CANTON, Ohio – For the second time in three months, the Lakota West Firebirds watched their season end on a tough, chaotic, what-if play in the Ohio High School Athletic Association Division I state semifinals.
On Saturday afternoon, it was the baseball team trying to keep its state title hopes alive. With two outs in the top of the seventh inning, runners on first and second, and the Firebirds trailing by two runs, West junior Braydon Johnson stepped to the plate against reliever Cooper Tracy.
Johnson, who had three home runs and 16 combined extra-base hits this season, launched a long fly ball to left field. Olentangy left fielder Cameron Birch made a long run to the warning track and caught it right in front of the fence.
That close to a three-run home run, or at least a game-tying double or triple. Instead, it was a 3-1 loss to Lewis Center Olentangy in the state semifinals at Thurman Munson Memorial Stadium.
“Off the bat, I thought it was gone,” Johnson said. “Going in there, I knew exactly what pitch I wanted and he started with it first pitch. I felt like I got all of it so I thought it was gone and we were going to have a one-run lead but baseball is baseball.”
The Firebirds finished with a 24-8 record in their first trip to the state tournament since 2017 and fourth overall. Olentangy, 23-7, advances to Sunday’s championship game against Saturday night’s winner between Springboro and Perrysburg.
It was a similar feeling to March Madness for the Lakota West basketball team, which lost at the buzzer in the state semifinals with two of the same starters also in the lineup Saturday.
“I thought it had a shot,” Lakota West head coach Brad Gschwind said. “He’s our best hitter. You can’t ask for much more than that. He’s done it all year for us. He’s a great player; he’s a great kid.”
Said Johnson: “It sucks being the last out of the season, but I wouldn’t trade that swing for the world. I think it’s a great swing and there’s nothing else I could do about that.”
It was the sixth time in their eight losses that the Firebirds have been held to one or two runs.
Rocco Bucci, a sophomore lefthander ranked 20th in Ohio in the Class of 2027 by Prep Baseball Report, threw a gem. He allowed three hits and walked four while striking out four, on 91 pitches. The one run was unearned. Bucci was coming off a three-hit shutout in the regional semis.
“Pretty tight offspeed,” Johnson said. “Fastball mid-80s coming from the left side. It’s pretty hard to hit at any level, especially when he times his pitches well.”
Lakota West left eight runners on base, four in scoring position. The Braves supported Bucci’s pitching with some clutch and timely defense.
Senior Tucker Wilburn started for Lakota West and allowed four hits in four innings with one run, striking out four.
How Lakota West’s state semifinal game unfolded
In the top of the first, Johnson walked with two outs and advanced to second on a wild pitch, but the next batter grounds out.
Wilburn stranded two runners in the bottom of the first and retired the side in order in the second.
The Firebirds got two on in the third after a single from Parker Isaacs and a walk to Kameron Gaalaas, then Johnson had his first bad break of the game.
He hit a hard line drive to shortstop Carter Hire for the third out.
In the top of the fourth, Tucker Wilburn faced Ty Walburn, who led off with a single. The next batter, leadoff hitter Carter Hire, dropped a perfect bunt in front of the plate and easily reached first for a single. The pitcher, Rocco Bucci, walked to load the bases.
Cooper Tracy hit a sacrifice fly to left to plate the game’s first run. Wilburn struck out the next two batters to stem the tide.
In the fourth, with one out, senior Adrian Smith was retired on a nice over the shoulder catch by the shortstop Hire in short left field. The two basketball stars in the lineup, Isaiah Meade-Moss and L.J. Green, then reached base on a single and a walk, but were left there.
In the bottom of the fourth, Wilburn faced Walburn with a runner on first and two outs. Walburn singled to center, and West center fielder Parker Isaacs throw him out advancing to third.
In the bottom of the fifth, Keegan Campbell replaced Wilburn on the mound but the Braves got a key hit to find the turf.
With two outs, Cooper Tracy and Cameron Birch singled to right field. Dominic Pirrone launched a double down the left-field line to plate two big runs and give Olentangy a 3-0 lead.
In the top of the sixth, the Firebirds got one back when Landon Holt hit a single down the right-field line and went all the way around to third on an error. Smith plated him with a sacrifice fly.
But that was it for the Firebirds during a frustrating day at the plate.
“It’s part of baseball,” Gschwind said. “They were able to push a couple of runs across. (Bucci) threw a great game and they got timely hitting. I’m happy for these kids. It’s an awful lot of fun. Today didn’t go our way, but these kids have a lot to be proud of. I’m proud of them. They fought back. They’ve done it all year.”
Senior salute
Lakota West seniors are Hayden Holmes, Landon Kennedy, Micah Urbassik, Keegan Campbell, Tucker Wilburn, Isaiah Meade-Moss, Jordon Houck, Adrian Smith, L.J. Green, Drake Elrod, Landon Holt, Andrew Newman, Gavin Halstead, Chandler Wright and Grant Grunenberg.
“I love every single one of these guys,” Johnson said. “I would do anything for them. We had a great year and most of that was our chemistry. We work really well together. Coming to an end almost doesn’t feel real. We felt untouchable at one point but we just got to regroup.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: ‘They fought back.’ Lakota West falls in Division I state baseball semifinals
Reporting by James Weber, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
