Heading into his senior season, Lucas Schermer expected to have a lot of eyes on him.

“At the beginning, it was a little stressful,” he said. “Then it became fun. Seeing all those people there watching, it became more enjoyable than nervous.

“I started the season off strong, then I had a two-game stretch where I didn’t play to my own standard. After those two games, something clicked.”

The Mustangs got hot, eventually recording a 26-game winning streak, with Schermer, who is headed to UC Irvine, leading the way at shortstop and at the plate.

“He showed every day and just worked really, really hard and that’s really contagious and these guys just followed that,” Mira Costa coach Andy Diver said of Schermer. “Which is really good when your best player is your hardest worker. The best player being your hardest worker and probably your best kid in the program, then it just kind of comes together because he leads by example.”

Schermer hit .409, with six home runs and 37 RBIs, along with 11 stolen bases. He finished with an on-base percentage of .473 and a slugging percentage of .699.

“He learned how to embrace the fact that all eyes were on him,” Diver said. “We talked a few times about just embracing it and having fun with it. This is a moment that most kids don’t get and every kid dreams about in terms of having pro scouts turn up and watch, and he just embraced it, failure or success.”

Schermer ended the season as the Bay League Most Outstanding Player.

“We got the taste of winning, after those two losses early and we kept playing and having fun,” Schermer said. “I didn’t expect that (26-game winning streak), but as we kept going, we didn’t feel like we were going to lose any of the games.

“I think I was more of a leader by example this year,” he said. “Last year, I was just trying to help in any way that I could. This year, I stepped up along with the other captains and led the team.”

The future will take Schermer to UC Irvine, but there’s also a chance he could hear his name called in the upcoming MLB Draft.

“I’ve thought much more about going to college than I have about the draft,” he said. “Obviously, I would love nothing more than to get my name called, but going to Irvine, I’m excited about that. They got to a regional final this year, came up a bit short. I would love to add my worth next season and help get them through.”

PITCHER OF YEAR

Garrett Jacobs, Mira Costa, Jr.: Mira Costa pitcher Garrett Jacobs spent his sophomore season on the junior varsity team and earned team MVP honors.

He made a big splash this season in his varsity debut, striking out 11 in a four-hit shutout. That was a microcosm of his 2025 season.

“I think we expected him to compete and give us a chance to win all of the games that he pitched in, because we saw that last year as a JV guy,” Diver said of Jacobs. “I saw him pitch in the summer and in the fall against really good opponents and so we thought this guy would be pretty good for us.

“Pretty good turned into elite. Special.”

Jacobs would post a 10-1 record with a 1.26 ERA with 103 strikeouts and 19 walks and allowed a .188 opponents’ batting average, leading the Mustangs to an undefeated Bay League title and into the CIF-Southern Section Division 1 quarterfinals.

“He was dynamic. The ceiling is really high for him.”

COACH OF THE YEAR

Andy Diver, Mira Costa: The Mustangs split their first four games of the season. Their second loss came Feb. 25, to complete the first full week of the season.

Mira Costa’s third loss didn’t come until the CIF-SS Division 1 quarterfinal on May 23. The Mustangs won 26 consecutive games before losing to Crespi in the quarterfinal.

“It was just such a special ride,” Diver said. “We had a fantastic, amazing, special season. Twenty-six wins in a row in baseball, high school baseball let alone, where kids are 16, 17 years old, and they make mistakes and sometimes you run into a really good arm. We did make our mistakes and we did run into really good arms, but we just found a way to grit it out and get a win.”

Mira Costa finished the season 28-3 and won the Bay League title going 12-0.

“It was special to watch and a ride that I’ll never forget,” Diver said.