats to finally wake up. Ethan Keith game through with a two-run single in the top of the third inning to tie the game at 2-2.

The Green Wave took the lead for good with a four-run rally in the top of the fifth inning. Walker Probst grounded into a fielder’s choice to bring in two runs and Tristan Fondren hit the first of his two doubles down the left field line to plate two more runs for a 6-2 advantage.

Cathedral put the game out of reach with three runs in the top of the seventh inning. Fondren had a double in that frame and ended up going 3-for-5 with three runs batted in and one run scored.

“I also felt like Doug Smith and Tristan Fondren had good approaches at the plate, both of whom had multiple hits for us,” Beesley said.

Ethan Keith went 2-for-3 with one RBI and was walked twice while Landon French was 2-for-3 with one run scored, was hit by a pitch once, and was walked once.

Givens led ACCS at the plate, going 1-for-2 with one RBI and was walked twice. Parker Roach was walked once and scored one run while Levi Beasley was walked once and scored one run.

In Game 2, the Rebels jumped out to the early lead. Colton Rabb lined out to score one run in the bottom of the first inning. Then Coleman Carter tagged up to score from third base and give ACCS a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning.

Carter, who got the start on the mound for the Rebels and did quite well against a strong Cathedral batting order, was on the verge of getting out of a jam only to give up a two-out, two-run triple to Jordan in the top of the fourth inning that tied the game at 2-all.

Then in the top of the sixth inning, Walker Probst laid down a sacrifice squeeze bunt to bring in one run and gave the Green Wave a 3-2 lead.

“Two big at-bats for us in Game 2 were a perfectly-placed squeeze bunt by Walker and a two-out, two-RBI triple by Owen to tie the game,” Beesley said.

Then Cathedral came up with some big hits during a seven-run barrage in the top of the seventh inning. First, the big bats showed up. Andy Keith and Ethan Keith each hit a two-run double to extend the Green Wave’s lead to 7-2. Smith drew a walk score one run. Parker Roach induced Houston Edwards to hit into a fielder’s choice but another run came home. And an error by the Rebels brought in yet another run for a 10-2 advantage.

Beesley said he was “ecstatic” about the key two-RBI double delivered by Andy Keith, a freshman pinch hitter.

“That was a very big at-bat for Cathedral and Andy. He got down in the count, but (he) kept battling and hit a big bases-loaded double for us,” Beesley said. “At the time it was a 3-2 game, but that hit gave us a three-run cushion.”

Smith was the only multiple hitter for the Green Wave in Game 2, going 2-for-3 with one RBI and was walked once. For the Rebels, Carter scored two of their four runs and went 1-for-3 with one RBI and one stolen base. Beasley was 1-for-3 and scored one run. Ethan Givens was walked once and scored one run.

With the doubleheader wins and Monday’s win, Cathedral improved to 14-9 overall and 5-2 in district play. If the Green Wave the series over the Flashes, they will win the district championship. And they feel like they are playing their best ball of the season at just the right time.

“We have moved a lot of people around since the beginning of the year, defensively and in the batting order. The kids have responded every time we have challenged them,” Beesley said. “We have also played a very tough schedule, hoping it would prepare us for district and the playoffs.”

And that includes series with Hartfield Academy, MHSAA member Hattiesburg High School, and Silliman Institute as part of Cathedral’s non-district schedule.

“We feel good about where we stand right now and hope we play up to our ability this week against St. Al,” Beesley said. “If we do, it will give us a chance to play for the district title Friday night in Vicksburg.”

The series will conclude with a varsity doubleheader at St. Aloysius on Friday at 4:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.

ACCS, on the other hand, fell to 11-8 overall and 1-5 in district play. The Rebels traveled to Gallman to take on district foe Copiah Academy on Tuesday with the JV game at 4:30 p.m., followed by the varsity game at 6:30 p.m.