NATCHEZ — Cathedral High School scored six runs in the second inning and six more in the sixth en route to cruising past Natchez High School 15-3 in baseball action in six innings Monday night.

The Green Wave recorded eight hits and received a strong effort from pitcher Pate Shirley. The senior right-hander tossed a complete game, allowing just two earned runs while striking out three batters.

“I was proud of the way Pate pitched,” Cathedral coach Craig Beesley said. “We made some plays behind him — we let a few get away from us on defense — but overall, I thought we played pretty well.”

Gabe Smith led the Green Wave with two hits and drove in three runs. Smith capped CHS’ six-run, second-inning rally with a two-run double.

Natchez scored single runs in each of the second, fourth and fifth innings. The Bulldogs were led offensively by leadoff hitter Jadarius Ivory, who had two hits and scored a run.

“This was a good test for us, you can’t do better than the (MHSAA Class 1A defending) state champs,” Natchez coach Dan Smith said.

Smith said he was proud of the way his team hit the ball offensively, but said his squad needs to work on the little things before entering the playoffs later this week.

“We had too many mental errors,” Smith said. “We put the bat on the ball pretty well, but too many mental errors. You’re not going to beat a good team making mental errors.”

Both teams took advantage of their speed on the basepaths as Cathedral managed to steal four bases in the game, while Natchez swiped two bases.

“That’s one of the most athletic teams we’ve played,” Beesley said. “They’ve got team speed, and they put the ball in play, and that puts a lot of pressure on you defensively.”

With the win, Cathedral pushes its winning streak to 10 games and will look to tack on another today when travels to Brookhaven Academy.

“I’m hoping we are on a little roll here at the end of the year,” Beesley said.

Natchez, meanwhile, won’t be back in action until Friday when it hosts Long Beach High School in Game 1 of the opening round of the MHSAA Class 5A playoffs.

“I’m excited for the players, and they’re excited,” Smith said. “I’m excited to see what they are going to do.”