The ALL-USA Baseball Teams for the 2018-19 season were selected by the USA TODAY High School Sports staff based on performance, level of competition and strength of schedule.
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Bobby Witt Jr., Colleyville Heritage
TEAMS: FIRST | SECOND | THIRD | HONORABLE MENTION
COACHING PROFILE:
John Weber
School: Cypress, Calif.
Record: 31-3
Super 25 Ranking: 3
Experience: 14th season
In leading Cypress to the No. 3 spot in the Super 25 national rankings, Weber not just beat out some of the California powerhouses to do get there – he successfully turned the Centurions from a 17-13-1 team into one of the best in the country in a span of just two seasons.
This year, the Centurions beat teams that have been ranked in the Super 25 or Pacific Region including Orange Lutheran, Huntington Beach, Yucaipa, La Mirada and Harvard-Westlake, the final three of which they beat in the postseason en route to their first CIF-SS Div. I title in team history.
Weber’s use of star pitchers senior Cameron Repetti and junior Brett Wozniak was superb, particularly during the postseason. In all, he got the most out of his team that was talented but lacked the surefire star power of some of the teams they faced.
Of six players with at least 100 at-bats, four hit above .330. Cypress had 16 wins in games decided by three runs or fewer, 12 within two runs and had eight one-run wins with two extra-inning wins. That mental fortitude Weber instilled was especially important in the playoffs, as the Centurions won the semifinals 1-0 in nine innings and the championship game 2-0.
In 2017, Weber and Cypress went 17-13-1. Last year, the team went 23-9-1 and bowed out in the quarterfinals. Not this year.
With a 31-3 record and wins over some of the best competition the state had to offer, the Centurions proved they were one of the best teams in the nation.
As the leader of the group, Weber has been named the 2018-19 ALL-USA Baseball Coach of the Year.
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