TALLADEGA, Ala. – The Milligan University baseball season got under way on Thursday afternoon in Talladega, Ala. on the campus of Talladega College. The hosting Tornadoes fell victim to a stingy Buffs pitching staff, as MU gathered a pair of victories to open their 2026 campaign.

Talladega struck first, snatching a pair of runs in the first inning of the first contest, a two-RBI single put them up 2-0 after one full frame.

That lead did not last long, though, as a leadoff single by Nick Iezzi was followed by a Gaven Jones two-base hit. After a strikeout and a walk to Josh Lail, new Buff Devin Gutierrez whacked a two-run single to drive in both Iezzi and Jones, tying the score at 2-2. The inning did not stop there, as with two outs, Braxton Baird singled and Cade Kalehuawehe ripped a two-bagger to send in two more tallies for the Buffaloes in the form of Lail and Gutierrez. Milligan led 4-2 after one-and-a-half.

Just four batters came to the plate for the Tornadoes in the bottom of the second, amounting to zero runs. The Buffs grabbed another run in the top of the third inning, as a leadoff bunt single by Jones had a throwing error tacked onto it, allowing him to reach second with no outs. He would advance to third on a groundout to second, allowing Lail to come up and hit a sacrifice fly to right field to extend the MU lead to 5-2.

No additional runs would be scored by either side until the tilt's final frame, when the Buffaloes added on in the top of the seventh against a pair of relievers. A Brody Melton walk to lead off the inning, followed by a fielder's choice, made it a runner at first with one out. Jones then strode to the dish to rope his second double of the contest. With runners at second and third, Landon Lutterman was intentionally walked after a pitching change, which loaded the sacks. A sac fly from Lail, his second of the game, brought home Iezzi from third. Finally, a Gutierrez RBI single chased Jones across the dish, making it 7-2 for Milligan with just a half inning to go.

One unearned run would be tallied in the bottom of the seventh by Talladega, as a leadoff error came around to score. That would not be nearly enough, however, as the Buffaloes snatched a 7-3 win to open the 2026 slate.

The latter tilt was a lower scoring battle, as the first run did not cross the plate until the bottom of the third. The Tornadoes had a one-out-walk, followed by a groundout that moved the runner up to second base. An RBI single by the hosts with two away gave them a 1-0 lead near the halfway point.

A triple play was turned by the Buffaloes in the bottom of the fourth, when a flyout to right with runners at first and second resulted in a throw back to first beating the retreating runner to the bag for the force, as well as an aggressive attempt to the plate by the runner from second after tagging up to third being cut down by the relay from Lail to Heidle at the dish, keeping the score at 1-0 in the hosts' favor.

Milligan benefited from some errant pitching in the top of the fifth, as Wyatt Heidle was hit by a pitch with one out, followed by a single from Lutterman and another hit-by-pitch to Baird. With the bases juiced and one out, Kalehuawehe stepped up to deliver a sacrifice fly to right field, bringing home Heidle to tie the score. The very next hitter, Melton, laced a run-scoring single into left field, plating Lutterman. The Milligan lead was 2-1 after four-and-a-half innings.

In the bottom half of the fifth, though, Talladega was able to tie the score on a two-out single with a runner at second base. That made it 2-2 with two innings to go.

An immediate response came from the Buffaloes, who loaded the bases after two quick outs had been recorded in the inning. A Lail walk, a Gutierrez walk and a Heidle hit-by-pitch after a pitching change led to an opportunity for freshman Cole Hartley. He did not let the moment get to him, sending a shot into the outfield to chase home both Lail and Gutierrez, giving Milligan a 4-2 lead with a clutch at-bat.

After two scoreless half innings, the bottom of the seventh rolled in. Two straight walks were afforded to the Tornadoes in the inning with no one out. Then, a pickoff at second erased the lead runner. The ensuing flyout to left and popout to first base ended the bout with a 4-2 Buffs win.

It was the Jones show today on offense, as the graduate at the hot corner notched a team-best four hits in seven at-bats with a pair of doubles. Gutierrez (2-for-5, 3 RBI, 2 R) had a great debut for the Buffs, as well, while playing at the keystone defensively. Iezzi also picked up a pair of hits, going 2-for-6. Though Kalehuawehe had only one hit in seven tries, he did knock home two runs on his double and recorded a sac fly for a third RBI. Lail went 0-for-3 but had two plate appearances that resulted in sac flies, bringing home a pir of tallies. Hartley's two-run single proved to be the major hit of game two, as his first collegiate knock was the game-winner.

Canyon Geren began his season with a strong performance on the bump, tossing six full innings of two-run ball on only four hits surrendered. He struck out two in the game and induced nine groundouts to earn a win in his season debut. Justin Schnell allowed one unearned run to cross the plate but pitched well, allowing one hit and striking out a hitter in one inning of work.

The long-awaited return of Anfernee Fernandez took place in game two, as the hard-throwing righty finished three-plus innings of work with just one earned run on three hits with a pair of punchouts, allowing four walks and hitting a batter in the process. Jake Brune toed the slab in relief and pitched an extended 3.1 innings and allowed one run on three hits, just like Fernandez. He struck out one and walked two during his time on the hill. He picked up the win in his first appearance as a member of the Buffs' roster. Brycen Denton came in to slam the door in the seventh with one out already recorded, retiring the two hitters he faced on a flyout and a popout to earn his first save of the season.

Two more seven-inning contests between these two squads will take place on Friday, Jan. 30 at 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. ET, as the Buffaloes (2-0) look to continue with their winning ways.