Wallin throws perfect game in mixed week for Merrill Varsity baseball

The Merrill Varsity Boys Baseball Team went 2-3 last week, dropping to 7-9 overall and 3-7 in the Great Northern Conference after a five-game stretch that ran from Monday, May 4, through Saturday, May 9, 2026.
The week opened with a 13-3 loss at D.C. Everest. Merrill made a strong early showing against the Evergreens’ left-handed starter, drawing walks and capitalizing on miscues to jump out to a 3-0 lead that held into the third inning. D.C. Everest broke it open with a big bottom of the third and kept adding on from there. Cam Wallin threw two perfect innings to start the game for Merrill.
Tuesday brought the highlight of the week — and arguably of the past three decades according to Head Coach Shawn Schultz — when Wallin threw a perfect game in a 1-0 victory at Northland Pines, the GNC’s second-place team.
“Cam pitched extremely well and we played solid defense behind him,” Schultz said. “He was in control all night, striking out six and limiting the contact that Pines made. It was a great win.”
Merrill’s lone run came in the third inning when Alex Koblitz reached on an infield hit, moved to second on a balk, and scored on a hard-hit Wallin ground ball that the third baseman couldn’t come up with.

“That was all we needed,” Schultz said. “It was the first perfect game we have had as a team in the last 30 years.”
On Friday night, Merrill dropped an 11-6 decision to Medford at home. Medford scored in the top of the first, but the Bluejays answered with two in the bottom of the inning. Medford pulled ahead and led 6-2 heading to the fourth, when Merrill rallied with four runs to tie it at 6-6 — Tyson Ott delivering a two-run double and Merrill taking advantage of a bunt miscue in the process.
The game stayed knotted until the sixth, when Ott led off with another double and Brody Klebenow added a bunt base hit. With two runners on and nobody out, Klebenow stole second, but Merrill couldn’t push either run across. Medford opened the seventh with a hit and couldn’t be stopped from there.
“It was a tough loss,” Schultz said.
Merrill bounced back Saturday morning, beating Adams-Friendship 12-2. Ryker Remington hit the team’s first home run of the season, and Cole Rudie collected three hits to lead the offense. Erik Grunenwald, Cooper Wendorf, and Klebenow all contributed on the mound.
“It was good to see the guys come back after a tough loss the night before,” Schultz said. “We had contributions up and down the lineup.”
The week closed with an 18-0 loss to La Crosse Logan. Merrill held the opposition scoreless in the first but surrendered eight runs in the second inning and couldn’t recover.
“We have had some trouble with big innings this year, and the second was no different,” Schultz said. “We always play hard. We have to find a way to play more consistently as a team.”