Warren G. Harding Raiders Baseball

Harding Drops Regular Season Finale, 8-3

After snapping their seventeen game losing streak after a doubleheader sweep of the Liberty Leopards on Monday, the Warren Harding Raiders’ Varsity Baseball Team hoped to build on their momentum on Tuesday as they hosted the Mathews Mustangs at Volunteer Field. Instead, the Raiders’ defense, which has been poor all season, let them down once again as the Mustangs headed back to Vienna with a 8-3 win.

Two Harding errors in the top of second allowed Mathews to score two unearned runs and it just snowballed from there. Of the eight runs scored by the Mustangs not a single one was earned.

After Mathews took a 4-0 lead in the top of the third, Harding was able to halve the lead in the bottom half of the frame. With one out, Jaron Edmonds tripled to left field and Kwa’me Adams brought him home with a sacrifice fly. Elias Johnson followed Adams with a single and moved to third on a pick-off attempt that ended up down the right field line. Doug Pleacher would then score Johnson with an RBI single to get the Raiders’ to within two at 4-2.

However, in the top of the fourth, three more Harding errors allowed Mathews to increase their lead to 7-2 and the game was essentially put out of reach.

Elias Johnson got the start on the bump for the Raiders and took the loss to drop to 1-5 on the season, although he deserved a much better fate. He allowed no earned runs on only six hits in six innings of work. He struck out two and walked two.

The Harding offense struggled once again as they only collected four base hits although two went for extra bases thanks to Jaron Edmonds’ triple and a double by Chase Kinter in the fifth. Kwa’me Adams and Doug Pleacher each drove in a run for the Raiders.

The Black and Gold complete the regular season with a record of 6-18 unless one final tune-up is scheduled prior to the Ohio High School Athletic Association Division II Tournament. As of now, the Raiders are scheduled to take on the Wadsworth Grizzlies on Tuesday, May 26 in a Northeast Region Five, District Two district semifinal. The game is scheduled for 5:00 PM at Wadsworth Baseball Field.

Best of luck to Coach Burnett and the Raiders.

Harding Swept by Fitch in 7-4 Defeat

In what has become a disappointing season for the Warren Harding Raiders’ Varsity Baseball Team, it has been difficult to find many positives. However, although they lost the two game series with the Fitch Falcons, including a 7-4 defeat on Tuesday at Harding’s Volunteer Field, the Raiders have played much better baseball than they have over the previous month. It is certainly something they can take into the Division II State Tournament that begins in two weeks.

For the second straight game, it was Harding that got on the board first. After holding Fitch scoreless in the top half of the first, Harding took a 1-0 lead in the home half. Kwa’me Adams drew a one-out walk and advanced to second on a passed ball with two outs. He would score on a Fitch error to take the early 1-0 lead.

After Fitch tied it on a two-out RBI double by Dominic Anzevino in the second, the Raiders would answer to re-take the lead in their half of the inning. Jayden Colbert drew a lead-off walk and moved to second on a single by Leon Stubbs. A perfectly executed sacrifice bunt by Marcellus Murillo-Lang advanced Colbert and Stubbs into scoring position. A single by Demarea Hugley plated Colbert to put the Raiders in front 2-1. However, Stubbs was left stranded at third after a strike out, walk and fly out.

Fitch would answer with six unanswered runs including three in the third, two in the fourth and one in the fifth to put the game out of reach. Costly errors and timely hitting by the Falcons spearheaded the offensive onslaught.

Harding continued to fight and plated two in the bottom of the fifth to get them to within three but they could not get closer. Jaron Edmonds led off the frame with a single, advanced one base on a passed ball and moved to third on a one-out single by Elias Johnson. Johnson moved to third on a ground out and, with two outs, a Fitch error scored two to make the final 7-4.

Kwa’me Adams got the start on the mound for the Raiders and took the loss to drop to 0-2 on the season. He allowed six runs, only two earned, on six hits. He struck out five but walked five as well.

The offense had their best offensive production in quite some time as they recorded six base hits, all singles, while Demarea Hughley had the only Raider RBI on the night.

The loss means the Black and Gold closed the All-American Conference schedule winless, at 0-8, and they are now 4-16 overall. They return to action on Thursday, May 14th when they host the Hubbard Eagles. First pitch at Volunteer Field is scheduled for 5:00 PM.

Harding to Face Wadsworth in District Semifinal

Mother’s Day marks the annual voting for tournament seeding and the tournament draw for the Ohio High School Athletic Association’s State Baseball Tournament. Head Coach Andrew Burnett and the Warren Harding Raiders learned their seeding and their opponent for the Division II Tournament as they conclude their 2026 season over the next week.

In the Northeast District, there are thirty-three (33) teams in Division II. As expected, the Raiders did not fare well when it came to seeding as they came out of the voting seeded thirty (30).

With the increase to seven divisions for baseball for last season’s tournament, most sectional tournament brackets have been eliminated and the majority of the tournaments now begin at the district level. Harding will compete in the Northeast Region Five, Northeast 2 District in 2026 and will play a district semifinal against the Wadsworth Grizzlies. The game is scheduled for Tuesday, May 26th at Wadsworth High School with first pitch set for 5:00 PM.

The Grizzlies enter the tournament as the twelfth (12th) seed and their overall record currently stands at 10-7-2. They currently sit in fourth place in the Suburban Conference-National Division with a record of 6-4-1. The winner will advance to the Region Five, Northeast 2 District Final against the winner of the Cleveland Rhodes Rams, seeded twenty-nine (29), and the top seeded Lakewood Rangers on Thursday, May 28th.

Public Brackets