The picks have been made; now the pressure is on to produce.
The Mar Vista and Hilltop high school girls water polo teams each received top seeds in their respective divisions as the San Diego Section playoffs got under way this week. Mar Vista is seeded first in Division II while Hilltop is seeded first in Division III.
Both teams received byes to the quarterfinal round. Hilltop (21-5) met eighth-seeded Otay Ranch (8-17) on Thursday at La Jolla High School while Mar Vista (23-6) is scheduled to play ninth-seeded Poway (11-16) Friday at 4 p.m., also at LJHS.
Hilltop High School girls water polo head coach Ernie Medina is well informed about the history of aquatics at the school.
“Hilltop is gunning for its first CIF banner for the girls; the last time the boys won a CIF title was in 1980,” he duly noted after the top-seeded Lady Lancers defeated the eighth-seeded Otay Ranch Lady Mustangs in Thursday’s Division III quarterfinals at La Jolla High School.
Priscila Rude led Hilltop with five goals in Thursday’s game while Sophia Espinoza and Nickie Torres each scored four goals. The Lady Lancers also received single goals from Mildred Monsivias, Ivanna Martinez, Cassandra Monroy Hidalgo and Rayna Moraga 1.
Torres led the victors with nine steals while Rude and Espinoza each recorded three steals. Mosivias, Carreon 2 and Jackie Zatarain each had two steals while Miranda Garcia had one steal.
Espinoza had three exclusions earned while Torres had one exclusion earned.
Espinoza and Carreon each collected three assists while Monsivias and Zatarain each had two assists; Torres, Garcia each had one assist.
Dani Diaz recorded 13 goalie saves while making four steals.
Otay Ranch topped Classical Academy, 8-5 in Tuesday’s first round while Poway upset eighth-seeded San Pasqual (14-16) by a 4-3 score.
San Pasqual finished runner-up in last year’s Division III final.
Mar Vista won this year’s Mesa League championship title with a 9-1 league record; Hilltop finished second in Mesa League play with an 8-2 league record.
The Lady Lancers advance to Monday’s Division III semifinals. Game time is 5:45 p.m. Hilltop will play fourth-seeded Point Loma.
Making a splash
Overall, five Metro Conference teams qualified in the Division III bracket and two more in the Division II field.
South Bay League champion Olympian, seeded third in Division III, tangled with sixth-seeded Escondido (16-10) in Thursday’s quarterfinals.
The Lady Eagles, who finished 10-0 in league play, carried an overall 14-7 record into that match.
Escondido faced off the playoffs with a 6-4 win over 11th-seeded Monte Vista (7-22) in Tuesday’s opening round.
Olympian won, 8-5, to advance to meet second-seeded Serra (10-4) in Monday’s semifinals at LJHS. Game time is 7 p.m.
Cassandra Greene led the Lady Eagles with three goals in Thursday’s quarterfinals while Andrea Loya and Chelsea Samperio each scored two goals. Samperio led Olympian with five steals. Maddie Christiansen blocked nine of 14 Escondido shots.
Bonita Vista, seeded seventh in Division II, captured a high-scoring 23-19 first-round victory in overtime against 10th-seeded Mission Hills in Tuesday’s opening round. The teams were tied 18-18 through four quarters of regulation before the Lady Barons (16-9) reeled off a decisive 5-1 scoring edge in the OT session.
Bonita Vista advances to meet second-seeded Scripps Ranch (19-8) in Friday’s quarterfinals at LJHS. Game time is 7:45 p.m.
Mater Dei Catholic, seeded fifth in Division III, eliminated 12th-seeded Mt. Miguel, 15-4, in Tuesday’s opening round. The Lady Crusaders (11-16) advanced to meet fourth-seeded Point Loma (12-13) in Thursday’s quarterfinals. The Lady Pointers escaped with a 6-5 win to advance to Monday’s semfinals.
Southwest, seeded seventh in Division III, met 10th-seeded Oceanside in Tuesday’s first round, with Oceanside winning 8-7 to advance to meet second-seeded Serra in Thursday’s quarterfinals. Serra won 11-4.
The Division II semifinals are scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 23., also at 5:45 and 7 p.m.
The Division III championship game is scheduled Saturday, Feb. 27, at 12:15 p.m., followed by the Division II title game at 2:30 p.m.
Go green
Hilltop closed out Mesa League play with a 13-3 victory against Bonita Vista on Feb. 11. Junior Sophia Espinoza is Hilltop’s leading scorer with 103 goals in the regular season.
Mar Vista wrapped up Mesa League play with a 14-3 win over Otay Ranch on Feb. 10. Stephanie Morales led the Lady Mariners with five goals and one assist while Isabelle Hastings had three goals and two assists.
San Diego Section
Girls Water Polo Playoffs
Division III
Quarterfinals
Feb. 18 at La Jolla High School
(1) Hilltop 17, (8) Otay Ranch 3
(4) Pt. Loma 6, (5) Mater Dei Catholic 5
(3) Olympian 8, (6) Escondido 5
(2) Serra 11, (10) Oceanside 4
Semifinals
Feb. 22 at La Jolla High School
(1) Hilltop 12, (4) Point Loma 3
(2) Serra 8, (3) Olympian 5
Championship
Feb. 27 at La Jolla High School
(1) Hilltop vs. (2) Serra, 12:15 p.m.
Division II
Quarterfinals
Friday, Feb. 19 at La Jolla High School
(1) Mar Vista 9, (9) Poway 6
(4) Clairemont 8, (5) Del Norte 4
(3) West Hills 7, (11) La Costa Canyon 2
(2) Scripps Ranch 11, (7) Bonita Vista 4
Semifinals
Feb. 23 at La Jolla High School
(1) Mar Vista 4, (4) Clairemont 3
(2) Scripps Ranch 7, (3) West Hills 2
Championship
Feb. 27 at La Jolla High School
(1) Mar Vista vs. (2) Scripps Ranch, 2:30 p.m.
