Solving the mystery of Oak Island seemed a simpler endeavor than solving the strike zone for each starting pitcher.

As the errant offerings mounted, so did the frustration.

Central Catholic pitcher Austyn Winkleblec was able to settle. Butler pitcher Mac Schnur wasn't.

Winkleblec walked seven in the first three innings, but found his rhythm after that, silencing Butler's bats as the Golden Tornado fell to the Vikings 7-4 at Michelle Krill Field at Historic Pullman Park Tuesday night.

Things were just as wild for Schnur, who walked nine in two-plus innings. He walked five consecutive batters in the top of the third before yielding to reliever James Desmond.

“Ninety feet was obviously the difference in this game,” said Butler coach Josh Forbes. “We gave away too many 90 feets.”

And one big blast.

Even with Schnur's wildness, Butler led 3-2 when he left the mound.

But Will Ray hit a towering grand slam home run to give Cental Catholic the lead for good at 6-3.

“I told Will, 'I usually don't say this, but you won the game,'” said Central Catholic coach Pat Walsh. “He got a 3-1 fastball and it was a no-doubter. When you're playing at Pullman Park, you usually can't say no-doubter, but it was.”

After the slam, Desmond was mostly effective until running into control problems of his own in the sixth. He walked a man and hit another with the bases loaded.

Still, he kept Butler in the game.

“He did a tremendous job,” Forbes said. “He gave us a chance to win.”

Butler got off to a good start thanks to Winklebec's wildness and a two-run triple by Colin Patterson. Brady Gavula made it 3-0 Butler in the bottom of the first when he scored on a wild pitch — one of two in the frame by Winklebec.

Winkleblec reached his 100-pitch limit with one out in the bottom of the sixth. He still got the win with a strange line of 5 1/3 innings pitched, two hits, six strikeouts and eight walks.

Just getting that deep into the game was a boon for the Vikings.

“The hardest thing to do is pitch when you can't find anything early,” Walsh said. “Pitching into the sixth was a great performance.”

Butler added a run in the bottom of the seventh against reliever Nick Robertson when Cooper Baxter tripled and scored on a groundout by Patterson.

The two teams square off again Wednesday at Central.

This is the first year of the home-and-home section series in the WPIAL.

“I do like that because they're gonna remember what happened. We're gonna remember what happened,” Forbes said. “We're gonna come out with a ton of energy and they are, too. It's gonna be a really good, competitive baseball game.”

Central Catholic 006 001 0 — 7 2 0

Butler 300 000 1 — 4 4 0

W: Austyn Winkleblec 5.1IP (6K, 8BB). L: Mac Schnur 2IP (2K, 9BB).

Central Catholic (6-2, 2-1): Will Ray HR 4-RBI

Butler (4-3, 2-1): Colin Patterson 3B 3-RBI, Cooper Baxter 3B, David Leslie 1B, Brady Gavula 1B

Wednesday: Butler at Central Catholic