The high school baseball postseason has finally arrived for six Santa Clarita Valley teams.
The Hart Hawks, Castaic Coyotes, West Ranch Wildcats and Valencia Vikings are all hitting the road in the first round CIF Southern Section postseason, while the Saugus Centurions and Trinity Classical Academy Knights are slated to host first-round games.
Hart and Castaic begin their playoff journeys on Thursday, and West Ranch, Valencia, Saugus and Trinity are set to play on Friday. Should they win, the second round would be on Tuesday, May 20.
All games are slated to begin at 3:15 p.m. unless otherwise noted.
Here’s what you need to know about the first round of the baseball postseason:
West Ranch headed to the desert
West Ranch (19-9), the champion of the Foothill League, was placed in Division 2 and is set to make a long trip east to take on the Palm Desert Aztecs (23-4), the champions of the Desert Empire League.
The Wildcats won the Foothill League for the first time since 2016, and for the fourth time overall, in the final season for head coach Ryan Lindgreen, who is set to step down. He was an assistant coach for the program when the Wildcats won their first three titles.
West Ranch senior Hunter Manning should play a big role in the first round, as he pitched to a 0.78 ERA in 53.2 regular-season innings, striking out 89 while allowing just 30 hits and six earned runs.
But he’ll have to quell a potent Palm Desert squad that hit over .300 as a team and got on base nearly 40% of the time during the regular season. The Aztecs enter the playoffs on a 13-game winning streak.
Hart traveling to Cajon in D3
The Hawks (14-12) finished second in the Foothill League in head coach Brad Meza’s first year as the head of the program he graduated from, and are slated to travel in the first round in Division 3 to San Bernardino to take on the Cajon Cowboys (19-8), who finished fourth in the Citrus Belt League.
Cajon lost four straight games before winning its final game of the regular season, while Hart enters the postseason on a two-game losing skid. Both teams average just over six runs per game.
Hart is seeking to win back-to-back titles after winning the section Division 2 championship last year, sending off longtime head coach Jim Ozella with his first one.
Senior Michael Hogen was a key contributor during last year’s title run and is likely to be counted on to lead the Hawks once again this year.
Castaic going to Paloma Valley in D3
The Coyotes (18-10) split the season series with Saugus in the final week of the regular season, guaranteeing them the fourth and final automatic playoff spot in the Foothill League. They’ll be traveling to Paloma Valley to take on the Wildcats (18-10), who finished in second place in the Ivy League, in Division 3.
Paloma Valley had won six straight games before falling to Mater Dei in its last regular-season game. The Wildcats put up 4.3 runs per game in the regular season, compared to 6.3 for the Coyotes.
Senior Chad Kober should play a prominent role for Castaic on Thursday, as he was the ace of the staff and the Coyotes’ top hitter with six home runs and 23 RBIs.
Valencia going to Northview in D4
The Vikings (13-13) missed out on an automatic playoff spot after finishing fifth in the Foothill League, but their .500 record was good enough for an at-large spot in Division 4.
On Thursday, it will be an all-Vikings affair as Valencia is set to travel to Northview High School (16-10-1), champion of the Valley Vista League, in Covina.
Valencia won eight of nine games to finish the regular season to become eligible for the postseason.
Senior Noah Jaquez is the most likely candidate to start on the mound for Valencia, and he’s also one of the team’s top hitters along with junior Justin Gaisford and sophomore Cole DeYoung.
Saugus hosting Wiseburn DaVinci in D4
One of two Santa Clarita Valley teams to host in the first round, the Saugus Centurions (16-12) took third place in the Foothill League. They are set to host the Wiseburn DaVinci Wolves (18-10), the third-place team out of the Pioneer League, in Division 4 as the third seed in the bracket.
Saugus went 11-2 at home in the regular season, though the Wolves’ 8.5 runs per game is slightly better than the 6.4 that the Centurions put up.
Senior Kaden Haag had an ERA of just above 2.00 in 51 regular-season innings for Saugus and also led the Centurions in hits with 27.
Trinity hosting Don Lugo in D4
The Trinity Knights (20-2) took the Heritage League title for the fourth straight season and have been placed in Division 4. They’ll be hosting the Don Lugo Conquistadores (17-2), the second-place team out of the Mt. Baldy League, on Friday at 4:15 p.m.
Trinity’s only two losses in the regular season came at the hands of Valencia and Castaic.
The Carlson brothers, senior John and sophomore Andrew, have been dominant as a one-two punch on the mound, helping the Knights to allowing just 41 runs in 22 games.
The Knights have put up nearly 10 runs per game, while the Conquistadores are just under eight runs per game.
Trinity went 10-0 at home in the regular season.
