The Huskies (13-7) turned the tables on Cambridge in doing so with a 3-0 blanking on the artificial surface at Mazeroski Field. They had dropped a 5-0 decision to the Bobcats (12-5) exactly one week ago in the OVAC Class 4A finals at the Edison Multisport Complex in Richmond.

“Obviously, we wanted to win the OVAC last week, but we compete in the Buckeye 8 and we value the league,” Harrison Central head coach Mike Valesko said. “I told the guys all week that winning the Buckeye 8 is a big deal because it’s not a two-game tournament. It’s actually an 8-game tournament because you have to go through good teams in Indian Creek, Edison, Beaver Local and East Liverpool in your division.

“Anytime you can get your team in a position to play for a championship, it kind of feels like a district (tournament) game, which is a big deal,” Valesko continued. “We weren’t worried about that OVAC game, all we were concerned with today was the Buckeye 8 title.”

The game was not only a rematch of the OVAC Class 4A final, but the same two pitchers toed the rubber and delivered gems for their respective teams.

Harrison Central’s lanky lefty Tre Rex improved to 5-1 on the bump with 10 strikeouts, three walks and a hit batter. He carried a no-hitter into the fifth before No. 9 hitter Keaton Kyser singled sharply to right-center with two outs.

However, the Huskies were clinging to a precarious 1-0 margin thanks to an unearned run in the bottom of the first of hard-throwing righty Jake Valentine. A throwing error allowed Jace Madzia to score what proved to be the only run Rex would need.

“I said it last week after the loss to Cambridge that I thought Tre pitched really well,” Valesko added. “No runs and only three hits against that team, wow. He was really dominant today.

“That’s two good high school baseball teams. I have so much respect for (Cambridge head coach) Jamal (Lowery) and what he does year-in and year-out with his program,” Valesko noted.

Still holding that slim advantage heading to the bottom of the fifth, Harrison Central played small ball in adding two more tallies.

Cabot Arbaugh drew a leadoff walk and was replaced on the basepaths by pinch runner Kayden Dunkle. Rex sacrificed Dunkle to second with a bunt, and he was ruled safe as the throw to first drew the Bobcat fielder off the bag. Jonathan Vermillion bunted both runners ahead 90-feet and Trace Rutter’s suicide-squeeze bunt single plated the head-first sliding Dunkle. Freshman Tucker Snyder drove in Rex with another sacrifice bunt.

“If you’re going to go far in the (postseason) tournament you’re going to face some very good arms, so runs are going to be hard to come by,” Valesko said. “If there is a team in the state of Ohio that bunts more in practice than we do, I’d like to shake that coach’s hand. Credit to our guys because they take it serious and we were ready to go when it came time to execute.

“To me, that was fun baseball. That was a fun game to watch.”

Cambridge threatened in the sixth when it had a runner at second with one out, but Rex buckled down and got a pair of inning-ending groundouts.

In the seventh, the Bobcats had runners on first and second with two outs. However, Rex ended things with a strike out of leadoff hitter Caleb Bond.

“We were very determined to win this game. That was a tough loss in the OVACs and I kept thinking about it,” Rex offered. “Last week they hit me pretty good, but today my stuff was really working.”

He said the familiarity of facing the Bobcats just seven days previously was a huge help.

“I knew which hitters did what against me last week, so that determined my pitches,” he said.

Kyser had two of the Bobcats three hits.