Steve Gust begins his fourth year as the Northland baseball coach after leading the Pioneers to three consecutive winning seasons.

The Pioneers have advanced to three consecutive Minnesota Community Conference state tournaments after posting 20 win regular seasons in Gust’s first three years. Gust was named Northern Division coach of the year in 2005.

In addition to leading the Pioneers, Gust spends his summers coaching the East Grand Forks American Legion team. Set to begin his 13th season, Gust has guided his team to 11 Tony Sipe League championships and five District 9 titles. His EGF teams have won nearly 500 games and posted winning seasons the last 11 years.

Gust was a high school coach at Sacred Heart before accepting the Northland coaching position. He was the first-ever coach at the school. In his eight years, Gust helped the Eagles win four conference titles and three subsection championships. The Eagles were a combined 132-29 in Gust’s tenure. He was named coach of the year on three separate occasions.

Gust then went on to assist the University of North Dakota baseball team. In his one-year stint under head coach Kelvin Ziegler, the Fighting Sioux finished 38-16 and qualified for the NCAA Regional Tournament.

Gust graduated from the University of North Dakota with a degree in physical education and coaching. He has a three-year old son, Tommy John.