Gau is entering his seventh season with SMU and his fourth as the head coach. Gau joined SMU after coming from coaching stop at Fresno State and Rock Creek. Gau was named Interim Head Coach during the 2018 season, before being promoted to the head coach in Summer, 2018. During his time as head coach, two Saints have been named All-Region, 17Â GNAC All-Conference selections, and 40 have been All-Academic.
In 2021, Saint Martin's finished fifth in the GNAC standings with six Saints being named to the GNAC All-Conference team. Second team selections, Tanner Inouye and Bryant Nakagawa headlined the selections, along with honorable mentions, Aaron Renaud, Zach Alcos, Mark Steward, and Cody Chavis. Tanner Inouye broke the school's record for most strikeouts in a career during the season. A record 15 Saints were named to the GNAC All-Academic Team.
The 2020 season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the halt, the Saints were off to one of the best starts in program history, finishing with an 8-7-1 record overall.
2019 was a historic season for the Saints, reaching the GNAC Championship game for the first time in school history. SMU went 21-32 overall, finishing fourth in the GNAC, and securing a berth in the GNAC Championships for the first time since 2014. SMU fell to no. 1 seed MSUB in the opening round, but rallied against no. 3 seed Northwest Nazarene, and stunning no. 2 Western Oregon to advance to the title game. Saint Martin's had two All-Region pitchers in three time selection Mickey Walker, and one time Tanner Inouye. The Saints featured eight players on the All-Conference team, and a program record 11 on the All-Academic team.
In his first season at the helm, Gau led the Saints to an 11-37 record, along with coaching three All-Conference selections in Austin Feist, Ryne Oshiro, and Tanner Inouye. Six members of the team were also named to the GNAC All-Academic team.
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He is from the Seattle area and graduated from Woodinville High School and was a member of the Spokane Falls Community College baseball team and then transferred to Central Washington. He was named All-West Region honorable mention (second base) by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association as a senior in 2011. Additionally, Gau was named to the 2011 All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference first team.
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Gau started coaching at the University of Washington as a student assistant while working toward his master’s degree in intercollegiate athletic leadership from the fall 2012 until he graduated in the summer of 2014. He was on the Bulldog staff as a volunteer coach in 2015 where he was responsible for working with the outfielders, assisting with the hitters, acting as its short game coach along with game-day duties at first base.
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| Year |
Record |
GNAC |
Postseason |
| 2018 |
11-37 |
10-30 |
|
| 2019 |
21-32 |
15-25 |
GNAC Runner-Up |
| 2020 |
8-7-1 |
3-4-1 |
(Cancelled due to COVID-19) |
| 2021 |
8-32 |
4-28 |
|
| Totals (4 years) |
48-109-1 |
29-83 |
|
