LINCOLN, Neb. — Opening day offered a little bit of everything for Nebraska Wesleyan.
The Prairie Wolves dropped the opener 10-6 before responding with a 5-4 victory in the nightcap Friday at NWU Championship Stadium at Sandhills Global Youth Complex, beginning the 2026 season with a split against Grinnell College.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Game 1 - Grinnell 10, Nebraska Wesleyan 6
Nebraska Wesleyan (1-1) found itself in an early hole after Grinnell pushed across seven runs in the second inning of the scheduled seven-inning contest. The Prairie Wolves chipped away but could not fully recover.
Tanner Klein, Jake Shedarowich, Jaxon Volkmer and Duncan Ortega all posted multi-hit efforts. Shedarowich, Easton Johnson and Sam Schaefer recorded doubles.
Trailing 10-1 entering the bottom of the seventh, Nebraska Wesleyan mounted a late rally with five runs, but the comeback fell short.
NWU leaders:
- Tanner Klein: 2-4, 2 R, RBI
- Sam Schaefer: 1-3, 2 RBIs
- Owen Duckworth (L, 0-1): 1.0 IP, 3 H, 7 R, 6 ER, 1 SO
- Caleb DeWitt: 4.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 8 SO
Game 2 - Nebraska Wesleyan 5, Grinnell 4
The response was immediate in the nightcap.
Easton Johnson launched his first home run of the season in the bottom of the first to give the Prairie Wolves a 1-0 lead. Ortega followed with a triple and later scored on a balk to extend the early advantage.
Charlie Mosser added an RBI single in the second after Brady Bell tripled, and Ortega tripled again in the third before scoring on a wild pitch. Bell later drove in a run with a double to cap the Prairie Wolf scoring.
Trevor Storer worked six innings, striking out four to earn the win. Dominic Sis struck out two in relief, and Bell entered with the tying run at the plate, inducing a pop-up to secure the save.
NWU leaders:
- Duncan Ortega: 2-4, 2 R, 2 3B
- Brady Bell (S, 1): 2-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 3B, 0.1 IP
- Owen Duckworth: 1-2, 2 BB
- Charlie Mosser: 1-4, RBI
- Easton Johnson: 1-4, HR
- Trevor Storer (W, 1-0): 6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 4 SO,
UP NEXT
Nebraska Wesleyan will conclude the four-game series Saturday with a noon first pitch in Lincoln.
