Anchored by senior leadership, energized by talented underclassmen and backed by a deep bullpen of live arms, Carlsbad High’s baseball team has the chemistry and firepower, forged at Chase Field, to rank among San Diego County’s elite.
“Most of our team has grown up together playing Carlsbad Youth Baseball,” said right-handed senior pitcher Weston Thornbury, a Fresno State commit. “Our team dynamics are different than anyone else’s. All the parents in the stands play a major role. We also have a great bond with our coaches. On and off the field, we have tons of fun together.”
Now, with the regular season winding down and high-stakes Coastal League battles on deck, the Lancers are leaning on that tight-knit foundation to fuel a deeper run than in years past.
Pitching depth, dominance
Thornbury, 3-0 on the season with a 2.60 earned run average, is joined in the starting rotation by fellow DI commits Hunter Dawson (Cal State Northridge) and Ian Fisher (UCLA).
“Our pitching staff is really strong,” senior relief pitcher Andrew Langer said. “Our biggest strength is our intensity how we badly we all want to be on the mound and compete for our guys.”
Sitting at 11-6 overall through mid-April, the Lancers have allowed three runs or less in eight games, including back-to-back shutouts by Fisher and Thornbury in wins over El Camino and San Ysidro last month.
“Ian Fisher, Weston Thornbury and Hunter Dawson are all arms that we as a team trust to win ballgames,” said Trent Kellas, a sophomore first baseman off the bench.
Fisher, a command specialist with an upper-80s fastball and a plus-plus change-up, is one of the top pitchers countywide and is especially important to the Lancers, coming off an injury-shortened 2024 campaign.
“I feel I have been off to a good start this season, especially cutting last season short to injury,” Fisher said. “I’m hoping to keep this pace and stay healthy for the remainder of the season.”
Through his first five appearances, Fisher has racked up 31 strikeouts and allowed only five earned runs.
“[He has] a fierce attitude towards hitters,” Langer said.
Calen Torpey with a crafty sidearm delivery comes out of the pen, along with anchors Langer and junior Benjamin Lopez.
“We have three good relievers who are always there to shut the door,” Fisher said.
In 16 innings of relief work, Lopez has only allowed two earned runs, including blanketing JSerra Catholic in an extra-inning 1-0 victory to end March.
Senior leaders and rising stars
While pitching has been the foundation, a top-heavy lineup has produced inconsistent hitting. Seven times this season, Lancers’ bats have generated three runs or fewer, and the back-half of the order has struggled to get on base.
Ayden Muñoz, Rob Bering, Liam Stigers and Jett Kenady have been the most reliable Lancers at the plate in tight games.
“(Ayden and Jett) add the spark to our offense that allows us to score the runs we need to back up our pitchers,” said Fisher.
With a .455 batting average, senior outfielder and Fresno State commit Muñoz sets the pace.
“He’s hit more hardballs than anyone on our team,” fourth-year Carlsbad head coach Scott De Jong told the Coast News in 2024.
Muñoz’s lone home run of the season proved the difference in a 7-6 win over McKinney Boyd.
“Ayden is a leader and a team player that us younger guys look up to,” Kellas said.
Bering, a sophomore first baseman, has been a standout, leading the team with 18 hits.
“I couldn’t ask for a better start at the plate,” Bering said. “I have been putting bat on ball.”
In addition to Bering, sophomore outfielder Stigers has added 16 hits of his own.
“We could swing the bats a little better and when we do, we are going to put up some numbers,” Bering said.
Kenady: A multi-sport leader
Kenady, a senior shortstop and Cal Berkeley commit, serves as a classic glue guy across three sports — football, basketball, and baseball.
Kenady has been noted as a veteran leader and the Lancers’ best power hitter.
“Anytime he puts a jersey on he becomes a different player,” Carlsbad basketball coach Clark Allard said. “If we had a ping pong or bowling contest, Jett would win it.”
Kenady did win a spike ball tournament the week leading up to the CIF boys basketball playoffs.
“He’s a once-in-a-decade, all-around athlete with his impact on three sports,” Allard said. “During big games, he elevates to a different level.”
As a sophomore, Kenady hit seven home runs. This season, he’s gone deep three times, including most recently a two-run blast and two previous solo shots — one against Mater Dei in an 11-4 loss and another on April 14 in a 2-1 win over league rival Torrey Pines. Kenady also added a double and scored both runs in the victory.
“Playing with Jett gives me a bunch of opportunities to learn and see the choices that need to be made to be elite,” Bering said.
The past few seasons have seen hot Marches and Aprils, only to be cooled by challenging Coastal League games in May, which carried over into disappointing postseason losses.
“Without a doubt, the Coastal League is the top league in San Diego,” De Jong previously said.
Carlsbad’s most recent postseason success came in 2021 with a Division II section championship win over Steele Canyon. That victory marked their first CIF championship since 1989.
The regular season wraps with Coastal League play on May 12 at Rancho Bernardo.
The CIF San Diego Section playoffs are scheduled to begin on May 19 and will run through May 31. Followed by the CIF State Regional Tournament, kicking off on June 2 and wrapping on June 7.
“Consistency at the plate throughout the lineup will be key,” Dawson said. “We’ve got to score first and we can’t leave guys on base. It’s going to take all of us and I have full faith in our team.”
