It’s been a successful summer for the Galion 8U Orange and Blue Little League baseball squads.
Galion Orange recently won the Stewart Family Memorial Tournament, played the weekend of July 10-12 at Heise Park, and the Gahanna Junior League Community All-Star Tournament.
Justin McMullen, president of Galion Youth Baseball, said the Stewart Family Memorial Tournament was of special significance to the Galion community.
“This was the first year that we named it the Stewart Family Memorial tournament in memory of Jordan Stewart and his family,” McMullen stated. “Jordan was a tee-ball coach in our league before he and his family were lost in a house fire. His father, Tony, and step-mom, Vicki, have been on our board and a part of Galion Youth Baseball for over 15 years.”
In addition to the Galion Orange and Blue teams, the tournament featured ballclubs from Shelby, Lexington, Madison, Mount Gilead, Plymouth, Mount Vernon, Clear Fork, and Ontario. While Galion Orange placed first, Shelby was the runnerup, followed by Lexington and Madison.
Galion Orange was the dominant team in the tournament, posting a 5-0 record. Following are the results against each opponent: Mount Gilead, 19-1; Lexington, 20-2; Mount Vernon, 16-1; Lexington, 18-0 (semifinals); Shelby, 15-0 (finals).
Galion Blue was undefeated in pool play and earned the No. 3 seed after advancing to the bracket round, but was eliminated by Shelby.
“The tournament wouldn’t be possible without out the many volunteers including umpires, concession workers, announcers, field crew, etc.,” McMullen said. “The fields were in great shape and we received many complements from parents and coaches that traveled in to participate. One of the kids actually said that our fields at Heise looked like a Major League Ball park.”
Galion Blue finished second at the recent Plymouth Little League Tournament. Blue lost to Willard in the finals after going undefeated through the semifinal round.
“Galion Blue run-ruled every game we played up until the championship,” said Scott Winterstellar, a member of the Galion Youth Baseball board of directors. “It was hot and the kids had just finished defeating Plymouth in the semifinal when we started right into the final game against Willard. These kids played hard. There were eight teams playing in the Plymouth tournament and we had to remind the kids that second place is something to be proud of.”
Winterstellar, who was the director of the Stewart Family Memorial Tournament, said that Galion Blue finished the postseason with an 8-3 record. The three losses were to teams that the ballclub had previously beaten.