DECATUR, Ill. — Three games were played Thursday as the 2026 College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Baseball Championship continued at Workman Family Baseball Field in Decatur, Ill. Top-seeded Millikin and third-seeded North Park moved through the winner’s bracket, while fourth-seeded Carthage eliminated second-seeded Illinois Wesleyan in the final game of the day.
 
Friday’s schedule in Decatur includes two games. Millikin (1-0) will play North Park (2-0) at 2 p.m. in Game 6, with Carthage (2-1) awaiting the loser in Game 7 at 5:30 p.m. The tournament is scheduled to continue Saturday at 2 p.m., followed by an if-necessary game.
 
Game 3: #1 Millikin def. #4 Carthage, 5-3
Millikin opened Thursday’s schedule with a 5-3 win over Carthage.
 
Carthage scored three runs in the second inning to take the lead. Joe Zuleger scored on a throwing error, Paul Reedy added an RBI single and Jimmy Herget followed with a run-scoring single for a 3-0 advantage.
 
Millikin answered with two runs in the bottom half of the inning when Gage Reynolds singled to right field to score Kolby Koslofski and Sam Bushur. The Big Blue tied the game in the third on Koslofski’s sacrifice fly.
 
Millikin moved in front in the fourth. Reynolds scored on Leyton Ivers’ single to right-center, and Ty Cribbett followed with an RBI single through the right side to extend the lead to 5-3.
 
Caleb Akins earned the complete-game win for Millikin, striking out 10 and allowing six hits over 100 pitches. Wyatt Modory worked 7.1 innings for Carthage and allowed five runs on eight hits.
 
Game 4: #3 North Park def. #2 Illinois Wesleyan, 17-15
North Park and Illinois Wesleyan combined for 32 runs in Thursday’s second game, with the Vikings earning a 17-15 win.
 
The 32 combined runs were the third-highest total in CCIW Baseball Championship history. North Park took a 3-0 lead in the first inning, but Illinois Wesleyan scored eight runs over the second and third innings to move in front 8-4.
 
North Park responded with seven runs in the fourth inning. John Greenwood had a sacrifice fly, while Reyn Matsuzaki, Vinnie Marvucic, Rylan Li, Rylan Kawakami and Joe Perona each had run-scoring singles in the inning.
 
Illinois Wesleyan pulled within 11-10 on Jack Flagg’s two-run home run in the fourth, then took a 14-12 lead in the fifth. North Park tied the game in the sixth before the Titans moved back in front in the eighth on AJ Weller’s RBI triple.
 
The Vikings took the lead for good in the ninth. Li singled through the right side to score Kupono Akaka and Luke Bellini, and North Park added one more run for the final margin.
 
Ethan Condit earned the win for North Park with 1.1 scoreless innings of relief. Luke Costello took the loss for Illinois Wesleyan.
 
Game 5: #4 Carthage def. #2 Illinois Wesleyan, 13-7
Carthage remained in the tournament Thursday night with a 13-7 elimination-game win over Illinois Wesleyan.
 
The Firebirds took control with five runs in the second inning. Michael Ossenfort drew a bases-loaded walk, Caden Meyer followed with a two-run single, and Zander Tubbs and Joe Zuleger added RBI singles for a 5-1 lead.
 
Illinois Wesleyan scored twice in the third, but Carthage extended the margin in the fifth. Jimmy Herget drove in a run with a single before Ossenfort hit a three-run home run to left field, giving the Firebirds a 10-3 lead.
 
The Titans scored two runs in the sixth and two more in the seventh to cut the margin to 10-7. Carthage answered in the bottom of the seventh on Meyer’s RBI double and Zuleger’s two-run double.
 
Diego Tafolla earned the win for Carthage, working 5.0 innings with three strikeouts. Hunter Becker recorded a four-inning save, while Cole Shamhart took the loss for Illinois Wesleyan.