A two-run single in the top of the seventh inning by Madelyn Fielder proved to be the difference on Monday as Cathedral School handed Brookhaven Academy its first loss of the 2024 MAIS softball season via a 3-2 final score.

Fielder’s heroic hit came with two outs and two strikes. Brookhaven Academy senior pitcher Ann Elise Duncan struck out 16 in the loss. Duncan threw 117 pitches and gave up five hits, three earned runs, and walked three batters in seven innings.

A Molly Shirley single for Cathedral got the seventh inning rally started. Shirley later moved to second and EC Lewis gained first via a walk. The bases then filled when Hannah Hargon drew another walk for the Green Wave.

Cathedral pitcher Lily Crum then shut the door in the top of the seventh, striking out three straight batters to preserve the win. A junior, Crum struck out 12, walked three and gave up one earned run on six hits. She threw 127 pitches to earn the victory.

Coach Lisa Covington and her Cougars moved to 10-1 with the loss. Cathedral, coached by Craig Beesley, bumped their record to 7-1 with the win.

The teams played in a similarly close matchup last season at BA, won 4-3 by the Cougars on a walk off hit by Miriam Wallace. Brookhaven then won 8-1 at Cathedral later in the season.

The schools are set to play again in Natchez on Sept. 5.

Brookhaven Academy was led at the plate by senior slugger Annaston Poole who hit a solo home run. Wallace and Morgan Chemin each doubled, and Wallace scored the other run for the Cougars in the loss. Bailey Parks, Alayna Daigle, and Swayze Poole all also recorded a hit for Brookhaven.

BA had been off since last Tuesday, when they trounced Centreville Academy 14-3 on the road. The Cougars begin district play on Tuesday, Aug. 13 by playing at Silliman Institute.