DECATUR, Ill. – Millikin’s 2026 baseball season ended Saturday at Workman Family Baseball Field, where the Big Blue hosted the NCAA Division III Decatur Regional after one of the strongest regular-season runs in program history.
 
Millikin finished the year 35-10 overall after losses to Wisconsin-La Crosse and Wartburg during the regional weekend. The Big Blue entered the tournament as CCIW Tournament champions and regional hosts, but were unable to extend their season beyond Saturday’s elimination game.
 
The regional opened Friday against Wisconsin-La Crosse, with Millikin taking an early lead in the bottom of the first inning. Freshman Mick Niebrugge singled home two runs to give the Big Blue a 2-0 advantage.
 
Wisconsin-La Crosse answered later in the game, scoring five unanswered runs between the fourth and sixth innings. Emiliano Ramos provided the biggest swing for the Eagles with a two-run home run, helping UWL move in front on the way to a 7-2 win.
 
Niebrugge and Leyton Ivers each finished with two hits for Millikin. Caleb Akins worked 8.2 innings on the mound for the Big Blue and struck out four.
 
Millikin returned Saturday in an elimination game against Wartburg, but the matchup was delayed more than three hours by rain before developing into a low-scoring pitcher’s duel.
 
Wartburg scored first in the opening inning before Millikin responded in the second. Gage Reynolds drove in Sam Bushur to tie the game at 1-1, and the score remained even until the seventh inning.
 
Keegan Schmitt delivered the go-ahead run for Wartburg in the seventh, and the Knights held on from there for a 2-1 win. Matthew Brummer started for Millikin and struck out six over 6.1 innings. Pete Britton led the Big Blue offense, going 2-for-3 in his final game of the season.
 
The weekend closed a 35-win season for Millikin, which included the program’s second CCIW Tournament title in three years and the opportunity to host an NCAA Regional.