The poll leaders switched places, as Mission Hills topped La Jolla Country Day prior to a recent Holiday Classic tournament game in Portland, Oregon, where the Lady Grizzlies beat the Oregon Number 11 team Portland Jefferson, but  lost to the No. 3 team, South Medford, in the tournament finals. Three of Mission Hills’ 6 losses are to California top 15 squads, and one to an Arizona top 10, ranked team.

The Week 1 poll follows weekly Top 10  polls that have been newspaper-published since the season began in November.

John Maffei’s Week 1 Union-Tribune Poll

Others receiving votes:
Bonita Vista (9 points), Carlsbad (6), Morse (4), Victory Christian (1), La Costa Canyon (1).

† First-place votes in parentheses. Points  awarded on 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis. NR/Not ranked.
Max Preps and Cal-Hi Sports are state rankings.

The San Diego Union freelance representative Don Norcross and county-wide coaches participate in the poll.

Records are current as of 1/3/24

The shots wouldn’t go down for Bonita Vista, which converted 14 per cent of its attempts from the field in the first half to trail, 29-18, and went on to lose to  Fresno Central, 52-41, in the CIF state Division II championship at the Sacramento Golden Center Saturday afternoon.

In a game in which the 3 ball most often determines who holds the trophy and who gets the second-place medal, the Barons were a stunningly inaccurate 2 for 27 from behind the three-point arc.

Trailing, 36-23, at the end of three quarters, the Barons battled back and closed to 48-41, but another couple of missed treys ended the threat and the San Diego Section’s last try for a state championship.

GIRLS

And then there was one.

The Bonita Vista Barons girls  won the Southern California Regional Division II championship, 80-67, over Lawndale Leuzinger, while Del Norte was defeated in the D-I final at Corona Centennial, 52-39.

Bonita Vista will play the Fresno Central Grizzlies (22-12), who defeated Chico Pleasant Valley, 62-51, in the Northern final, at 2 p.m. Saturday for the state championship in Sacramento’s Golden Center.

Bonita Vista trailed the Leuzinger Olympians, 34-32, at halftime.  Alyssa Alvarado scored 21 points for the Barons and her five three-point baskets gave her 113 for the season.

“Whenever she walks into the gym, she’s dangerous,” Barons coach Tristan Lamb said of his sharpshooter to Don Norcross of The San Diego Union-Tribune.

The Del Norte girls (24-11)  struggled against the taller, defensively-oriented Sharks (26-9), who kept the  Nighthawks at a distance until turning the ball over nine times in the fourth quarter as Del Norte, once behind by 19 points, cut the deficit to nine in the last minute.

Bailey Barnhard led the Nighthawks with 19 points and 15 rebounds.

TIP INS

San Diego Section teams were 18-31 in the playoffs, the boys 7-17 and girls 11-14…the Section sustained five losses to teams with higher-numbered seeds and posted three wins, two by the No. 14 seed Mount Miguel girls, against favored seeds…Pleasant Valley, loser to Fresno Central in the Northern Regional, is alma mater of pro football quarterback Aaron Rodgers…Leuzinger, alma mater of NBA star Russell Westbrook, opened in 1931 and became known as the Olympians after the school was site for selected training venues and events leading to the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles…Corona Centennial, 89-67 conqueror of St. Augustine in the Open Division semifinals, was hammered in the regional final, 80-61, by Studio City Harvard-Westlake…Rancho Cucamonga Etiwanda, which knocked out favored La Jolla Country Day in the girls’ Open semifinals, defeated Chatsworth Sierra Canyon, 55-54, in the regional championship…the San Diego Section had two regional champions in 2021-22…Scripps Ranch won the Boys’ D-IV and Imperial the Girls’ D-V….

GIRLS

From a starting lineup of 36 teams, there are two survivors as the San Diego Section season nears the finish line with the State Regional playoff championships Tuesday night, winners of which then moving on to state championships against Northern California opponents in Sacramento March 10-11.

St. Augustine, the last Boys squad to reach the semifinals, was beaten in the Open Division round of four by Corona Centennial, but Del Norte continued to advance in Girls D-I and favored Bonita moved on in Girls D-II.

St. Augustine was eliminated by Corona Centennial, 89-67, and the La Jolla Country Day girls lost in the Open Division semifinals for the second year in a row, to Rancho Cucamonga Etiwanda, 47-42.

The Saints, perhaps winded from a grueling, 63-60 victory over Valencia West Ranch earlier in the week, fell out of contention early, lagging, 24-14 after one quarter and 49-30 at the half.

Del Norte knocked out Orange Lutheran, 67-58, and Bonita Vista edged Temecula Rancho Christian, 70-69. Both San Diego teams will be home for the regional final.

San Diego winners highlighted.

BOYS SEMIFINALS

GIRLS SEMIFINALS

Winning San Diego teams highlighted.

BOYS QUARTERFINALS

GIRLS QUARTERFINALS

First round action in the Southern California regional playoffs saw San Diego’s 36-team Boys and Girls contingent dwindle to 13, which will begin semifinals play tonight.

Wiped out with an 0-8 record in Boys’ Divisions I  & II, it was left to the Open Division’s St. Augustine. The 4 seed Saints rallied to a 63-60 victory over No. 5 Valencia West Hills before a loud, capacity crowd of more than 2,000 and then some.

A drone also floated above the court during pregame warmups and then disappeared as quietly as it arrived.

The host Saints took an early 11-4 lead, fell behind, 19-18, at the end of the first quarter, and then drifted back and forth with deficits up to six points against the tall (University of Texas-bound center Jazz Gardner is 7 feet) Wildcats.  St. Augustine finally went ahead again, 57-56, on Lolo  Rudolph’s basket with 2:50 remaining.

A long looper by Jason Matingou gave the Saints some air at 62-58 and they rode out a tense and scrambling final 1:11.

Most impressive win for San Diego teams  was by coach Robbie Sandoval’s Mount Miguel girls, a 14 seed in D-I.  The Matadors won at No. 3 Los Angeles Windward, 61-60.

La Jolla Country Day’s Open Division No. 2 seed Torreys girls (29-3) will try to repeat a 70-65 victory last month over the Rancho Cucamonga Etiwanda Eagles Saturday night at home.

A story about tonight’s semifinals games and seedings will follow.

San Diego Section winners highlighted:

BOYS

GIRLS