The word is out in the Big West Conference standings, national rankings, and NCAA statistics: UCSB is armed and dangerous on the baseball diamond.
Gaucho pitchers boast the nation’s lowest collective earned run average entering a three-game series against UC Davis this weekend (May 1-3) at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium. Their ERA dropped to 2.12 after they allowed only one run in three games at Hawai‘i last weekend. Their right-left-right combination of starting pitchers Dillon Tate, Justin Jacome, and Shane Bieber was dominant, although Jacome was a hard-luck loser in a 1-0 defeat on Saturday. In a pair of 5-0 wins, Tate hurled seven innings without allowing a hit on Friday, and Bieber went all the way in his Sunday shut-out.
More than 3,000 fans watched each game at Les Murakami Stadium in O‘ahu. “They draw well, and their crowds are traditionally rough and rowdy; they can really get after you,” UCSB Coach Andrew Checketts said. “Our pitchers kept them sitting on their hands.”