The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater baseball team was picked to finish first in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) preseason poll voted on by the head coaches and sports information directors.

UW-Whitewater was ranked first in both the d3baseball.com and American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) preseason polls heading into the 2026 season.

The Warhawks return four positional starters from a season ago, junior catcher Aaron Holland (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton North), junior outfielder Dominick McVay, senior infielder Andy Thies (Tallahassee, Fla./Lawton Chiles), and senior infielder Danny Hopper (Palatine, Ill./Palatine). Holland (First) and Thies (Second) were both selected to the d3baseball 2026 Preseason All-American Teams. Holland was Fourth Team All-American from the organization a year ago.

On the mound, the Warhawks return three pitchers with starting experience, Ben Lee (Amherst, Wis./Amherst), Brady Malkow (Brodhead, Wis./Brodhead), and Jackson Koenig (Blaine, Minn./Blaine). Brandon Brust (The Woodlands, Tex./The Woodlands) also returns with bullpen experience from the Warhawks' 2025 squad.

The Warhawks welcome 18 new faces to the program, with 12 transfers and six freshman. 

The Warhawks will begin their campaign to defend the 2025 National Championship run with a top-10 matchup in San Antonio against Trinity (TX). Trinity (TX) is ranked 9th in the d3baseball.com Poll and 6th in the ABCA Poll. The Warhawks last played the Tigers in their first game of the NCAA Division III World Series in 2025. The 7-4 win was the closest margin UWW had in the five games of the DIII World Series in 2025.

UWW will then head to Pensacola, Florida for their annual Blue Wahoos Challenge held by the Pensacola Blue Wahoos. Their WIAC home opener is scheduled for March 28th and 29th against UW-Stevens Point. Click to purchase Diamond Club memberships for the 2026 season here.