The Castaic High School varsity baseball team made history by winning the Division 6 California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Southern Section (SS) Championship and Division 5 CIF SS State Championship in just their second season as a varsity program.

Going into the playoffs, the Castaic Coyotes had a record of 18-7-1 on the season, which is almost a complete reversal compared to their 9-16 record last season.

“Making it to the playoffs was our main goal,” said Head Coach Derrell Davis.

During the season, the Coyotes’ Baseball team managed to shut out four teams and hold six other teams to just one run the whole game.

“It was during a doubleheader at Hart (High School) that I realized we had a special,” said Davis.

The Coyotes split the doubleheader with Hart winning the first game 7-1 and dropping the second 4-3.

Davis said that playing top-tier teams at the start of the season prepared the Coyotes for a competitive league.

As Coach Davis put it, the team was ‘battle-tested.’

On the road to the 2023 Division 6 CIF-SS Baseball Championships, the Coyotes outscored their opponents 44-9.

In the Division 6 championship game, the Coyotes imposed their dominance against Hesperia Christian, defeating the Patriots 7-0.

The Coyotes are the second team in Foothill League history to win a CIF championship in baseball.

The last team to win the title was Hart in 1999. 

After the Coyotes won the Division 6 CIF championship, they set their eyes on a new prize, the state championships. 

The Coyotes started the Division 5 CIF-SS State Championship Tournament by defeating Sun Valley Magnet 27-0.

In the semifinals, they beat Fillmore 9-1.

On Saturday, the Coyotes entered their first state championship against the undefeated (20-0) Ganesha Giants.

After a full seven innings, the Coyotes and Giants were tied at five runs a piece.

After an additional inning, the score remained the same, sending the Coyotes into the ninth inning.

In the top of the ninth inning, the Giants scored a run and took the lead.

In the bottom of the ninth, the Coyotes answered back with two runs of their own to secure a 7-6 win and earn the right to call themselves the Division 5 state champions.

The Coyotes are the first team in Foothill League history to win a state championship in baseball. 

“We were battle tested and the pitchers kept us alive. It helps that we were hitting well also,” said Davis. “It doesn’t hurt to be lucky either. At the bottom of the ninth inning there was a bad throw that brought us in for a run.”

While this is only the Coyotes’ second season, Davis said that the wonderful feeling of so much support from the community was overwhelming.

With their season coming to a storybook ending, it is now time to prepare for the next season.

On Monday, the Coyotes began the Valley Invitational Baseball League, which also includes adversaries from the Foothill League in Hart, Valencia, Golden Valley, and Saugus. This marks the start of their summer training.

“It’s back to the grind,” Davis said.

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