Home Noticias Marion Harding, Pleasant play another tight one in football Oct. 9

Marion Harding, Pleasant play another tight one in football Oct. 9

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Marion Harding, Pleasant play another tight one in football Oct. 9

MARION — In a season of tight games, what’s one more for the Presidents?

Tied at 7-7 at halftime and again at 14-14 late in the third quarter, Marion Harding rallied for a 28-14 Mid Ohio Athletic Conference football victory over Pleasant Oct. 9 in Harding Stadium.

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“The way our kids battle has never been a question all year,” Harding coach C.J. Westler said. “To play the first half we played — I thought we played really poorly — and be able to bounce back and play the way we played the second half, I’m extremely proud of them.”

Six of Harding’s eight games have been decided by two touchdowns or less and three of them were by one touchdown or less. Friday night was more of the same.

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See top photos from Marion Harding vs. River Valley football

Marion Harding defeated River Valley 26-8 in a Week 5 Mid Ohio Athletic Conference football game Sept. 18, 2026.

(Rob McCurdy/Marion Star)

What changed in the second half?

The Presidents (5-3, 3-2) scored with four seconds left in the first half when Dez Feliciano hit Marcus McGary for a 6-yard TD reception, then out of halftime, they tried to convert an onside kick. Pleasant (2-6, 1-4) recovered and scored six plays later to take a 14-7 lead on a Weston Shaffer 4-yard run.

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The Presidents answered right back with an 80-yard drive that took just 2:30 to complete. Mattic Simmers tied it with 6:41 left in the third quarter on a 1-yard run.

Harding’s defense followed by forcing a punt, and the offense put them in the lead for the first time when Feliciano broke away for a 31-yard touchdown run and a 21-14 edge with 2:19 left in the third. The Prexies tried a second onside kick and successfully recovered it, but the drive was stopped by a fumble into the end zone that was recovered by Pleasant.

Jackson Payne intercepted a Pleasant pass on fourth-and-7 from the 38, and Harding put it away with an 87-yard, 11-play drive that saw Simmers score with 2:39 to go.

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“Honestly it was just execution. I feel like we went over some things at halftime. There wasn’t a lot of screaming and yelling. It was more going over the details,” Westler said. “They didn’t really switch anything. We didn’t really switch anything. It was our kids started to execute better and make plays.”

More on this rivalry

The all-time series between the two is now 6-6. This is the first time in Harding history that it has beaten both River Valley and Pleasant in back-to-back seasons. No one has ever won more than two in a row in this Marion County rivalry that dates to 2015.

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Harding finished Friday night with 20 first downs and 392 total yards, while Pleasant had 17 first downs and 369 yards, which shows just how close it was.

“We knew we were the better team coming in, and we knew we had to stay disciplined,” Marion Harding receiver and defensive back Jaden Jordan said. “In the first half, we really didn’t stay disciplined. They preached it at halftime. We did a great job on defense stopping the run. We came out physical. Our offense got it moving. It was good.”

Marion Harding's defense tackles Pleasant's Weston Shaffer during a Week 8 Mid Ohio Athletic Conference football game Oct. 9, 2026, at Harding Stadium.

Marion Harding’s defense tackles Pleasant’s Weston Shaffer during a Week 8 Mid Ohio Athletic Conference football game Oct. 9, 2026, at Harding Stadium.

Pleasant took a 7-0 lead with 3:07 left in the first quarter on a 1-yard from from Brody Ringer that was set up by a 44-yard keeper by Shaffer. Twice in the first half, the Spartans saw drives inside the Harding 10 produce no points. The Presidents stopped them on a fourth-and-2 from the 4. Later Jordan blocked a 27-yard field goal attempt.

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Shaffer finished with 255 yards rushing on 27 carries, adding a 5-for-13 passing night for 54 yards. Ringer backed him with 45 yards on seven carries and two catches for 23 yards, while on defense recording three sacks and 10 tackles. Ryan Conway had eight tackles, Brody Pendleton seven and Grady Recibidor six. Pleasant ended with 115 yards lost on 10 penalties, and Harding had four penalties for 40 yards.

“You go back to the first half where we had two or three drives down into the 10 where we didn’t put the ball into the end zone,” Pleasant coach Jake Schaeffer said. “That’s what I said. Guys, if we finish those drives, it’s 28-28 and a tie football game. It’s tough. I feel for a lot of these seniors and guys who are playing their butts off, but at the end of the day we have to clean up the penalties and control what we can control. That’s what I told them.”

Feliciano was 10-for-17 passing for 109 yards, and he ran 15 times for 95 yards. McGary ran it 15 times for 126 yards and made three catches for 28 yards. Payne caught six for 68 yards, while Simmers ended with 42 rushing yards on 10 carries. Sean Kelly, Talan Wolford and Kolten Sibrel all ended with 5.5 tackles for Harding as Ryan Harper had two sacks.

“I’m proud of the kids,” Westler said. “They’re the ones who deserve all the credit because they’re doing all the work. Couldn’t be more happy for them.”

rmccurdy@usatodayco.com

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This article originally appeared on Marion Star: Marion Harding, Pleasant play another tight one in football Oct. 9

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