MARION, OH (MARION COUNTY NOW)—A rocky first inning put Galion in a hole it couldn’t dig out of in a Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference game Thursday night.

Harding plated 9 runs on 6 hits on their way to a 13-6 win. The game began on Tuesday, but after just 5 pitches, the umpires stopped play due to a downpour.

The Lady Presidents (7-19, 2-11) also topped the Lady Tigers 17-4 on Wednesday.

“We came back after that first inning. We hit the ball hard and put a lot of balls in play,” Tigers head coach Callie Bauer said. “We had a few base running errors and without that we’d have been in it right until the end.”

Harding put 14 batters to the plate in getting those 9 runs. Key hits came from Alexis Baker with a double and Kennedy Davis and Bryleigh Long with RBI singles.

Walks and hit batsmen also hurt Galion in that inning and throughout the game.

Galion drops to 6-18, 2-12, despite outhitting Harding 11-9.

Senior Maddie Beck had 3 singles to lead the Lady Tigers. She started on the mound before giving way to Sara Holt.

“Maddie has been great. She’ll be sad to leave, that’s for sure. We’re a really hard out 1 through 5. They are all hitting above .300. Holt has a lot of good spin, being a lefty, and it makes her tough to hit,” Bauer said.

“Katelyn Carr when she gets on is almost guaranteed to score. Maddie is a triple threat. She can bunt, hard slap, soft slap and hit for power. And she can mix it up with different at-bats which makes her a hard out.”

Harding head coach Amber Roth is in her first season at the helm and has a young team, with no seniors.

“The girls have put in a lot of hard work. Sometimes when you’re losing, you can lose that drive and motivation. But they’ve come together and lit a new fire, and it’s been super fun to watch,” she said.

Galion didn’t give up, plating a pair of runs in the fourth inning and 3 more in the fifth.

Beck singled and Holt doubled in the fourth. Destiny Blue followed with an RBI single. In the fifth, Makaylynn Anderson’s double and Carr and Bianca White, who singled, scored runs.

Harding added 3 runs late in the game, with Alaina Moore and Shelby Durain getting doubles.

Allison Hecker struck out 5 and walked 1 to get the win.

Roth is trying to build a program that hasn’t won a lot in recent years, losing all 14 league games in 2025.

“It’s that mentality of competitiveness,” she said “It’s being aggressive and believing, even as the underdog in most cases, it’s not that far of a shot. Just being a good teammate and hustle and grind.”

The Lady Presidents have shown an ability to hit the ball.

“They’re very aggressive and that’s what’s fun. They want to get a hit, and they are aggressive on the base paths. Some have had to learn to be leaders and have stepped when needed,” Roth said.

Tournament play begins next week as Harding visits Columbus DeSales Thursday in a Division III sectional. Galion travels to Clyde Wednesday for a D-IV sectional. Both start at 5 p.m.

“It’s nice to get a couple wins before that. It’s kind of a reset and we’re excited to get after it,” Roth said.

Galion will face a team it’s familiar with in the Fliers.

“We kind of got the draw we wanted. We went up and lost by two in a close game and outhit them. We just gave up too many free bases to them, similar to what we did tonight.”

Box score

Galion       100 230 0         6      11       4

Harding    901 021 X       13       9        1

WP: Allison Hecker (5 SO, 1 W)

LP: Maddie Beck (0 SO, 3 W)

HR: None.

Triples: None.

Doubles: (G) Sara Holt, Makaylynn Anderson; (MH) Macey Harper, Moore.

Multiple hits: (G) Maddie Beck 3, Katelyn Carr, Bianca White, Makaylynn Anderson; (MH) Lilianna King, Alexis Baker.

Records: Galion 6-18, 2-12 MOAC; Marion Harding 7-19, 2-11 MOAC.

Next: Milan Edison at Galion, Friday; Pleasant at Marion Harding, Friday.