UCSB clears hurdles and overcomes heartbreak to host NCAA Regional

UC SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - It's been a season like no other for the UCSB baseball team.

For all of fall ball and for the first 11 games of the regular season the Gauchos could not use their field.

But once they got to actually play at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium they never lost a home game, ever.

UCSB is 25-0 at home and counting as they host the Santa Barbara Regional starting on Friday, May 31st.

Oregon vs San Diego at noon followed by UCSB vs Fresno State at 6 p.m.

"We feel fortunate to have a nice facility and the nice playing surface but the process just to get there was fairly painful," said Gauchos head coach Andrew Checketts.

The Gauchos had planned to switch to artificial surface but as they were getting ready to install it, the Coastal Commission would not approve it and the team had to pivot back to natural grass.

The late ruling and the heavy rains forced the Gauchos to leave Santa Barbara and play at Sacramento State, Oregon and Los Angeles.

The Gauchos were 6-5 when they finally got to play their first home game of the season, March 8th versus Connecticut.

The 13-3 win over UConn that day was the first of 25 straight home wins.

Even though they have not been beaten at home, the Gauchos suffered a devastating loss on March 12th when Gordon Checketts passed away during a game at the stadium.

Gordon was always at the games to support and watch his son Andrew lead the Gauchos.

"No one wants to lose their dad," began the UCSB coach. "And losing him behind home plate was rough, pretty tragic."

Just days after that tragedy the Big West season began and after a slow 5-4 start, UCSB finished by winning 21 straight league games to win their third conference title in the past 5 seasons.

"You know how much we have been through with the field and some other off-field stuff, we really grinded it out," said the Gauchos lone senior, Nick Oakley.

The Santa Barbara High School alum Oakley added, "Hopefully we have a lot of baseball left."

UCSB enters the postseason play with a 42-12 record.