The conference season begins tonight for the Washington Demon volleyball team (3-5 overall). The Demons’ conference itinerary starts in Mount Pleasant, facing their long-time rivals the Panthers (2-3 overall; 0-1 Southeast).

Washington collected their first three victories of the season last Tuesday during a tournament in Wapello. The Demons defeated the Central Lee Hawks (21-11, 21-12), the Columbus Wildcats (21-2, 21-15), and the English Valleys Bears (25-11, 25-10) during the tourney.

A trio of seniors leads the Demons in kills through the first eight matches of the year. Amber Salow tops the team with 12 kills, followed by Morgan Kimball with 11, and McKenna Brinning has recorded 10 kills. Senior Emma Stout is the squad’s digs leader with 28 digs, while sophomore Megan Mitchell tops the team with 34 assists.

Mount Pleasant began their season splitting a quad of tournament matches in a tournament in Afton. The Panthers opened their conference slate on Thursday in Fairfield, losing in straight sets (15-25, 9-25, 18-25).

Senior Julie Laswell leads the Panthers in kills with 24. Senior Haylee Boecker tops Mount Pleasant in digs with 45, while sophomore Ashlee Menke has amassed 78 assists.

First serve of tonight’s Southeast Conference bout between the Demons and Panthers is set for 7:30 p.m. at Mount Pleasant High School.