Gabe Eikum is entering his 15th season as an assistant coach for the University of Northwestern Baseball team in 2025. Eikum serves as the team's pitching coach.
Eikum is one of the best pitchers in program history holding many season and career pitching records for the Eagles. Eikum had 17 wins in his career and is UNW's all time leader in innings pitched in a career and pitched 25 complete games in his career which is also a program record.
Coach Eikum works with the Eagle pitchers which has been a strength of this team in recent years. The Eagles led the conference in team ERA in 2019, 2021, and 2022. In 2021 and 2022, Eikum coached Owen Boerema and Bryce Crabb to national recognition for their pitching performances. Boerema was named the UMAC Pitcher of the Year in both '21 and '22 and Crabb was named the NCCAA Region Pitcher of the Year in 2021 and 2024. In '24, Crabb also set the school record for career pitching wins, finishing with 27.
Eikum's work with the pitchers helped lead the Eagles to their best season in program history in 2021. UNW went 35-12, which set the record for wins in a season. Early in the season, the 2021 squad made it clear that this was a special group by defeating UW-Whitewater and St. Thomas who were both nationally ranked opponents. The Eagles rolled through their conference opponents and finished 15-1, winning the conference title for the first time since 1996. As a result, the Eagles earned the right to host the Conference Tournament. In their three Conference Tournament games, the Eagles outscored their opponents 36-11 on route to winning the Tournament Championship and earning their first ever NCAA Tournament Appearance. Additionally, the Eagles were rewarded for their great season by being named a host for the NCAA Regional. Northwestern won their first two NCAA Tournament games in program history, defeating Misericordia University and Saint Mary’s University. The Eagles finished the regional in the championship game, coming within one game of the NCAA Division III World Series. The Eagles would repeat as UMAC Regular Season Champions in 2022.
When he is not working with the Eagle pitchers, Eikum is employed by Health Equity where he works as a Data Solutions Engineer. Eikum currently resides in Arden Hills with his wife Sonya and son Xander.
