Buckeye rallies in seventh to beat Wadsworth 7-5
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 7 |
| WAD | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
Buckeye climbed back with a four-run top of the seventh and held on for a 7-5 baseball win over Wadsworth on Saturday at Wadsworth High School.
The decisive inning came together in unusual fashion. Buckeye pushed across four runs after Wadsworth dropped a third strike, Jeff Costigan was hit by a pitch, Wadsworth committed an error, and Zachary Stough drew a walk, each sequence helping the Bucks move in front 7-5. Wadsworth answered with one run in the bottom half, but Buckeye reliever Rees Perkins closed out the victory.
Wadsworth grabbed the early momentum in the first inning when M Cindia homered to left field for a two-run shot. Buckeye stayed within striking distance and eventually pulled even before Wadsworth added another run in the fifth on Stoops' solo home run to left. Costigan answered in the top of the sixth with a solo homer to left of his own, a key swing that kept Buckeye level heading into the final inning.
Perkins earned the win in relief, allowing one hit and one run over three innings without a walk. Buckeye starter Zachary Stough worked four innings, giving up five hits and four runs while walking two. Wadsworth starter Carbaugh kept the game tight for six innings, allowing six hits and four runs, three of them earned, with three strikeouts and two walks. Cindia was charged with the loss after Buckeye's go-ahead rally in the seventh, though none of the three runs allowed in his inning were earned.
Costigan led Buckeye at the plate with two hits in three at-bats and supplied the team's only recorded extra-base hit in the summary with his sixth-inning home run. The Bucks finished with seven runs against a Wadsworth club that had built its offense around the two early home runs, but Buckeye's late pressure, combined with a clean relief outing from Perkins, proved to be the difference.
Played under clear skies in 55-degree weather, the road win gave Buckeye a comeback result built on patience in the last inning and timely power from Costigan in the sixth.
