NEW WASHINGTON — In a pure pitcher’s duel, the team that makes the fewest mistakes usually wins the game.

Tuesday, that team was Buckeye Central.

Crestline sophomore starting pitcher Caden Parsons, who played at Buckeye Central a year ago, fired a one-hitter. But he was matched pitch-for-pitch by Buckeye Central starter Brady Biglin, who scattered three hits.

Crestline’s defense, however, let Parsons down.

The Bulldogs committed three errors in a two-inning span and permitted three unearned runs as the Bucks came away with a 3-2 win in the Division IV semifinal in New Washington.

The Bucks (9-16) advanced to Thursday’s sectional final and will battle at New Riegel at 5 p.m.

Crestline, who won eight of its last 12 games and finished second in the Mid-Buckeye Conference, is 8-11.

Crestline coach Rod Norwood felt that his defense was the difference in the game.

“Our pitcher came out and did a great job,” Norwood said. “Our defense just let us down. We were so good all season long. We started off slowly, we were 0-7. Then all of a sudden, things started clicking for us on defense and our pitching came around.”

Buckeye Central manager Chad Jensen also felt that his team took advantage of Crestline mistakes.

“We knew this was going to be a tough ballgame and we knew that Crestline would come ready to play,” Jensen said. “And they were prepared.

“Brady (Biglin) pitched a great game for us. Caden Parsons pitched a great game for them, too. It was a good ball game and we took advantage of our opportunities.”

Crestline’s Parsons was dominant, as just seven BC hitters reached base. But the Crestline sophomore permitted just one hit, a sixth-inning single by Alex Kanney.

But a hit-batter and two Crestline errors led to two runs in the fourth and two more Crestline errors led to a BC run in the fifth and a 3-0 Buckeye Central lead.

Biglin was equally good, allowing just three hits and striking out 11.

He walked four straight Crestline batters in the fifth, which led to a run, and a Calvin Reed single and two BC errors led to a Crestline run in the sixth.

Parsons was a Buckeye Central player until this season, but his father played at Crestline.

“I was nervous before the game,” Parsons said. “This is my old school. So, I got a little worried. But I didn’t focus on it during the game.

“It was fun, but it sucks to lose.”

“(Parsons) was nervous,” Norwood said. “He went to Buckeye last year. He pitched amazing. Throughout the season, he just started clicking. He throws a lot of strikes. He just pitched his butt off today. I couldn’t be more proud of that kid, too.”

The Bulldogs also got singles from Elijah Evans in the seventh and Parsons in the third. The Bulldogs got the tying run on second in the seventh, but Biglin made some big pitches to snuff out the Bulldogs’ rally.

Biglin said that he was able to get the Bulldogs to chase his breaking ball.

“I was able to get ahead more than usual,” Biglin said. “It made it easier for me to get my stuff across.

“Until today, I was struggling to get the ball over. But I felt a lot better today.”

Jensen was happy with the way his starter mixed up his pitches.

“He did a great job of keeping them off-balance,” Jensen said. “They really didn’t know what to expect. He kinda lost it there in the sixth; he was just missing. But he hung in there and battled.”

Norwood said that, despite his team’s 0-7 start, they continued to battle.

“I can’t be more proud of this team,” Norwood said. “Most teams that start 0-7 they just fold after that. We won six in a row for a while and we got second in the conference. We have a lot of talent coming back, we have a sophomore and a junior who are stud pitchers.

“We’re going to lose two quality seniors and we’re going to miss them both,” he added. “I’m proud of them, the boys played hard; we’re just disappointed in the outcome.”

Box score

Crestline                   000 011 0        2     3      3

Buckeye Central   002 100 X       3      1      2

WP: Brady Biglin (11 SO 4 W)

LP: Caleb Parsons (5 SO, 1 W)

HR: None.

Triples: None.

Doubles: None.

Multiple hits: None.

Records: Crestline 8-11; Buckeye Central 9-16.

Next: Crestline season over; Buckeye Central at New Riegel, Division IV sectional final, Thursday.