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NATCHEZ — Three members of Cathedral High School’s varsity baseball team — two seniors and one junior — will be in the Jackson area later this month to participate in various MAIS All-Star Baseball Games.

Cathedral senior pitcher/centerfielder Noah Russ and senior outfielder/pitcher Jake Maples will be playing in the 2023 MAIS Class 4A/5A/6A All-Star Baseball Game on Monday, May 22. Green Wave head coach Andrew Beesley said he did not know exactly where in the Jackson area the game will take place as of last Wednesday morning.

Both players did exceptionally well both on the mound and at the plate for the Green Wave this past season. Russ pitched 55 innings and went 8-2 with a 3.036 earned run average. He finished with 79 strikeouts and only 20 walks. At the plate, Russ batted .325 with 19 runs batted in, two home runs and six doubles. Beesley added that Russ led the team in hit by pitches with 16.

“He’s excited about it. It’s a big honor to be selected,” Beesley said. “It’s not just your district. It’s 4A, 5A, and 6A. They understand that. They’re all excited about it.”

Maples had an impressive 6-2 record on the mound after throwing 59 innings for Cathedral. He had a stout 2.206 ERA with 85 strikeouts and just 29 walks. At the plate, he had a .282 batting average with 24 RBIs, three home runs and four triples.

“Maples is still fighting hard to get that first offer. Once he takes that first offer, others will see how good he is. He deserves a shot at the next level,” Beesley said. “They seem pretty excited, but they’re ready to keep working to prove how good they are.”

Cathedral junior second baseman Jackson Navarro will participate in the MAIS Class 5A/6A Futures Baseball Game, which Beesley said will take place sometime later this month.

Navarro finished with a .444 batting average with 30 RBIs while also scoring an amazing 36 runs. He had two home runs, five triples, 12 doubles and 40 total base hits.

“He led the team in several categories this season. I wasn’t surprised at all (he was selected to play in the Futures Game) with the season he had,” Beesley said. “I knew he could hit it, but he opened up a lot of eyes this year. He put together an impressive year at the plate. I can only see him going up with how hard he works and stuff like that.”