Wheeling, W. Va. - Sitting at #7 in the Atlantic Region, the Wheeling University Baseball team (30-11, 16-4) continues their push for their first-ever NCAA Atlantic Regional Tournament berth in 2026. On Wednesday, the team plays their final midweek of the season when they battle Davis & Elkins in a non-conference nine-inning game, with first pitch at 2 PM at EQT Park. Wheeling looks to continue adding to their Atlantic Regional record as they try to solidify their spot in the regional field.
Last time out, the Cardinals wrapped up their four-game weekend series with Fairmont State, splitting the day with the Falcons on Sunday. After handedly winning the first two games of the series, game three would see the Cardinals once again jump out to a lead in the top of the first. Fairmont State equaled the run in the bottom half of the inning, but the Cardinals staked themselves to a 3-1 lead. However, Fairmont State remained in it with a run in the third and two in the fifth, before earning a walk-off win with a two-run bottom of the ninth to make it a 6-4 game. Game four of the series saw the Falcons score first four the first time in the series, but Wheeling immediately tied the game with a three-run home run in the top of the second. The two teams went back and forth throughout the game, with things sitting tied at 7-7 heading to the top of the seventh, but a seven-run top of the seventh was enough to lift Wheeling to the series win and a 14-7 victory.
There was a lot of offense throughout the weekend for the Cardinals, but leading the effort was senior Edward Mateo at the top of the lineup. Mateo would finish the weekend 7-15 (.467) with two home runs, six runs scored, and eight RBI. His biggest performance of the weekend would come in the opener, after he sent the first pitch of the game over the center field wall. It began a day that would see the Cardinal shortstop go 3-4 with two home runs, four runs scored, and six RBI. The weekend effort helped raise Mateo's average to .411 for the season, placing him as the conference's second leading hitter this season. He also leads the conference in both stolen bases (25) and runs scored (50), while sitting tied for second with 53 hits this season. Mateo looks to continue to be a spark plug at the top of the lineup as they try and claim the MEC North title.
Behind the offensive success was a strong pitching performance throughout the weekend, headlined by the work of Sebastian Khan and Mason Fenwick on day one. Khan got things started and had a no-hit bid going into the top of the seventh inning, before giving up his first hit of the game. He would end up throwing 6.1 innings allowing just the one hit while walking two and striking out six. Khan sits as one of the best pitchers in the conference, leading the MEC in ERA (1.84), innings pitched (68.1), and opponent batting average (.178). Behind him was Mason Fenwick, who put together a career-best effort in the team's 8-0 game two win. He would throw a career-high 6.1 innings allowing just two hits while walking one and striking out four. It was the second time this season that Fenwick has worked into the sixth inning as he lowered his ERA to 3.95 across 27.1 innings.
With the top six teams from the Atlantic Region making last year's tournament, the Cardinals are fighting to get into the top six in 2026. They currently sit one spot outside of that top six, and come into Wednesday's game looking for their first midweek win of the season. Each of their first two midweek match-ups have come against #5 CAL-U, with the Cardinals nearly pulling off the victory last week, before falling in the bottom of the ninth. Wednesday's match-up with Davis & Elkins will be a non-conference game, despite being against a fellow Mountain East Conference (MEC) opponent, serving as a make-up game from their rain-shortened two-game series against Virginia State in the middle of February. The Cardinals look to continue racking up the in-region wins as they make their case for the regional tournament.
The Match-up
The Cardinals and Senators are meeting for the 28th time in program history on Wednesday and the third time during the 2026 season. Wheeling leads the all-time series at home, going 19-8, while holding a 7-5 record in home games during that span. The Cardinals are riding a three-game winning streak against the Senators as part of a stretch that has seen them win 11 of their last 12 games against Davis & Elkins.
The two teams met earlier this season in doubleheader action on March 22nd, with Wheeling picking up wins of 12-3 and 7-2 in the two games. Leading the Cardinals in game one was Brett Johnson, who finished 1-5 with a pair of runs scored and three RBI, while Gavin Millians added a 1-3 effort with three RBI of his own. In game two, it was Keaton Ference leading the way with a 2-3 effort with two RBI and a run scored to back a strong start from Mason Fenwick, who threw 3.2 innings allowing one run on three hits while striking out two.
The Details
First pitch for Wednesday's game is scheduled for 2 PM at EQT Park in Washington, Pennsylvania. You can follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.
