ASHTABULA — It was one up and one down for the Galion 11U All-Stars on day one of the Little League state tournament.
Galion (1-1) defeated Maumee, 6-4, in its first game of the day, but dropped an 11-1 contest to Canfield in the evening game on Saturday at Cederquist Park in Ashtabula.
Galion will face host side Ashtabula (0-1) in a loser’s bracket game at 3 p.m. Sunday. Ashtabula lost to Wheelersburg, 6-2, in its opening game on Saturday.
Joe Payne is the head coach of the Galion 11U All-Stars. His assistant coaches are James Payne and Brad McKibben.
Team members are Sam Albert, Hannif Donaldson, Alijah Evans, Lance Gregory, Carson McCleese, Nolan McKibben, Hudson Miller, Rece Payne, Jason Potter, Jackson Staton and Clayton Yost.
“This is the first year Galion has participated in the 11U District 7 tournament,” said Justin McMullen, president of Galion Youth Baseball. “It is exciting to see the success that group is having. Joe and Brad and James are great coaches and they have a talented team.”
The Galion 11U All-Stars posted an undefeated record in district tournament play. Galion defeated Bellevue twice (7-0 and 3-2) and also knocked off Fremont twice (11-4 and 7-4) to earn a spot in the state tournament.
“GYB was able to add this all-star age division due to the growth and success of the league in the past few years. The leadership that Jason McMullen and Gary Frankhouse have provided to Galion Youth Baseball the past few years is a huge part of that,” McMullen added. “Those two guys have poured their heart and soul into the program and it has inspired our kids, coaches, parents, volunteers and community to step up and invest in our facilities and programs. The success the 12U team is having is contagious across all of our age divisions. Being able to have an 11U all-star team is just another example of how the league is able to provide more opportunities for our kids to play baseball and learn valuable life lessons through the sport.”
Ohio 11U Little League State Tournament
Cederquist Park, Ashtabula
Saturday’s results
Galion 6, Maumee 4
Wheelersburg 6, Ashtabula 2
New Albany 10, Eaton 5
Hamilton 11, Avon 1
Canfield 11, Galion 1
Dover 14, Wheelersburg 2
New Albany 7, Mount Vernon 6
Sunday’s schedule
Avon (0-1) v. Eaton (0-1), 1 p.m.
Galion (1-1) v. Ashtabula (0-1), 3 p.m.
Maumee (0-1) v. Wheelersburg (1-1), 3 p.m.
Monday’s schedule
Mount Vernon (0-1) v. Galion/Ashtabula winner, 6 p.m.
Avon/Eaton winner v. Maumee/Wheelersburg winner, 6 p.m.
Tuesday’s schedule
Hamilton (1-0) v. Dover (1-0), 6 p.m.
New Albany (2-0) v. Canfield (1-0), 6 p.m.
