Warren Central will have to go the distance with the champ to keep its baseball season alive.

Alex Frillman homered and Hunter French hit an RBI triple during a five-run rally in the fourth inning that propelled DeSoto Central to a 5-3 victory over Warren Central in Game 1 of their MHSAA Class 6A playoff series on Thursday.

Game 2 of the best-of-three series is Friday at 7 p.m. at Warren Central. The Vikings (20-10) need to win to force a deciding Game 3 Saturday night at 6 at DeSoto Central.

DeSoto Central (27-2), the defending Class 6A champion, got all of its runs and four of its five hits in Game 1 in that big fourth inning.

Kamren James started things by reaching on a dropped third strike, then scored on French’s triple. French then scored on a sacrifice fly to put the Jaguars ahead 2-1.

Frillman followed with a solo home run, and a double by Mac Sims, an RBI single by Connar Gardner and another sacrifice fly stretched the lead to 5-1.

Warren Central stranded runners in the fifth and sixth innings, then threatened one last time in the seventh.

The Vikings loaded the bases with one out, and scored twice as Vantrel Reed was hit by a pitch and Hank Holdiness delivered an RBI single that cut it to 5-3. With two outs and runners at second and third, however, Will Logsdon struck out Shane Lewis looking at a 3-2 pitch on the outside corner to end the game.

Logsdon got the last two outs of the game to earn the save. DeSoto Central starter Cade Smith pitched six innings for the win. He allowed four hits and one run, walked four batters and struck out seven.

Lewis finished the game 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Warren Central left nine runners on base in the game.