William ‘Tank’ Hardin to the Elon University Spots Hall of Fame, with inductions to take place on September 21…..
William Hardin(Page High School Baseball Coach), a catcher and third baseman(Elon University), played for the maroon and gold (Elon)from 1986-87 and was named the NAIA District 26 Player of the Year, All-Carolinas Conference and All-District 26 in 1986.
That same year, Hardin was an honorable mention selection to the NAIA All-America squad. In 1986, he led the team with 46 runs scored and 13 home runs to lead Elon to a 35-14 record.
The following year, Hardin hit .348 with 35 runs scored, five doubles, seven home runs and 33 RBI as the maroon and gold posted a 37-13 overall record.
In Hardin’s two seasons on the squad, Elon went 30-9 in league play.
A native of Lumberton, N.C., Hardin helped Elon reach the NAIA World Series in Lewiston, Idaho, and achieve a final ranking of fifth nationally in 1987.
Hardin began his career at Louisburg College where he holds the program record for both career home runs (39) and single-season homers (21). He also established the school’s single-game RBI mark by driving in 13 runs in 1984. He also earned team MVP honors, league player of the year accolades and was a two-time All-Region X selection in his days at Louisburg. He was inducted into the Louisburg College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010.
*****Above info from the Elon University Athletics Web Site.*****
congrats tank on your induction.it was a pleasure playing with you at louisburg and having a front seat watching you hit all those homeruns against everybody.thanks for bringing me into this game of coaching i learned alot from you. glad you are my friend, you and your family get to do it again wow thats awesome. couldnt happen to a better guy but a better man.take the time to soak it all in ,as they say on espn numbers never lie. ps. just think if you could run like me you would have gotten drafted.congrats big dog i am proud of you. coach norris
Congrats Coach Hardin and very well deserved. I couldn’t have picked a better officemate, mentor, or friend to work with than you. I keep hearing stories about your legendary career at Louisburg and Elon and I could not be more proud to work beside such a man as you. Thanks for keeping me laughing everyday, and continuing to show our student athletes at Page High School that hard work pays off! Congrats again Tank! I can’t wait for your Induction Ceremony!
Coach Harris