Mt. Pleasant baseball upended at home

MT. PLEASANT — For Mt. Pleasant baseball, Monday night’s Southeast Conference doubleheader against Burlington showed a lot.

Despite ending the night with two losses to the SEC leaders, 12-2 and 3-2, the Panthers showed that they can hang with the best.

In the opening contest, the Panthers and Grayhounds battled back and forth for five intense innings, but in the sixth the Grayhounds started a scoring rampage.

Burlington struck first to start the game, with one run in the top of the first.

The Panthers answered right back in their half of the inning as Jake Ensminger drew a walk and two batters later, Carter Amos brought him home with a one out RBI single to tie it 1-1.

Mt. Pleasant’s defense started to find a rhythm in the second as the Panther grabbed two quick outs to start, but Burlington would add one more before the innings end with a single and an RBI double.

In the third, Ensminger added himself to the run column once again after started the inning with a single and ending it with a slide home on a wild pitch, knotting it up a 2-2.

It would be the last run the Panthers would see the rest of the game as every scoring opportunity was upended by the Grayhounds.

After going scoreless in the fourth, Burlington took a 4-2 advantage as two big errors were costly for the Panthers.

In the sixth, Burlington pulled away with an onslaught of eight runs to make it 12-2.

The Grayhounds started the eight run inning with a walk, a double and a trio of singles and never looked back as six additional batters made their way to the plate.

“Their a very good hitting team and you make a few mistakes and they just add on,” Mt. Pleasant head coach Brent Broeker said. “That’s what they did.”

With a 10 run deficit, the Panthers needed at least a run to survive, but they could only get a runner as far as second.

Zerek Venghaus and Cooper Keldgord allowed 12 runs from the hill on 10 hits, six walks, one hit batter and three strikeouts.

The nightcap came down to the wire.

Following a scoreless first three innings for Mt. Pleasant, the Panthers came into the fourth trailing 3-0.

That changed in the bottom half of the inning, as Amos and Lincoln Henriksen both scored while at third and a throw down to second to make it 3-2.

“We struggled early, but we just kept battling,” Broeker said.

Mt. Pleasant took the momentum, but both teams followed with two more scoreless innings leading up to the seventh inning.

After shutting out the Grayhounds at the plate, the Panthers needed at least a run to stay alive or a pair to walk it off.

The inning couldn’t have started any better.

Colton Hutson drew a walk, putting the tying run on base. With the top of the order at the plate, Mt. Pleasant was in perfect position.

Ensminger laid down what would have been a sacrifice bunt to advance Hutson, but the Burlington pitcher overthrew first sending the ball up the right field fence and behind the rolled up field cover. Burlington called time as Hutson was just about to round third to tie the game.

Following the play Hutson and Ensminger were placed at third and second with no outs.

Next at-bat, strikeout.

Amos then stepped to the plate just needing a ball in the outfield or single to tie it. He did what he needed to do, sending the ball straight to center field, but there was no run scored on the play as Hutson couldn’t make it home. With one final out to spare the Panthers couldn’t find the hit they needed as runners were left on second and third.

“We said between games, we need to play more than five innings, and they did in game two,” Broeker said. “Trevor (Wellington) had a great game and we played great defense.”

Wellington threw a complete game, allowing three runs on six hits, two walks, three hit batters and four strikeouts.