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NBCWS-bound Stars set for WBA playoffs
- Updated: July 19, 2026
Hunter Kaul, of the Stars
2026 SAN DIEGO STARS BASEBALL
STARS SET FOR WBA PLAYOFF SHOWDOWN WITH BULLDOGS
San Diego earns another NBC World Series berth
EastCountySports.com staff report
SAN MARCOS (7-19-26) — The San Diego Stars have already secured another trip to the National Baseball Congress World Series. Now they will try to add a Western Baseball Association championship before heading to Wichita.
The second-seeded Stars will face the third-seeded San Diego Bulldogs in an elimination semifinal Sunday at noon at Palomar College. The winner will advance to meet the regular-season champion San Diego Waves in the WBA championship game at 3:30 p.m.
San Diego finished the WBA regular season 12-8, six games behind the Waves, who dominated the league with an 18-2 record and closed the schedule on a 13-game winning streak. The Bulldogs placed third at 10-10.
By clinching the WBA’s berth in the NBC World Series, the Stars will return to the national tournament, scheduled for July 23-Aug. 1 in Wichita, Kansas.
The Stars enter Sunday’s postseason after playing three games in three days to close the regular-season portion of their schedule.
They defeated the San Diego Hustle, 11-6, Wednesday, fell to the Waves, 18-1, Thursday and then lost a 7-5 nonleague game at the Palm Springs Power on Friday.
Familiar opponent awaits in semifinal
The Stars and Bulldogs met four times during the WBA season, with the Bulldogs winning three of the four games. However, the results showed just how unpredictable Monday’s matchup could be.
The Bulldogs won the first meeting, 8-4, before the Stars responded with a remarkable 25-0 victory. The final two meetings went to the Bulldogs by scores of 3-2 and 15-12.
That season series included a one-run pitchers’ duel, a high-scoring slugfest and one of the Stars’ most dominant victories of the summer.
San Diego’s offense finished second in the WBA with 189 runs, trailing only the Waves’ league-leading total of 201. The Stars also posted a plus-51 run differential, while the Bulldogs were outscored by 54 runs during the season, 167-113.
Phill Jones led the Stars during the regular season with a .390 batting average and 20 RBI.
Hunter Kaul, a Christian High graduate now playing at Biola University, hit .342 with four home runs and 17 RBI.
Carson Lewis batted .339 and scored 19 runs.
Manny Miranda led the pitching staff with a 4-1 record over 45⅔ innings, recording a 4.14 ERA, 1.35 WHIP and 31 strikeouts.
Nate Moloney worked 25 innings, going 3-2 with 36 strikeouts.
Travis Van Dyke went 1-0 with a 3.20 ERA and 1.04 WHIP.
Stars finish WBA season at 12-8
San Diego opened its final three-game stretch with an 11-6 victory over the Hustle at West Hills High School.
The Stars broke the game open by scoring six runs in the second inning. Jacob Lanza started the surge with a solo home run to center field, Moloney added an RBI single and Cello delivered the biggest blow with a three-run homer to left.
Kaul completed the inning’s scoring with an RBI single, giving San Diego a 6-0 advantage.
Liam Herrera homered in the third, and Cello added a sacrifice fly for his fourth RBI of the game. Nick Reed then launched a three-run homer in the fourth, extending the lead to 11-0.
Miranda earned the victory after allowing only one hit over two scoreless innings. He struck out two and walked one. Rocco Stefonik followed with four strikeouts over three relief innings, with all four runs charged against him being unearned.
The Stars collected 14 hits. Kaul went 3-for-5 from the leadoff spot, while Moloney, Will James and Herrera also finished with multiple hits.
Waves flex championship credentials
The first-place Waves demonstrated why they will be waiting in Sunday’s championship game when they defeated the Stars, 18-1, Thursday at West Hills. The Stars won two of the five meetings this season against the Waves.
Kayden Anderson powered the Waves by going 4-for-5 with two home runs and six RBI. His three-run homer helped the Waves score five times in the first inning, and he added a solo shot in the third.
The Waves put the game away with seven runs in the fourth and five more in the sixth. Sam Tucci, Ian Calvillo, Coby Hatcher and Owen Baxter also contributed to a 15-hit attack.
Kaul accounted for the Stars’ lone run and finished 2-for-3. Van Dyke started for San Diego and allowed five runs, three earned, over two innings.
The victory helped the Waves complete an 18-2 regular season in which they outscored opponents 201-73. Their plus-128 run differential was easily the best in the league.
Lead slips away in Palm Springs
San Diego traveled to Palm Springs on Friday for a non-WBA game against the Power and built a 5-1 advantage before suffering a 7-5 loss.
The Stars outhit the Power, 11-10, but Palm Springs scored six unanswered runs to complete the comeback.
Gavin Gamino opened the scoring with an RBI single in the first and delivered another run-scoring hit as the Stars moved ahead 3-1 in the third. San Diego stretched the lead to four runs before the Power began its rally.
Palm Springs moved in front during a three-run seventh inning, scoring on a sacrifice fly, a single down the right-field line and a double down the left-field line.
Gamino went 2-for-4 and drove in three runs. Kaul, Carter Lockwood and Lewis also recorded two hits apiece.
Christian Estep took the loss after surrendering three runs, two earned, on four hits over two innings. He struck out two and walked one. Ryan Smith started and allowed one run on one hit over two innings.
Israel Garcia earned the save in his debut for the Power.
Another trip to Wichita
Regardless of Sunday’s outcome, the Stars’ summer will continue on the national stage.
San Diego secured the Western Baseball Association’s berth in the NBC World Series, one of the country’s longest-running summer baseball tournaments. The complete field will include league champions and qualifying teams from across the country.
The Stars’ connection to the event runs deep. Late franchise founder Mickey Deutschman was inducted into the NBC Hall of Fame in 2021, recognizing his contributions to the Stars and the national summer-collegiate baseball community.
Recent NBC champions include the Hutchinson Monarchs in 2023 and 2025, the Hays Larks in 2024 and the Santa Barbara Foresters in three consecutive tournaments from 2020 through 2022.
Before the Stars turn their attention toward Wichita, however, they have unfinished business at Palomar College.
They must first get through a Bulldogs team that defeated them three times during the regular season. Survive that matchup, and the Stars will receive another opportunity against the powerful Waves—with the WBA championship on the line.
WBA CHAMPIONSHIP DAY
Sunday at Palomar College
- Semifinal — Noon: San Diego Stars vs. San Diego Bulldogs
- Championship — 3:30 p.m.: Semifinal winner vs. San Diego Waves
FINAL WBA STANDINGS
| Team | W-L | Pct. | Runs | Runs Allowed | Differential |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego Waves | 18-2 | .900 | 201 | 73 | +128 |
| San Diego Stars | 12-8 | .600 | 189 | 138 | +51 |
| San Diego Bulldogs | 10-10 | .500 | 113 | 167 | -54 |
| San Diego Bombers | 9-11 | .450 | 132 | 169 | -37 |
| San Diego Hustle | 6-14 | .300 | 134 | 169 | -35 |
| San Diego Canes | 5-15 | .250 | 171 | 224 | -53 |
