Bryant & Stratton College - Wisconsin baseball celebrated its sophomores over the weekend
The Bryant & Stratton College - Wisconsin baseball sophomores (Photo credit: Bryant & Stratton College - Wisconsin Athletics)
February 10, 2026

Bryant & Stratton College (WI) 2026 baseball season preview

WAWAUTOSA, Wis. — Bryant & Stratton College (WI) baseball finished 19-33 in 2025, falling short of the standards they’ve set for themselves. But now, in 2026, the Bobcats are ready to hit the diamond with a refreshed mindset.

“The players, they don’t want to ever lose that much again,” Head Baseball Coach Alex Tomter said. “For the coaches, we made the decision early in the summer that there is no such thing as too much pitching and we built our recruiting plan accordingly. It was an arms race all summer and now we feel like we can compete no matter who is on the mound.”

The new strategy helped the Bobcats land key additions for this season and beyond. 

“Transfers Parker Bleck and Nick Heisl were huge for us this fall and have the makings of being top of the rotation arms,” Tomter said.

They’ve also added some new bats that will be looking to make an impact from the jump and continue a season where the Bobcats slashed .293/.384/.442 and hit the most home runs in a single season (38).  

“Jacob Hurtgen was our leading hitter this fall and has continued that momentum into the winter,” Tomter said. “His brother, Calvin, has the potential to be one of the best catchers to ever come through B&SC, and we’ve had a bunch of good ones.”

New additions can bring plenty of excitement to a program, but there are also the returners who have set the foundation and are ready to have success of their own. 

“Rory Dutton, Carsen Dulak and Braxton Hinds are x factors for us,” Tomter said. “They all paid their dues and are ready to be regulars in the lineup.”’

Some of the other returners the Bobcats have include Bradyn Nelson and Jake Ross.

Nelson was the only Bobcat to earn All-Region honors with a .361 batting average, a slugging percentage of .765 and an on-base percentage of .421. Now, the Lindenwood commit is making it his mission to succeed on the field for the Bobcats.

“I think this year's team, it's a lot different, because last year, obviously, it was an older team," Nelson said. "A lot of sophomores in this year are a ton of freshmen who are going to get opportunities right away. I just think the sophomores are willing to help the freshmen and be friends with them…get in the mix and lead by example.” We have guys who are talented, obviously, but I think, at the end of the day, it's going to come down to how we can play team defense, run bases, and set guys up for success. I think that's what we do really well, is just play the game hard.”

Ross made 15 appearances, pitching 45⅓ innings, striking out 36 and winning two games.  

“I think what puts the team over the top this year is our pitching depth,” Ross said. “We have so many freshmen that came in and so many returning sophomores. I'm really excited to see how far the pitchers can go and how deep our bullpen will be.”

Having a deeper bullpen is something that pitching coach Nate Brown is excited about and he can’t wait to see who will capitalize on the opportunities that are given.

“The thing that stands out the most is the overall depth,” Brown said. “We have a really good mix of talent in the sophomore and freshman classes. It’s great to see everyone come together at this point in the year and push each other to get better. The message all offseason has been that the players who prove they deserve opportunities will get them. With the depth we have—and the players recognizing that as well—they understand the importance of putting in the work to be prepared when their opportunities come.”

A Bobcat who already took advantage of the moments and established himself last year is Central Michigan commit Landon Raygo.

 

 

Raygo went 3-0 in seven appearances, pitching 39 ⅔ innings and recording 50 strikeouts. Now, Brown and the Bobcats are ready to reap the rewards of having experienced arms like Raygo. 

“Having strong pitching is the backbone of a winning team,” Brown said. “This isn’t to take anything away from previous teams, but we felt that to take the next step within the region, we needed a surplus of arms to give us multiple options and different looks to throw at opponents.”

Coaches and players alike are aware that the baseball program is yet to see success in the postseason, but with more arms to rely on and with everyone challenging each other competitively, it has the makings of a special season for the Bobcats.

“It would mean a lot to me, because I love everyone on this team,” Ross said. “They're all my brothers, and I would fight for everyone.”

“This team has been a lot of fun to be around,” Tomter said. “The boys are committed to doing whatever it takes to have the success they are looking for.”