Marian head coach Tony Radocha's message to his team coming into Monday's game against Jim Thorpe was simple.

That message was to be aggressive and attack pitches at the plate.It's safe to say that after a three-run first inning, that message was delivered.The Colts (5-3) hit the ball hard and in play throughout the game, using the three-run first to propel them to a 4-3 non-league win over the Olympians (6-4)"We always try to tell our kids that when you see a good pitch, you need to attack. We have to take what teams give us, we can't sit back, because when you do that, you can easily get behind in the count," said Radocha. "We hit the ball hard today, and we found the right spots at times, but when you hit the ball hard and in play, good things will usually happen."Jim Thorpe put the pressure on the Colts early, getting out to a 1-0 lead after the top of the first.Marian pitcher Daniel Keer retired the first two Thorpe batters of the inning, but Derek Joyce doubled to get into scoring position.Cleanup hitter Nick Porembo then sent a sharply hit ground ball down the third baseline that was fielded, but an errant throw to first that skipped past the first baseman scored Joyce.The Colts would bounce back with two hits in the bottom half of the inning by Keer and Anthony Collevecchio, and RBIs from Collevecchio and Nick Kubishin, would give Marian a 3-1 lead.The critical play of the inning came when Kubishin hit an RBI sacrifice fly to right field with the bases loaded. The Olympian outfielder overthrew the cutoff man with the ball skipping into the dugout, allowing two runs to score instead of just one."We're playing much better baseball, more competitive baseball, but we still have some work to do, like continuing to get better at the little things," said Thorpe head coach Derick Reis."In the games that we've lost that have been close, which has been most of our losses, little mistakes have hurt us. Give credit to Marian today, they made the plays to come away with the win."Fast forward to the sixth inning where things got dicey for the Colts after the Olympians staged a rally for the lead.With the Colts leading 4-2, the Olympians added a run when Nick Rosahac delivered an RBI hit. Porembo, Jake Burkhart, and Rosahac all singled to start the inning, putting pressure on the Marian defense and Keer. David Marino then walked to load the bases for the Olympians, before Keer got himself out of the jam.Keer ended the inning with a strikeout and fly out."That's what Danny Keer is all about, he's a warrior out there, and he handles adversity really well," said Radocha. "He works really hard, and he's got good stuff. He's been an anchor for our pitching staff this season, and the way he really hunkered down and got out of the sixth just shows you the type of player he is."Jarod Paisley came in to relieve Keer in the seventh, allowing just one baserunner, shutting the door on the Olympians for the win.CLOSE CALL FALLS ... The Olympians, who have four losses on the season, have dropped three of their four by just one run. One-run losses to Lehighton, North Schuylkill, and now Marian means that Thorpe is in every game, but it needs to do just a little more to pull out the "W's."LEADING COLTS ... Keer came through with two hits on the day, while Collevecchio, Paisley, Gabe Bauer, Mike Latoff, and Adam Salazar each added a hit.Jim Thorpe 100 101 0 - 3 4 1Marian 300 010 x - 4 7 1Porembo and A. Joyce; Keer, Paisley (7) and Nolter. W - Keer L - Porembo.