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Fullerton baseball knocks off San Juan Hills in first round of playoffs

May 16, 2026

SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO — The Fullerton baseball team had lost four in a row and eight of its last 11 games. The team was in the CIF Southern Section playoffs, but it was on the road for the first round.

It seems unlikely that anyone outside of Fullerton’s team figured it had a chance.

But senior Declan Fitzgerald knew. And his teammates knew. And now everyone knows after Fullerton defeated San Juan Hills, 5-3, Friday in the first round of the CIF-SS Division 3 playoffs.

Behind Fitzgerald’s two-hit pitching and three runs batted in by Luke Gonzalez, Fullerton breathed new life into its season.

It was an upset that was earned. Sparkling defense by Gonzalez at third base. A pickoff at second base in the seventh inning that prevented a late rally. And stellar hitting and pitching.

It couldn’t have gone any better for Fullerton (16-12), which will play host to Corona del Mar in the second round Tuesday, May 19.

“I think it gives our guys all the confidence in the world, that we are this good, and can compete with anybody in this division,” Fullerton coach Sean Hill said. “Winning the first game is the hardest, and momentum just carries from there. We’re excited.”

San Juan Hills, the second-place team from the Sea View League, finished 16-13.

“They just played better than us,” said San Juan Hills coach Bret LeVier. “We swung the bats really competitive against one of the better arms we’ve faced all year but we didn’t find any holes, and they found the holes.”

It was a huge win for Fullerton, which got off to an 8-2 start this season but turned into a free-fall until their parachute opened Friday.

“It means a lot, shows a lot of perseverance after bouncing back after the losing streak and showing what we’re made of, what we’re capable of doing,” said Gonzalez, who got on base three times against three different pitchers. “Playing together as a team really showed.

“It means a lot to get one more game with the brothers I’ve been with since I was a little kid before moving on to our next chapter. It means a lot to extend our last ride together and try to win a ring.”

Fitzgerald allowed only two hits over seven innings. He struck out eight and hit a batter.

The two hits? One was a leadoff single by Brodie Corpuz, the other was a two-out RBI double by Cash Meyer with two outs in the seventh.

San Juan Hills took the lead in the first inning. Clay Riggs smashed a line drive off Fitzgerald’s glove and was thrown out at first base. Corpuz scored after reaching third base on a passed ball and catcher’s error on a strikeout.

The lead didn’t last long.

The bottom four in Fullerton’s lineup put two runs on the board as part of a 12-hit attack. Logan Thien walked, Calin Williams doubled, and Lucas Delgadillo and Ronnie Martinez followed with RBI singles.

Batting fifth in the order, Gonzalez hit a double that scored Mason Park in the third inning for a 3-1 margin.

He also hit a double into right field to score Evan Terrazas and Caleb Brown in the fifth to make it 5-1.

San Juan Hills scored without a hit in the bottom of the fifth. Meyer was hit, stole second and took third on an error, and scored on Yair Pedraza’s grounder.

Despite all that went right for Fullerton, San Juan Hills had a chance to steal the victory in the seventh. An error to start the inning and a stolen base set up Fitzgerald’s stunning pickoff at second base for the second out of the inning.

Then Grant Bailey walked and Howard doubled him home to make it 5-3.

Without the pickoff, it’s likely it would have been a 5-4 game with the tying run at second.

A grounder to the sure-handed Gonzalez at third base ended the rally, the game, and San Juan Hills’ season.

“(Gonzalez) has been great all year, and what he did today was on on par,” said Fitzgerald, whose next stop will be Arizona State. “He made, like, eight plays at third. The RBIs take the show, but the glove, seriously, won the game.

“I feel great going into the rest of the playoffs. If we play like we did today, we should win some more ball games.”

Orange County Register

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Fullerton baseball knocks off San Juan Hills in first round of playoffs

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