by Andrew Alonzo | aalonzo@claremont-courier.com

Webb closer Alec Kaushal got the most important out of his high school baseball career last week, a pop-up that secured the team’s 12-6 win over Rolling Hills Preparatory, giving the Gauls’ a sweet — but decidedly unlikely — CIF-Southern Section Division 9 championship.

How unlikely? Webb head coach Samuel Goldstein is the Gauls’ fourth in four years. The boys finished the regular season 3-13, and came in last in the San Joaquin League with an anemic 0-9 record. But the team jelled at just the right moment, starting a seven-game win streak just as the tournament was about to begin.

“We were figuring things out and then once playoffs came, we were rolling, we were firing,” Goldstein said. “And then we had things figured out and played some of our best baseball late, which is the best time to do it.”

Webb catcher Mikey Pino hoists the team’s 2026 CIF-Southern Section Division 9 championship plaque after the Gauls’ 12-6 win over Rolling Hills in the May 29 final. Courier photo/Andrew Alonzo

Clearly.

Webb jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first inning against Coastal League runner-up Rolling Hills in the May 29 title game at Cal State Fullerton’s Goodwin Field. But the Huskies responded in their half, hitting starter Kaj Grayson hard to take a 4-3 lead. Geoffrey Yang then came on in relief and seized control, allowing two runs and eight hits with three strikeouts through five innings while Webb racked up nine runs.

“I was nervous, but I didn’t feel it because I knew we needed to just compete and I needed to hit my spots,” Geoffrey said. “And that’s all I was focused on at the time.”

Alec took over in the seventh, eventually inducing the pop-up off the bat of Rolling Hills’ Buddy Antoine that sealed the win and a trip to the CIF SoCal Division V Baseball Championships. Webb lost to Division 8 champs Schurr, 11-1, in the first round on Tuesday.

With the late season seven game burst, the Gauls finished 10-14.

“Our league is daunting to say the least,” Goldstein said. “We knew our path to success for the season was going to be through the playoffs through that play-in tournament.”

The Gauls beat Fairmont Prep, 9-3 on May 5, and Southlands Christian, 15-5 on May 6, earning an at-large bid to the CIF-SS tournament. There, they got hot, rolling over Loma Linda Academy, 10-5, in the first round; squeaking by Yucca Valley, 5-3, in the second; then dominating Ojai Valley, 14-4, in the quarter-finals; and defeating Crossroads Christian in a wild one, 24-15, in the semis, setting up the 12-6 win over Rolling Hills in the final.

The team that found a way to win will have its work cut out next year, as it will graduate nine seniors this month, including Mikey Pino and Andres Caballero.

“I mean it’s pretty amazing because we had a different coach all four years, and they didn’t even have a team before we got here,” Mikey said. “So having [a championship] is just pretty awesome. I mean we’re the first team to make it to the finals since like 1977 … and it’s pretty awesome to just cap it off with a W.”

“We’ve been playing for four years. Our first three years, we’ve been knocked out in the first round of the playoffs,” said Andres. “Like Alec [Kaushal] said, after the rough season it’s great to pull through and show people what we can do.”

Junior first baseman Jaxu Bohn emphasized the belief Goldstein instilled in the team.

“Our league is really tough and all through it, coach just kept reminding us that those games are preparing us for this, exactly what we just did right now, playing teams that are a lot better than us,” Jaxu said. “He predicted it perfectly. I can’t say it any better.”

Webb Athletic Director Morgan Kapp was among the celebrants after the championship game victory. “I’m just so excited for the kids,” she said. “It’s not about me. There’s a lot of great energy on campus. Everyone believes in them and has their backs. We had people on campus watching the livestream cheering them on. So that was exciting.”

The baseball team joins girls soccer and boys golf as Webb’s third CIF-SS title winners this year.

“Each team has such a strong bond,” Kapp said. “These aren’t teams of individual athletes; these are teams that are the truest definition of a team.”

“I couldn’t be happier for the kids and the school,” said Goldstein. “Their school is so rigorous and they work so hard. They put the hours in and totally deserve it.”