Dos Pueblos baseball struggled to keep up with top-seeded Mira Costa in a 13-6 loss in the CIF-SS D3 Quarterfinals on Friday at Scott O’Leary Stadium.
The Mustangs erupted for a nine-run third inning to pull away and eventually end the season for the Chargers, who earned a share of the Channel League title and won multiple playoff games for the second consecutive season.
“In 15 straight years I’ve been here, we’ve been in the playoffs every year, but playoff wins are not guaranteed. They’re tough. It’s tough to get a single win, let alone put together four, five in a row and try to get to a championship,” Dos Pueblos head coach George Hedricks said.
“When you come off a big season like last year, you don’t know if there’s going to be a layover or a lull… Down the stretch, we got hot, took that into the playoffs, beat two really good teams on the road, and just kept extending our season… I’m really proud of the way these boys fought.”
Mira Costa mounted an early rally with the bases loaded in the top of the first, but DP starter Nick Salcido induced back-to-back fly outs to escape unscathed.
The Chargers started a rally of their own in the bottom half thanks to two straight walks, but they were able to take advantage of their runners in scoring position.
Marcus Carbajal got it started with a perfectly placed single through the right side to score Taylor Young. Stone Saunders followed with a run-scoring fielder’s choice, scoring Evan Bean.
Salcido rounded out the big opening frame with an opposite-field RBI single to score Saunders and take a 3-0 lead after one.
“That’s literally what we’ve done three games in a row,” Hedricks said of the first-inning outburst. “We knocked the other team’s guy out in the first inning, or first couple of innings, in three straight games.
“They weren’t afraid, they knew ‘Hey, the guy’s gonna throw hard, let’s be ready to hit it…’ We just knew we were going to face somebody good in the playoffs and the guys kind of got up for that moment.”
The top of the second mirrored the first, as Mira Costa once again loaded the bases with one out, but Salcido stranded them all to preserve the lead.
After a scoreless bottom of the second, the Mustangs finally broke through in the third. Costa Mesa tied the game up before even recording an out, and by the end of the inning had pulled away for a 9-3 lead.
In the big inning, the Mustangs totaled six hits, three walks and sent 13 batters to the plate.
“We haven’t done that all year, have a bad inning like that,” Hedricks said of the third. “I think we couldn’t recover from that big blow when they answered back, which is unfortunate.
“[Salcido] deserved better in that inning. I think there were two bloop singles, and a bunt play where we didn’t make the play… Nick did an absolutely amazing job… He’s pitched in all three games and done well in all three. Just really unlucky for him right there.”
The Chargers got a run back in the bottom of the fourth on a two-out RBI single by Matti Di Maggio to trim the deficit to 9-4.
That score held through scoreless fifth before Mira Costa found its offense again in the sixth, plating two more runs to make it an 11-4 advantage.
Dos Pueblos immediately answered with two runs of its own in the bottom half when Bean and Carbajal were each hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to make it a five-run game once again at 11-6.
The Mustangs ended their win on a high note, scoring twice more in the top of the seventh and slamming the door on the Chargers in the bottom half to go home with a 13-6 victory.
Dos Pueblos ends the season with an overall record of 20-11, including a second straight trip to the CIF-SS Quarterfinals, following its 2025 CIF-SS D4 championship game appearance.
“Our standard and expectation here is to come out, play good baseball, and do it the right way, and try to find a way to win games,” Hedricks said.
“They believed and they didn’t give up, and that’s what I’m really proud about. I think a lot of that has to do with the seniors we had last year, and we saw how the seniors were able to come in and kind of be those leaders for us this year. That’s the foundation and the message we’re sending.”