Laguna Beach’s Sears is baseball coach of the year

The previous time Laguna Beach won a baseball league championship was before this year's players were born.

And that league title came before the coach was born, too.

So 45-year-old Laguna Beach coach Jeff Sears thought this could be the year the Breakers make some school baseball history. That, they did.

Laguna Beach won its first baseball league championship in 48 years, won a home playoff game for the first time in school history and shattered the school record for single-season victories. The Breakers went 27-3 and advanced to playoff quarterfinals.

For a history- and memory-making season, Sears is the Orange County Register's baseball coach of the year for 2011.

Last year, Sears' third season coaching Laguna Beach baseball, the Breakers won 16 games to set the school single-season record. They eclipsed that figure in April.

With a strong corps of returnees led by All-CIF shortstop/pitcher Chris Paul, Sears thought this could be a terrific season for the Breakers.

"With all the work these guys put in during the fall, I kind of had that feeling," said Sears, who played high school baseball in Oregon before playing at Long Beach City College and Cal State Northridge. "Then we took the whole program, all the players, over to Hawaii during our ski-week break, and they bonded so well. The guys learned and realized they could rely on their teammates."

Laguna Beach opened the season against Westminster in the Newport Elks Tournament. Westminster started Greg Mahle, one of the county's better returning pitchers, and the Breakers prevailed, 2-0. They went on to win the Costa Mesa bracket of the Elks tournament.

They swept Loara in a doubleheader before playing Orange Coast League games. Laguna Beach rolled through first round of league play, when each team in the six-team league plays its league opponents once, going 5-0 and outscoring its five league opponents, 64-10.

Paul had an All-County year, and there were significant hitting or pitching contributions from Keaton Jones, Austin Paxson, Erik Peruzzi and more.

"Everyone knew their role," Sears said, "and everyone was part of what we did as a team."

Sears said first-base and strength coach Erik Beckman was a major contributor to the team's year. He also acknowledged the guidance of coaches for whom he has served as an assistant coach, like Tom Tereschuk at Chapman University, and Chris Conlin and Mike Gerakos at University.

"Tom was always pushing me to become a head coach somewhere," Sears said. "The support and friendship those guys have given me has been incredible."

As was Laguna Beach's 2011 baseball season.