SAN DIEGO — The No. 21 UC Santa Barbara Baseball team (3-1) is taking their show on the road for the first time this season, traveling to San Diego for this weekend's Tony Gwynn Legacy event, where they will face Seattle U (0-3) on Friday, San Diego State (2-2) on Saturday and California Baptist (3-1) on Sunday. The Gauchos will stay on the road and make a stop in Malibu on Tuesday to face Pepperdine (0-4). Friday's game will be the first ever meeting between the Gauchos and Redhawks.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Santa Barbara came into the week off the back of an opening-series sweep of Campbell at home in which they out-scored the Camels, 27-7, but stumbled in their mid-week matchup against Saint Mary's, ending what was a 29-game winning streak when batting second. The Gauchos will hope their return to weekend action will coincide with a return to character.
 
In terms of all-time series, Santa Barbara's histories with their next four opponents run the gamut from never played to one of the most common matchups in program history. The weekend starts unfamiliar, with the Gauchos having never played Seattle U before and having not played San Diego State since 2018. Santa Barbara is 9-37-1 against the Aztecs all-time and last beat them in 2017. The back half of the weekend is the opposite, with the Gauchos and Lancers having met four times in the last two seasons. Sunday will be their first matchup on neutral soil, with each team winning in their home ball park in each of the last two seasons. Pepperdine, meanwhile, is Santa Barbara's most-played non-Big West opponent of all time, with Tuesday's matchup in Malibu the 150^th meeting between the Gauchos and Waves. Santa Barbara will look to win at Eddy D. Field Stadium for the first time since 2021.
 
SCOUTING THE REDHAWKS
Seattle U got swept by Loyola Marymount on opening weekend and had their home opener against British Columbia postponed Tuesday night so are still searching for their first win. They will face San Diego State on Thursday night to begin their weekend.
 
Sophomore utility man Sam Kane had the best 2024 of Seattle's returning bats, hitting .303 with a team-high nine home runs and 41 RBIs. Over opening weekend, junior outfielder Jared Stevenson and senior utility player Michael Tsoukalas emerged as Redhawks to watch as well. Stevenson hit .500 on the weekend with a homer and a triple, while Tsoukalas finished the weekend with the second-highest on-base percentage on the team and a pair of stolen bases.
 
The Redhawks are set to start junior right-hander Blake Smith on Friday, as they did on opening weekend. Smith got hit around at LMU, allowing four runs — all earned — on seven hits, while striking out six in 4 1/3 innings. He led Seattle in ERA in 2024, pitching to a 4.64 mark.
 
SCOUTING THE AZTECS
San Diego State defeated cross-town rivals UC San Diego to run their record to 2-2 on Tuesday night, ending a two-game skid after weekend losses to Grand Canyon and then-No. 24 Nebraska at the MLB Desert Invitational. They opened their season with a 16-11 win over Seton Hall. The Aztecs will host Seattle on Thursday and Utah on Friday before playing the Gauchos.
 
Sophomore outfielder Jake Jackson hit two triples in that win against the Pirates and currently has more three-baggers than most teams, with three, leading Division I. As a team, the Aztecs rank third in the country with five triples on the season. Defensively, they have turned five double plays, good for eighth in the country.
 
On the mound, San Diego State started junior right hander Xavier Cardenas III last Saturday against Grand Canyon, where he allowed five runs — four of them earned — on just two hits and five walks in three innings. With an extra game before facing the Gauchos, the Aztecs could also send out last Sunday's starter, junior Marko Sipila, though his outing against Nebraska was no better, allowing six runs — all earned — on five hits in just 2 2/3 innings.  
 
SCOUTING THE LANCERS
California Baptist took three out of four at home against Portland for their opening weekend, with their only loss coming on Sunday. They will face Pepperdine on Thursday night in Riverside, then head over to San Diego and play Long Beach State on Friday and UC San Diego Saturday before taking on the Gauchos on Sunday.
 
Junior outfielder Cole Howarth only got three at-bats over the weekend but made the most of each of them, posting a 2.417 on-base-plus-slugging percentage (OPS) with a home run, two walks and two hit-by-pitches. Junior outfielder Nicholas Dumesnil hit nearly as well in a full complement of 16 at-bats, going 6-for-16 with a home run, two doubles and a team-high six RBIs. He also stole two bases on three attempts.
 
While Gaucho pitchers will be scheming on how to negotiate the Lancer lineup, Santa Barbara's hitters may be licking their chops at potentially facing junior right-handed pitcher Luis Becerra, who pitched last Sunday for the Lancers. He made it just 1 2/3 innings, allowing three runs — all earned — on four hits and took the loss.
 
SCOUTING THE WAVES
Pepperdine will also be in San Diego for the Tony Gwynn legacy this weekend, taking on UC San Diego, Long Beach State and San Diego State after their Thursday night game against California Baptist. The Waves are still looking for their first win of the season after being swept in four games by Utah in Malibu.
 
Freshman outfielder Brodey Bitove made the most of his limited at-bats over the weekend, going 3-for-4 and working a walk. Fellow freshman Zach Woodson went 3-for-5 with an RBI as well. However, outside of the two new guys' sporadic production, graduate outfielder Nick Upstill was the only other Wave to hit .300 or better on the weekend, going 3-for-9 with a double. Combining all 20 Pepperdine players who came to the plate over the weekend, the Waves hit .281 with a .572 OPS on the weekend.
 
On the mound, freshman Nate Tichy was the Waves' fourth starter and so would be in line to face the Gauchos on Tuesday unless Friday starter Tommy Scavone (who pitched well against Utah) gets his next start moved up to their Thursday matchup with CBU. Tichy allowed just two runs to the Utes on Monday, striking out four and walking just one, but he gave up seven hits and needed 62 pitches to get through his 3 2/3 innings.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
Santa Barbara's road trip begins at 1 p.m. on Friday from UC San Diego's Triton Ballpark in La Jolla, where they will face Seattle U. The Gauchos then finish the weekend at San Diego State's Tony Gwynn Stadium, where they will play the Aztecs at 6 p.m. on Saturday and California Baptist at 12 noon on Sunday. Santa Barbara's Tuesday matchup with Pepperdine will begin at 1:30 p.m. from Eddy D. Field Stadium in Malibu. The Gauchos' games against San Diego State and Pepperdine will be broadcast, on the Mountain West Network and ESPN+ respectively. All four games will have live stats, available at ucsbgauchos.com/BSBLiveStats.