GALION — Plymouth was able to score early and often. Buckeye Central rallied late but fell short.

The Big Red scored six runs over the first three innings and then held on for an 8-6 win in the Division IV district semifinal at Heise Park.

“We came out and we hit the ball hard the first inning or two that helped us a little bit,” Plymouth coach Jake Strayer said. “That’s an extremely good baseball team. The Kanney kid is a heck of a pitcher. We just happened to get bats on balls and hit them hard.”

Plymouth also capitalized on three Buckeye Central errors in those first three frames. Zach Hamman singled to start the bottom of the first. Nick Roberts sacrificed him to second and Zeth Goth was safe on an error.

Trace McVey followed with a walk. After a strike out, Ethan Gillum was safe on another error and the Big Red had three unearned runs. It set the tone for the game.

“We’ve had the same defense all year and our kids have played well all year,” Buckeye Central coach Chad Jensen said. “They hit it hard, and we had a couple miscues. But we had opportunities throughout the game. We’re not going to blame that. That’s not the reason we lost the game.”

Jensen referred to the fact that the Bucks left 10 runners on base, including six over the first four innings while Plymouth was building an 8-3 lead.

Big Red starter Cole Wentz pitched around trouble for his 4 and 1/3 innings. He left with one out in the fifth with his team leading 8-2 and eventually got credited with the win, striking out eight and walking seven.

“Solid. But he’s (Cole) going to tell you it wasn’t his best,” Strayer said. “He gave us a chance to win and that’s all we need. Give us a chance, that’s all we can ask for. He did his job tonight.”

Buckeye Central (11-12) did not go quietly. The Bucks scratched out two runs in the fifth to chase Wentz and cut the deficit to 8-3. Three walks and an error plated the runs.

Alex Kanney retired the last seven Plymouth batters to keep the Big Red in striking distance. Kanney finished the game with eight strikeouts and four walks. Only three of the eight runs he allowed were earned.

“He’s a senior. He’s our ace,” Jensen said of Kanney. “He’s an all-Ohio kind of kid, chosen to be in the all-Ohio senior series, one of the top 80 seniors in Ohio. He proved that.”

The Bucks made one last attempt to come back all the way. Elliot Geissman led off the seventh reaching on an error. Kaiden Vaughn walked and after a strikeout, Geissman was forced at third on a fielder’s choice.

Clay Green singled to drive in Vaughn and Lane Bauer walked. Tyler Sanderson scored on a wild pitch and Graham Geissman drove in Bauer with a singled. But that was all the offense could generate and the Big Red had the win.

“(The defense) helped us out, especially with as many walks (nine) as we gave up,” Strayer said. “That was our kryptonite tonight. We didn’t throw a ton of strikes. We walked a lot of guys and that’s where a lot of their base runners came from.”

Hamman and Goth led the Plymouth offense with two hits, including a triple for each. Hamman scored three times. Wentz, Carson Tucker, and Clayton Miller each singled.

Bauer and Casey Geissman each doubled for the Bucks. Green, Elliot Geissman, and Graham Geissman each singled.

“We knew Plymouth was a good team,” Jensen said. “We knew we couldn’t give them opportunities. When you give good teams extra outs and you’re going to have a little bit of that. I’m proud of our kids. We could have quit early on, it could have been a run rule, and we’d be back in New Washington by now.”

“A win’s a win. In district semis, a win’s a win,” Strayer said. “I don’t care what it is. I don’t care how we win. It’s satisfying.”

The Big Red move on to play South Central — a 10-0 winner over Hardin Northern in the other semifinal — for the district title on Friday, back at Galion.

Jensen will miss the seven seniors — Casey, Elliot, and Graham Geissman, Kanney, Vaughn, Green, and Wyatt Martin — who played their last game for Buckeye Central.

“These seven seniors are really important to me and our program,” Jensen said. “I’ve coached a lot of these kids in travel ball when they were 12U. I’ve coached those kids for a long time. They mean a lot to me, and I’ve seen them grow up. I’ve been around them so long it’s going to be odd not having them around.”

Box score

Buckeye Central     001 020 3        6        5         4

Plymouth                   321 200 X        8        7        3

WP: Cole Wentz (8 SO, 7 W)

LP: Alex Kanney (8 SO, 4 W)

HR: None.

Triples: (P) Zeth Goth, Zach Hamman.

Doubles: (BC) Casey Geissman, Lane Bauer.

Multiple hits: (P) Zach Hamman, Zeth Goth.

Records: Buckeye Central 11-12; Plymouth 18-7.

Next: Buckeye Central season over; Plymouth vs. South Central, Division IV district final at Galion, Friday.