By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Publisher EGG HARBOR CITY — What looked on paper to be a pitcher’s duel Thursday between two of the top hurlers in the Cape-Atlantic League National Conference — Cedar Creek’s Cheyenne Meyer and St. Joseph’s Taylor Sirolli — turned into a slugfest early as both the Wildcats and Pirates looked to keep pace with Buena Regional and ACIT near the top of the standings. St. Joseph got on the board early, scoring three runs in the top of the first, then held off several Cedar Creek rallies before using a 4-run rally in the top of the sixth to score a 10-5 victory. “My mindset was to come in and throw as best I could, work every pitch. I knew I had my teammates behind me to field and make the outs for me. So I wasn’t as nervous as I usually am,” Sirolli said. “That (early lead) took a lot of pressure off because I knew we were up a couple of runs, but we still had to work hard the whole game because we knew it was going to be tough.” The Wildcats (12-4, 10-1) came out with a lot of energy in the first, as three straight hits by Carly Testa, Mikaela Power and Sara Raubertas gave Sirolli a 2-0 lead to work with before she even went out to pitch. Sirolli helped her own cause by ripping an RBI single to plate Power to push the lead to 3-0. Cedar Creek's Morgan Brown hugs assistant coach Danielle Hagel after smashing a home run in the seventh inning. Cedar Creek’s Morgan Brown hugs assistant coach Danielle Hagel after smashing a home run in the seventh inning. Sirolli finished 1-for-3 with two walks and two runs scored. Errera paced the Pirates’ offense with two hits, two runs, two steals and a walk, and Sanchez went 2-for-3 with two steals, an RBI and a run scored. The win was big for the Wildcats, who are hot on Buena’s heels for the top spot in the CAL National. Buena came into Thursday’s action at 15-3 overall and 11-0 in the conference, and had beaten St. Joseph earlier this season. Raubertas said she and her teammates are geared up for the rematch. “For us, (beating Cedar Creek) is a great confidence booster, and to Buena, it shows that we are still in it and we’ll be coming at them next time,” Raubertas said. Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays [adsense]