The Oglethorpe baseball team did not get off to the start they hoped for Saturday, losing their season opener to the visiting LaGrange Panthers, 7-2.

The Petrels were not able to get the hitting going in a consistent fashion, scattering six hits, with no more than two baserunners in any one inning. Not coincidentally, Oglethorpe scored both of their runs in one of those innings. In the third, shortstop Matt Cornwell led off with a walk. That was followed with a two-run homer to right-center by center fielder Brendan Pilger, cutting the LaGrange lead at that time in half at 4-2.

The other big two-baserunner inning for the Petrels resulted in a squandered opportunity early in the game. With LaGrange leading 2-0, Oglethorpe led off the second with an Adam Brazenas single and a Jeff Brothers double, putting runners at second and third with nobody out. They stranded both.

Sam Briend suffered the loss, allowing eight hits, six earned runs and three walks over 4 2/3 innings. The majority of the damage came on a pair of long two-out, two-run home runs early in the game. One came in the first and the other in the third, putting the Petrels behind 4-0 early.

The Panthers were able to effectively put the game away in the fifth, scoring two runs, the last of which was unearned, on two hits and an error. This gave them a 7-2 lead and ended the scoring for the day. Neither team threatened seriously after that, as both bullpens pitched well.

The bullpen was a bright spot for the Petrels. David Langhan, Mark Hoban, Emmett Goodman and Spencer Kennedy combined to pitch the last 4 1/3 innings, allowing just one hit and no runs, striking out six. Goodman struck out the side in his inning of work.

Another Oglethorpe bright spot was the defensive work of left fielder Andrew Lofholm. The margin surely would have been greater had it not been for the series of great defensive plays Lofholm made. He made several diving catches, and threw two Panthers out on the basepaths in the same inning.

It was a chilly start to the season at Anderson Field, with temperatures in the mid 40s for most of the game.

The Petrels are back in action Saturday afternoon at Emory, as they start a home-and-home two-game weekend series with their crosstown rivals. The return game will be Sunday at Anderson Field, and both games will start at 1 p.m.