MINNEAPOLIS -- No. 3 seed Northern Colorado outlasted No. 2 seed Omaha to register the second upset of the opening day of the 2026 Baseball Championship at Siebert Field. The Bears built a 5-0 lead behind a quality start from Reece Wagner and were able to hold on for the two-run victory and move onto to the winner's bracket.
Jake Bullard put UNC on the board in the second inning with an RBI single during a frame that was extended by a Maverick error. In the third, it was Brandon Sanchez who provided an RBI single as he base hit pushed the lead to 2-0. Wagner ran into his first bout of trouble in the third, walking a pair of Mavericks before Henry Zipay loaded the bases with an infield single but the righthander was able to pitch out of the jam to keep his team in front.
The Bears would pad their lead in the fifth and chase Omaha starter Maddox Meyer after plating three runs. Jaden Stone opened the scoring with a RBI single before Ethan Mooser added a two-run single to make it a 5-0 contest.
The Mavericks finally got to Wagner in the sixth, plating a pair of runs to chip away at the deficit. Tyler Bishop started the scoring with a RBI groundout and Hayden Lewis added a RBI double as Omaha moved to the seventh down 5-2.
Wagner worked into the eighth inning but walked the leadoff man and hit Bishop to put two man on with no one out. The Bears called Scholar of the Championship Gus Allred out of the bullpen, who induced a double play after just two pitches. The Mavericks would trim a run off of UNC's lead thanks to a two-out single from Cardel Dick but that would be it for Omaha as the Mavericks moved to the ninth trailing 5-3.
The Mavericks put two runners on in the bottom of the ninth, setting the stage for All-League first team Jackson Trout but Logan Borboa was able to keep the Mavericks' slugger in the yard as he flew out to the warning track in right-center to end the threat and give the Bears their second straight victory in a tournament opener.
Pitcher of Record
Win – Reece Wagner (4-3): 7.0 IP, 4 hits, 3 earned runs, 5 walks, 6 strikeouts
Loss – Maddox Meyer (5-5): 4.2 IP, 7 hits, 5 runs, 4 earned run, 1 walk, 5 strikeouts
Save - Logan Borboa (3): 1.1 IP, 1 hit, 0 earned runs, 1 walk, 1 strikeout
Notable Notes
• For just the third time since 2001, the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds won on the opening day of the Summit League Championship
• The Bears are now 2-0 in first-round games at the tournament after also winning their tournament debut in 2024 as the No. 4 seed when they also topped Omaha
• Wagner worked 7.0 innings for the third time this season and the Bears are now 3-0 this season in his starts against Omaha
• Second baseman Brett Barber led the Bears with three hits, matching his season-high while producing his 13th multi-hit game of the campaign
• The Bears broke a 3-3 tie in the season series with the Mavericks with their fourth victory
Up Next
Northern Colorado winner will play fourth-seeded South Dakota State on Thursday at 6 CT, while the Mavericks will play top-seeded Oral Roberts earlier in the day with first pitch slated for 12 p.m. CT.
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