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BROOKHAVEN — Cathedral High School’s varsity softball team went 1-1 last Monday afternoon at the MAIS Class 5A South State Tournament at the Hansel King Sportsplex and will be the South No. 3 seed for the upcoming Class 5A State Tournament.

First, in a rematch of a hotly-contested first-round game between District 3-5A No. 3 seed Oak Forest Academy and District 4-5A runner-up and No. 2 seed Cathedral, the Lady Green Wave won yet again, this time 6-5 over the Lady Yellow Jackets in a losers’ bracket game in a 12 p.m. match-up on Field 1. Despite the loss, Oak Forest will be the South No. 4 seed for the state tournament.

“We had a great come-from-behind win versus Oak Forest,” Cathedral head coach Craig Beesley said. “We were able to score five runs in (our) last two innings and held on for the win.”

But like their first meeting in which Cathedral scored the game-winning run in the bottom of the seventh inning, this one wasn’t easy, either. The Lady Green Wave trailed the Lady Yellow Jackets 2-1 at the end of the first inning and then 5-1 after OFA scored three runs in the top of the fifth inning.

The Lady Green Wave started its rally with one run in the bottom of the fifth to make it a 5-2 game. Then they scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth to go ahead 6-5. Even though Cathedral had just five base hits, it was also aided by four Oak Forest errors.

Then it was up to pitcher Lily Crum to hold down the fort and keep Oak Forest off the scoreboard. And she was able to do just that. Crum may not have had her best stuff on the mound in her complete-game outing, but she did just enough to held the Lady Green Wave advance in the tournament.

Crum allowed five runs, three of them earned, on nine hits and four walks while striking out six batters — the fewest strikeouts at that time she had in several weeks. Molly Shirley was 2-for-3 with one run scored while Anna Arthur was 1-for-3 with a home run, one RBI, and one run scored. Crum helped her own cause by going 1-for-2 with a double and one RBI. Liza Gregg was 1-for-4.

Leadoff hitter Madelyn Fielder was walked once, was hit by a pitch, and scored one run. Molly Shirley reached on an error and scored one run.

Then in the losers’ bracket final, the District 3-5A No 2 seed and host Brookhaven Academy Lady Cougars rallied in the final three innings to defeat the Lady Green Wave 9-5 in a 2 p.m. game, also on Field 1. Cathedral’s loss ended their run at South State, but they advance to state as one of the top four teams left.

“We took a 5-3 lead against Brookhaven (Academy) into the fifth inning, but were unable to hold the lead,” Beesley said.

The Lady Cougars scored two runs in the top of the second inning and one run in the top of the third to take a 3-0 lead. Then the Lady Green Wave responded with a five-run rally in the bottom of the fourth to take that 5-3 lead.

Unfortunately for Cathedral, Brookhaven Academy had an answer of its own over the next few innings. The Lady Cougars scored two runs in the top of the fifth to tie the game at 5-all. Then they plated three runs in the top of the sixth to take the lead for good at 8-5. Finally, they added another run in the top of the seventh.

Crum pitched all seven innings and gave up nine runs, eight of them earned, on 10 hits with five strikeouts and three walks. Liza Gregg led the Lady Green Wave’s nine-hit attack by going 2-for-3 with one RBI. Kinslee Young went 2-for-4 with one run scored and KG Fisher was 2-for-5 with one run scored.

EC Lewis went 1-for-4 with two RBIs and one run scored while Crum was 1-for-4 with one RBI. Molly Shirley was 1-for-3 with one run scored and was walked once. Despite going 0-for-4, Madelyn Fielder had one RBI, scored one run, and was walked once.

“We played two good games against two of the best teams in the state on Monday. Hopefully, we can continue to play well this weekend at the State Tournament,” Beesley said.

Cathedral (26-5) will take on North No. 2 seed Simpson Academy in the first round of the Class 5A State Tournament on Field 8 at the Magee Sports Complex in Magee. First pitch this Saturday will be at 12 p.m.