The UC Santa Barbara baseball team has found its groove at the right time.
Coming off a crucial sweep of rival Cal Poly, the Gauchos excelled in all facets and defeated No. 14-ranked USC, 5-1, on Tuesday at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium. The signature non-conference victory is the program’s highest-ranked win since defeating No. 1 UCLA in March 2020.
“We’ve been playing better, for sure. The pitching has been consistent the last four games,” said UCSB coach Andrew Checketts. “We’ve done a good job being in the zone, and the guys are really throwing the ball well.”
The offense has experienced a noticeable uptick as well, and on Tuesday it was catcher Nate Vargas who led the onslaught, going 3-for-4 at the plate. In his first appearance since March 21, Vargas opened the scoring in the bottom of the third inning with a majestic home run to right field.
“I’m just happy to be out there and compete with my guys. I’m glad that we were able to get a good win against a ranked team today,” Vargas said. “During my time off, I made sure to stay ready so when I did get an opportunity like today, I made the most of it.”
The Gauchos tacked on another run in the inning when Nick Husofsky drove in Ryan Severns with a groundout, increasing the lead to 2-0.
UCSB (20-10) held the Trojans (27-7) to one unearned run, with five pitchers — Calvin Proskey, AJ Krodel, Van Froling, Raymond Olivas, and Cole Tryba — limiting scoring opportunities throughout the game. Their combined effort helped Santa Barbara contain a USC lineup that is among the most dangerous in the country.
The Gauchos extended their advantage with single runs in the fourth, sixth, and eighth innings. In the eighth, Vargas doubled off the left-field wall and later scored on an RBI single by Liam Barrett, providing additional insurance.
“That just felt like vintage me. That’s just what I do,” Vargas said of his opposite-field double off the wall. “I don’t want to get too excited because I expect this of myself, but I also want to congratulate myself for putting in the work and seeing it pay off.”
Another key development for the Gauchos was the return of Proskey from injury. He served as the opener and retired the Trojans in order.
“The real highlight for today is Proskey being back and having an inning,” Checketts said. “Throwing a clean inning and looking like himself — healthy, and his stuff looked solid. Hopefully we can continue to extend him an inning each time he goes out, or to two innings, and he can turn into a legitimate extra starter for us. Whether that’s on Tuesday or at the end of the weekend if we have to make a change — which I’m not anticipating — it’s a luxury to have that fourth starter.”
Cole Tryba came on in the bottom of the eighth inning with one out and two runners on. He escaped the jam and went on to record the final five outs of the game, continuing his strong play of late.
The Gauchos have now won four straight and will host first-place UC San Diego for a three-game series this weekend with major Big West Conference implications.
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