Highs and lows in the San Diego Section’s opening round foray into the state regional playoffs.

The highs:

Torrey Pines coach John Olive maintained a genial presence despite three straight losses in December to San Diego Section teams Mission Bay, San Marcos, and La Jolla Country Day.

A 14-1 finish for a 23-6 record, with a benign intersectional schedule, resulted in the Falcons taking a 15-seed punch in the nose into their first round game against 2 seed Orange County power Rancho Santa Margarita.

The Falcons responded with a 66-59 road victory. Torrey was behind, 23-14 after one quarter.  A strong mid-game and  19-9 fourth quarter pushed Olive’s club to the most surprising first-round win by any team in Division I.

St. Augustine coach Mike Haupt also did some maintaining.  The Saints got off to a 3-12 start as some personnel was injured or unavailable.

Haupt’s club rallied with a 15-2 January-February run and continued with a 60-40 win over visiting Canyon Country Canyon in a match between 9 and 8 seeds in D-II.

Westview’s girls were 14^th in a D-I matchup with the Hamilton Yankees of Los Angeles.  The Wolverines’ stout defense held Hamilton to a 23 per cent field goal percentage in a 45-42 win.

The Lows:

Fourteen seed Los Angeles Washington stunned host and third-ranked Eastlake, 46-45, in Boys Division III.

Number 13 Garden Grove Pacifica ousted 4 seed Maranatha, 55-50, in Boys D-IV.

Montgomery and Mission Hills  were blown out in boys’ and girls’ Open Division games and No. 2 Grossmont was stung by No. 15 Alhambra Mark Keppel in Girls’ D-II.

Overall, San Diego Section boys teams were 6-10 against opponents from the vast Southern Section and the L.A. City and Central sections.

Girls were 6-7 against the Southern and L.A. City.

Tougher opponents loom.

Upsets highlighted below.

BOYS FIRST ROUND

TUESDAY, MARCH 4

D-I

9 Mission Bay 60 (21-10), @8 Santa Barbara, Southern, 72 (26-7).

12 Anaheim Fairmont Prep, Southern, 55 (22-10), @5 Carlsbad 59 (26-6).

13 San Marcos 56 (25-5), @4 San Juan Capistrano JSerra, Southern, 80 (23-10).

11 Cathedral 72 (20-11), @6 Los Alamitos, Southern, 84 (26-8).

15 Torrey Pines 66 (24-6), @2 Rancho Santa Margarita, Southern, 59 (23-9).

D-II

16 Sage Creek 52 (21-10), @1 Riverside Poly, Southern, 80 (23-10).

9 Canyon Country Canyon, Southern, 40 (24-10), @8 St. Augustine 60 (19-14).

13 Victory Christian 50 (18-15), @4 Santa Fe Christian 55 (23-7).

11 Irvine, Southern, 62 (29-4), @6 Francis Parker 63 (19-11).

15 La Jolla Country Day 47 (17-14), @2 Westchester, L.A. City, 70 (23-9).

D-III

14 Washington, L.A. City, 46 (18-9), @3 45 Olympian (26-7).

10 San Dimas, Southern, 57 (20-13), @7 Mira Mesa 60 (27-6).

D-IV

9 Riverside Ramona, Southern, 64 (27-7), @8 San Diego Southwest 62 (25-8).

13 Garden Grove Pacifica, Southern, 55 (23-11), @4 Maranatha 50 (17-16).

14 Tri-City 54 (20-10), @3 Sun Valley Poly, L.A. City, 60 (23-10).

D-V

15 Santa Ana Saddleback, Southern, 48 (14-15), @2 Pacific Ridge 65 (29-2).

OPEN DIVISION

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5

6 Montgomery 56 (29-3), @3 Sherman Oaks Notre Dame, Southern 76 (26-7).

QUARTERFINALS PAIRINGS

THURSDAY, MARCH 6

D-I

5 Carlsbad (26-6), @4 San Juan Capistrano JSerra, Southern (23-10).

15 Torrey Pines (24-6), @7 Manhattan Beach Mira Costa, Southern (30-4).

D-II

5 Bakersfield Christian, Central, (22-8), @4 Santa Fe Christian (23-7).

6 Francis Parker (19-11), @3 Chatsworth, L.A. City (23-8).

8 St. Augustine (19-14), @1 Riverside Poly, Southern (23-10).

D-III

15 Lake Balboa Birmingham, L.A. City (16-13), @7 Mira Mesa (27-6).

D-V

7 L.A. Math & Science College Prep, L.A. City (23-7), @2 Pacific Ridge (29-2).

GIRLS FIRST ROUND

TUESDAY, MARCH 4

D-I

9 Studio City Harvard-Westlake, Southern 60 (24-7), @8 Francis Parker (20-10) 57.

14 Westview 45 (21-9), @3 Hamilton, L.A. City 42 (26-3).

11 La Jolla Country Day 63 (17-12), @6 L.A. Brentwood (Southern) 74 (26-8).

D-II

12 Victory Christian 46 (18-14), @5 Irvine Portola, Southern 62 (18-15).

13 Rancho Buena Vista 54 (23-10), @4 El Capitan 62 (24-6).

14 Hesperia Oak Hills, Southern 52 (18-13), @3 Cathedral 53 (20-9).

10 Fullerton Rosary, Southern 35 (18-14), @7 Rancho Bernardo 38. (22-7).

15 Alhambra Mark Keppel 51 (25-9), Southern @ 2 Grossmont 46 (22-5).

D-III

12 Bakersfield Liberty 40 (17-13), Southern @5 Mater Dei 66 (18-13).

13 Escondido Charter 63 (23-10), @4 Carlsbad 73 (20-12).

9 Cerritos 58 (17-17), Southern @8 Christian 67 (25-4).

D-V
16 Santana 45 (25-7), @1 La Palma Kennedy (18-13), Southern 55.

11 Crawford 49 (18-14), @6 Ojai Nordhoff 36 (18-8), Southern.

OPEN DIVISION

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5

5 Mission Hills 26 (23-9), @4 Chatsworth Sierra Canyon 71 (28-2), Southern.

Coach Ed Martin thought he should get a home game for his San Diego Section champion Montgomery Aztecs (29-2) in the first round of the state regional Open Division playoffs Wednesday, March 5.

The No. 6 Aztecs got a decidedly less attractive assignment,  a road test at 3 seed and Cal-Hi Sports state second-ranked Sherman Oaks Notre Dame   Carlsbad, No. 2 in John Maffei’s final The San Diego Union poll below, will take a 5 seed into its home game against No. 12 Anaheim Fairmont Prep Tuesday, March 4.

Max Preps’ and Cal-Hi Sports’ previous rankings followed by slash.

	TEAM	RECORD	POINTS	PREVIOUS	MAXPREPS	CAL-HI SPORTS
1	Montgomery	29-2 (18)	180	1	11/11	14/15
2	Carlsbad	25-6	158	4	24/31	24/25
3	St. Augustine	18-14	117	6	53/144	NR/NR
4	Cathedral	20-10	116	5	74/87	NR/On Bubble
5	Mission Bay	21-9	99	7	57/58	On Bubble/NR
6	San Marcos	25-4	96	2	48/31	On Bubble/Bubble
7	Torrey Pines	23-6	91	4	56/41	On Bubble/Bubble
8	Olympian	26-6	60	9	43/52	NR-NR
9	Santa Fe Christian	22-7	44	88	82/60	NR-NR
10	Victory Christian	18-14	18	NR	106	NR-NR

Others receiving votes
Francis Parker (18-11, 7 points), La Jolla Country Day (17-13), Sage Creek (21-9), Mira Mesa (26-6), San Diego (24-6), Maranatha (17-15), Pacific Ridge (28-2), 1 point each.

Voting panel: 18 sportswriters, sportscasters, and administrators who cover the San Diego Section, plus MaxPreps:

John Maffei (Union-Tribune).
Aaron Burgin (Full-time hoops).
Steve Brand,  Bodie DeSilva (Union-Tribune freelance correspondents).
Todd Cassen (CIF office).
Rick Smith (Partletonsports.com).
Joe Evangelist (Coaching Legends).
Tom Helmantoler (Southern Conference).
Rex Johnson (CIF Advisory Committee).
Christian Pedersen (San Diego Sports Association).
Braden Surprenant (97.3-FM The Fan).
John Kentera, Dennis Ackerman, Steve (Biff) Dolan, Eric Williams, Tom Ronco, Adam Paul (freelance contributors).

 

 

Eighty San Diego Section basketball teams began the playoffs 12 days ago, boys and girls each seeking championships in seven divisions. Basketballs were rolled out for a total of 216 games and in only 25 did the seeded favorite not win, but three No. 1’s were defeated on the final weekend of play.

Seven teams, including six in boys’ divisions, upheld the CIF’s computer rankings, prevailing with their No. 1 status.  The most impressive reversal was by St. Augustine, which was 3-12 after 15 games but won 15 of its final 17 to claim the D-I title and will enter the state regional playoffs with an 18-14 record.

See earlier postings for scores through the quarterfinals rounds.

GIRLS CHAMPIONSHIPS

OPEN DIVISION

1 Parker (20-9) 51, 3 Mission Hills (23-8) 60, @Oceanside Front Wave Arena.

D-I

1 RBV (23-9) 41,  2 Victory Christian (17-13) 52, @Mater Dei.

D-II

1 The Bishops (19-12) 29, 3 Otay Ranch (26-5) 45, @Canyon Crest.

D-III

1 Christian (24-4) 71, 2 Escondido Charter (23-9) 69, @Otay Ranch.

D-IV

7 Crawford 38 (17-14), 9 Escondido 37 (12-13), @Sage Creek.

Escondido was forfeited into the finals after a semifinals loss to El Cajon Valley, which self-reported to the San Diego Section the following day that the Braves had used an ineligible player in the 39-31 victory over the Cougars.

D-V

2 Santana 46 (25-6), 4 Del Lago 27 (15-10), @Mater Dei.

D-VAA

4 Entrepreneurship and Technology 24 (13-8), 2 Foothills Christian 21 (13-6), @Sage Creek.

GIRLS SEMIFINALS

OPEN DIVISION

4 Westview 39 (20-9), @1 Francis Parker 51.

7 La Jolla Country Day 42 (17-11), @1 Mission Hills 63

D-I

5 Carlsbad 52 (19-12), @1 Rancho Buena Vista 64.

4 Mater Dei (17-13) 46, @2 Victory Christian 61.

D-II

5 Montgomery 55 (20-10), @1 The Bishop’s 63.

3 Otay Ranch 49, @2 Imperial 45 (25-5).

D-III

4 La Jolla 42 (21-10), @1 Christian 70.

3 El Centro Central (17-13) 37, @2 Escondido Charter 71.

D-IV

7 Crawford 51, @6 Brawley 46 (18-12).

9 Escondido 31, @4 El Cajon Valley 39.

El Cajon Valley forfeited the 39-31 victory the following morning, when it reported to the CIF that the Braves had used an ineligible player in the game, according to Bodie DeSilva of The San Diego Union-Tribune.

D-V

4 Del Lago 29, @1 Coronado 25 (17-4).

3 Mabel O’Farrell 19 (17-8), @2 Santana 50.

D-VAA

4 Entrepreneurship and Technology 31, @1 Warner Springs Warner (20-3) 30.

3 San Diego Academy (13-6) 26, @2 Foothills Christian 28.

BOYS CHAMPIONSHIPS

OPEN DIVISION

1 Montgomery (29-2) 53, 2 Carlsbad (25-6) 45, @Oceanside Front Wave Arena.

D-I

1 St. Augustine (18-14) 59, 4 Victory Christian (18-14) 42, @Mater Dei.

D-II

1 Olympian (26-6) 54, 2 Mira Mesa (26-6) 46, @Canyon Crest.

D-III

1 San Diego Southwest (25-7) 44, 3 Maranatha (17-15) 47, @Otay Ranch.

D-IV

1 Tri-City 53 (20-9), 6 Del Lago 49 (17-15), @Sage Creek.

D-V

1 Pacific Ridge 46 (28-2), 3 Chula Vista 38 (23-6), @Mater Dei.

D-VAA

1 The Cambridge 50 (14-10), 2 Southern California Yeshiva 36 (12-10), @MiraCosta College.

BOYS SEMIFINALS

OPEN DIVISION

4 Mission Bay 53 (21-9), @1 Montgomery 64.

6 Cathedral 61 (20-10), @2 Carlsbad 73.

D-I

6 Sage Creek (21-9) 39, @2 St. Augustine 62.

4 Victory Christian 59, @1 La Jolla Country Day 54 (17-13).

D-II

6 The Bishop’s 61 (17-14), @2 Mira Mesa 65.

5 Madison 59 (22-9), @1 Olympian 64.

D-III

4 Rancho Bernardo 56 (20-11), 1 San Diego Southwest 59.

7 Coronado 48 (14-17), @3 Maranatha 54.

D-IV

5 Escondido Charter 55 (15-16), @1 Tri City 79.

7 Granite Hills 65 (18-11), @6 Del Lago 69.

D-V

5 Mabel O’Farrell (19-11) 44, @1 Pacific Ridge 45.

7 Escondido (16-12) 46, @3 Chula Vista 68.

D-VAA

4 Escondido Adventist (9-15) 43, @1 The Cambridge 46.

3 San Diego Academy 27 (17-7), @2 Southern California Yeshiva 51.

It’s the week that matters most.

Semifinal playoffs have advanced  into championship games, which begin tonight, Thursday, February 27, with finals in Boys and Girls Divisions IV, V and VAA.

D-IV Games tonight will be at Sage Creek, beginning with 6 seed Del Lago and 1 seed Tri City in Boys , followed by Girls 7 Crawford and No. 4 El Cajon Valley.

D-V will be at Mater Dei, where Boys 3 seed Chula Vista and No. 1 Pacific Ridge will be followed by Girls 4 Del Lago and 2 Santana.

D-VAA boys will be at MiraCosta College, opening with Boys 2  seed Southern California Yeshiva against No. 1 The Cambridge School.  Girls include 4 Enterprise and Technology facing 2 Foothills Christian.

Results of 28 games earlier this week, in which three number 1 seeds were among four favorites ousted):

GIRLS SEMIFINALS

OPEN DIVISION

4 Westview 39 (20-9), @1 Francis Parker 51.

7 La Jolla Country Day 42 (17-11), @1 Mission Hills 63

D-I

5 Carlsbad 52 (19-12), @1 Mission Hills 64.

4 Mater Dei (17-13) 46, @2 Victory Christian 61.

D-II

5 Montgomery 55 (20-10), @1 The Bishop’s 63.

3 Otay Ranch 49, @2 Imperial 45 (25-5).

D-III

4 La Jolla 42 (21-10), @1 Christian 70.

3 El Centro Central (17-13) 37, @2 Escondido Charter 71.

D-IV

7 Crawford 51, @6 Brawley 46 (18-12).

9 Escondido (11-14), 31, @4 El Cajon Valley 39.

D-V

4 Del Lago 29, @1 Coronado 25 (17-4).

3 Mabel O’Farrell 19 (17-8), @2 Santana 50.

D-VAA

4 Enterprise and Technology 31, @1 Warner Springs Warner (20-3) 30.

3 San Diego Academy (13-6) 26, @2 Foothills Christian 28.

BOYS SEMIFINALS

OPEN DIVISION

4 Mission Bay 53 (21-9), @1 Montgomery 64.

6 Cathedral 61 (20-10), @2 Carlsbad 73.

D-I

6 Sage Creek (21-9) 39, @2 St. Augustine 62.

4 Victory Christian 59, @1 La Jolla Country Day 54 (17-13).

D-II

6 The Bishop’s 61 (17-14), @2 Mira Mesa 65.

5 Madison 59 (22-9), @1 Olympian 64.

D-III

4 Rancho Bernardo 56 (20-11), @1 San Diego Southwest 59.

7 Coronado 48 (14-17), @3 Maranatha 54.

D-IV

5 Escondido Charter 55 (15-16), @1 Tri City 79.

7 Granite Hills 65 (18-11), @6 Del Lago 69.

D-V

5 Mabel O’Farrell (19-11) 44, @1 Pacific Ridge 45.

7 Escondido (16-12) 46, @3 Chula Vista 68.

D-VAA

4 Escondido Adventist (9-15) 43, @1 The Cambridge 46.

3 San Diego Academy 27 (17-7), @2 Southern California Yeshiva 51.

One week and 96 playoff games in the rear view mirror, San Diego Section playoff teams move into semifinals and championship rounds this week, all six Boys’ and five of six Girls’ No. 1 seeds still standing.

The outlier is in Girls’ Division IV,  where Escondido, a No. 9 seed, stunned number one Patrick Henry, 36-34, in the quarterfinals and visits 4 seed El Cajon Valley Tuesday night, Feb. 25.

Most significant reversals in Boys’ brackets have been three 7’s over 2’s.

Where the seedings were wrong are highlighted:

BOYS QUARTERFINALS

OPEN DIVISION

8 Francis Parker 37 (18-11), @1 Montgomery 86.

5 Torrey Pines 42 (23-6), @4 Mission Bay 44.

6 Cathedral 73, @3 San Marcos 68 (25-4).

7 Santa Fe Christian 64 (22-7), @2 Carlsbad 71.

D-I

8 Rancho Buena Vista 41 (16-14), @1 La Jolla Country Day 78.

5 Mission Hills 47 (19-11), @4 Victory Christian 63.

6 Sage Creek 61, @3 San Diego 53 (24-6).

7 El Camino 48 (14-15), @2 St. Augustine 69.

D-II

8 Poway 44 (18-12), @1 Olympian 59.

5 Madison 63, @4 Bonita Vista 61 (21-8).

14 Helix 34 (12-18), @6 The Bishop’s 58.

10 Steele Canyon 52 (19-10), @2 Mira Mesa 74.

D-III

8 Fallbrook 50 (18-11), @1 San Diego Southwest 63.

12 Mount Miguel 52 (13-14), @4 Rancho Bernardo 63.

11 Canyon Hills 59 (12-17), @3 Maranatha 65.

7 Coronado 65, @2 Point Loma 54 (18-10).

D-IV

8 Foothills Christian 36 (19-11), @1 Tri-City 69.

5 Escondido Charter 54, @4 Army-Navy 53, 2 OT (16-11).

6 Del Lago 46, @3 Brawley 42 (21-9).

7 Granite Hills 77, @2 Crawford (25-5) 60.

D-V

8 Santana 58 (14-14), @1 Pacific Ridge 64, OT.

5 Mabel O’Farrell 58, @4 Sweetwater 31 (14-14).

11 Classical 40 (10-17), @3 Chula Vista 48.

7 Escondido 53, @2 High Tech Mesa 51 (17-6), OT.

D-VAA 

9 Logan Memorial 30 (6-23), @1 The Cambridge 65.

5 Warner Springs Warner 35 (14-6), @4 Escondido Adventist 40.

6 Cristo Rey 43 (7-13), @3 San Diego Academy 56.

7 Liberty Charter 30 (9-16), 2 Southern California Yeshiva 45, @San Diego Jewish.

GIRLS QUARTERFINALS

OPEN DIVISION

7 El Capitan 29 (23-6), @2 La Jolla Country Day 76.

6 Cathedral 34 (19-9), @3 Mission Hills 73.

8 Rancho Bernardo 24 (22-7), @1 Francis Parker 38.

5 Grossmont 40 (22-4), @4 Westview 53.

D-I

9 Oceanside 40 (13-15), @1 Rancho Buena Vista 45.

13 La Costa Canyon 39 (14-16), @4 Carlsbad 57.

6 Mater Dei 47, @3 Scripps Ranch 38 (18-8).

7 San Marcos (20-10) 32, @2 Victory Christian 64.

D-II

8 University 47 (13-16), @1 The Bishop’s 70.

5 Montgomery 56, @4 Calexico Vincent Memorial 49 (19-7).

6 West Hills 38 (21-7), @3 Otay Ranch 41.

7 St. Joseph (14-14) 23, @2 Imperial 49.

D-III

8 Mission Vista 43 (14-13), @1 Christian 60.

5 San Dieguito 35 (14-9), @4 La Jolla 39.

6 Valley Center 53 (14-12), @3 El Centro Central 65.

7 Hoover 36 (15-14), @2 Escondido Charter 65.

D-IV

9 Escondido 36, @1 Patrick Henry 34 (20-7).

5 Canyon Hills 24 (18-11), @4 El Cajon Valley 50.

14 Chula Vista 34 (10-18), @6 Brawley 54.

7 Crawford 46, @2 Tri-City 33 (17-5).

D-V

9 High Tech North County 17 (13-7), @1 Coronado 38.

5 San Diego Southwest 31 (17-10), @4 Del Lago 45.

6 Coastal 23 (18-10), @3 Mabel O’Farrell 53.

7 San Pasqual 12 (7-12), @2 Santana 41.

 D-VAA

8 Calexico Mission 3  (9-7), @Warner Springs Warner 60.

4 Entrepreneur and Technology 33, @5 Ocean View 13 (6-11).

6 Liberty Charter 20 (7-16), @3 San Diego Academy 54.

10 Chula Vista Learning Community 11 (4-11), @2 Foothills Christian 64.

There were five so-called surprises (highlighted below) in the  first round, but one of those reversals was an upset.  No, it was a lot more than that,

Chula Vista, a No. 14 seed  with a 9-17 record, shocked third-ranked Horizon Prep, which entered  the game with a 16-4 record, 44-35, in Division IV.  La Costa Canyon, a 13 seed, outlasted No. 4 Torrey Pines, 61-51, in overtime in D-I.

DIVISION I

16 Bonita Vista (5-22) 28. @1 Rancho Buena Vista 62.

8 Morse (15-12) 37, @9 Oceanside 62.

12 Poway (9-20) 37, @5 Carlsbad 75.

13 La Costa Canyon 61, @4 Torrey Pines 51, OT (20-9).

11 Fallbrook (11-18) 38, @6 Mater Dei 67.

14 Olympian (11-18) 50, @3 Scripps Ranch 64.

10 Helix (11-13) 32, @7 San Marcos 60.

15 Del Norte (7-22) 28, @2 Victory Christian 56.

D-II

16 Calexico (7-18) 37, @1 The Bishop’s 56.

9 San Diego (13-14) 51, @8 University City 54.

12 Mt. Carmel (16-13) 48, @5 Montgomery 74.

13 Steele Canyon (9-20) 38, @4 Calexico Vincent Memorial 58.

11 Granite Hills (11-16) 21, @6 West Hills 48.

14 Vista (10-17) 23, @3 Otay Ranch 63.

10 Mira Mesa (15-12) 40, @7 St. Joseph 44.

15 Eastlake (8-19) 17, @2 Imperial 56.

D-III

16 Canyon Crest (3-22) 26, @1 Christian 74.

9 Santa Fe Christian (13-16) 49, @8 Mission Vista 56.

10 Classical (11-12) 40, @7 Hoover 57.

15 Valhalla (4-18) 34, @2 Escondido Charter 83.

12 Madison (11-14) 19, @5 San Dieguito 38.

13 El Camino (10-13) 34, @4 La Jolla 39.

14 Point Loma (5-19) 14, @3 El Centro Central 64.

11 High Tech San Diego (14-14) 49, @6 Valley Center 58.

D-IV.

16 Calipatria (9-14) 11, @1 Patrick Henry 72.

8 Escondido Adventist 38, @9 Escondido 64.

12 Hilltop (12-14) 37, @5 Canyon Hills 39.

13 Rock (7-11) 41, @4 El Cajon Valley 60.

14 Chula Vista 44, @3 Horizon Prep (16-5), 35.

11 The Cambridge (12-7) 21, @6 Brawley 57.

10 Kearny (14-15) 38, @7 Crawford 52.

15 Mission Bay (4-19) 22, @2 Tri-City 42.

D-V

8 Mountain Empire (9-7) 30, @9 High Tech North County 39.

12 High Tech Mesa (10-5) 25, @5 San Diego Southwest 56.

6 Orange Glen (6-16) 27, 11 Coastal 33, @Guajome Park.

10 Castle Park (11-15) 24, @7 San Pasqual 65.

D-VAA

Eleven-team field byed into quarterfinals.