UCSB Baseball will host some familiar faces in the Fresno State Bulldogs, Oregon Ducks and San Diego Toreros at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium for the Santa Barbara Regional, the first stage of NCAA D1 baseball tournament, from May 31 to June 3.
The Gauchos will play Fresno State on Friday at 6 p.m. to open their postseason. The double-elimination regional concludes on Monday
“We’re excited to host. We know it’s going to be a challenge,” UCSB head coach Andrew Checketts said. “We do have some familiarity. It should be a great experience.”
The Gauchos were awarded the No. 14 seed in the nation by the selection committee after the Big West champions finished the season 42-12, including 25-0 at home.
“It’s super exciting,” UCSB catcher Aaron Parker said. “I get to look around everywhere and see people I know. When the regional comes here, we’re around our friends and family.”
This is the first time the Gauchos have been awarded hosting rights since 2015. This will be the first time that UCSB has hosted a regional, however, at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium.
The Gauchos hosted their regional in Lake Elsinore in 2015 as Caesar Uyesaka Stadium did not meet NCAA postseason requirements at the time.
Fresno State enters the regional as champions of the Mountain West, with a record of 33-27.
The Bulldogs needed to win their conference tournament to qualify for the postseason, and despite entering their tournament as the No. 4 seed, they upset New Mexico and Air Force en route to a championship victory over San Jose State.
UCSB and Fresno State last played each other in 2023, with the Bulldogs taking the series in Fresno two games to one.
Oregon comes into the regional with a record of 37-18. The Ducks were awarded an at-large bid by the selection committee after losing to Utah and USC in the Pac-12 tournament.
The Gauchos and the Ducks faced off earlier this season, with UCSB taking two of three games in Eugene.
San Diego travels up to Santa Barbara as champions of the WCC, with a record of 40-13. The Toreros also have victories over Texas and Arizona this year on their resume.
The Santa Barbara Regional is paired with the College Station Regional hosted by the Texas A&M Aggies. The champions of the two regionals will face off in a best-of-three super regional from June 7-10.
“It’s going to be fun,” Parker said. “We got the bleachers in the outfield and the stands are going to be packed.”
Tickets for Friday’s game between UCSB and Fresno State will go on sale on Tuesday at 4 p.m. Prices range from $15 to $25 and doors will open one hour prior to game time.