Stranded base runners loomed large for the Washington Demon baseball team (3-7 overall; 2-4 Southeast) Friday night. The Demons hosted their Southeast Conference rivals the Mount Pleasant Panthers (6-7 overall) in a pair of league battles Friday evening. Washington left 13 runners on base between the two games, 10 in game one, as the Demons dropped both games 6-4 and 7-2.

The early innings of game one were competitive, seeing the teams trading single runs in the first inning. Mount Pleasant held a one-run lead until the bottom of the sixth inning. The Panthers strung together four runs in the sixth, on three hits and one Demon error, pushing the lead to 6-1. Washington attempted to rally in the seventh inning, scoring three runs on a single hit, but it wasn’t enough as Mount Pleasant won game one 6-4. Washington stranded two or more base runners in four of three innings, including leaving the bases loaded in the fifth inning.

Game two belonged to the Panthers as well, jumping out to a three-run lead in the first inning. The Panthers added two runs in the bottom of the second and a single run in the fourth for a 6-0 lead. Washington had the bases loaded in the fourth with nobody out but the Demons grounded into a double play, scoring only Michael Gier in the inning. Washington tacked on another single run in the fifth inning, scoring Bryce Craff for the Demons’ final run on the game. The Panthers scored their final run in the seventh inning, bringing our final score to 7-2.

The losses drop Washington’s baseball team to 3-7 overall. The Demons return to the diamond on Tuesday, traveling to Wellman for the strike out cancer game versus the Mid-Prairie Golden Hawks (5-6 overall).