Sunday’s thrilling come-from-behind win at Cal Poly kept UCSB in a tie for second place in the Big West Conference. But the win was an important milestone for head coach Bob Brontsema: his 400th victory in his 15-year career.
Outfielder Brian Gump‘s ninth-inning grand slam propelled the Gauchos to a 5-3 win Sunday, along wth a 2-1 series victory over the Mustangs.
“I would equate the win with what Brian Gump said about his game-winning grand slam; I couldn’t have done it without everyone else,” said Brontsema, who currently owns a lifetime 400-392 (.505) record at UCSB.
“Just like you need runners on base to score runs, you need a quality team around you to get wins,” Brontsema said. “You really need three things to accomplish something like this; good
players, good assistant coaches and support from your administration.”
UCSB hosts nonconference foe Pepperdine at 2 p.m. Wednesday and returns to Big West action this weekend, with a three-game matchup at home against Big West leader Cal State Fullerton.