The Eastlake High School girls volleyball team hosted its annual senior night ceremony last Friday in the campus gymnasium. The game marked the final regular season contest prior to the start of the San Diego Section playoffs.
Besides honoring its senior players, Eastlake also was out to record an undefeated Mesa League campaign, which it did by defeating visiting Mar Vista by scores of 25-12, 25-10, 25-20.
The Titans (12-0 in league play, 34-7 overall) had clinched the league title the previous week.
Mar Vista finished 4-8 in league, 8-14 overall.
Mater Dei Catholic finished in second place in the league standings with a 7-3 record, 25-7 overall, while Otay Ranch finished in third place with a 7-5 record, 21-16 overall.
EHS head coach Erwin Macalaguim described his team, which he ranks among the top three in his 13 years as coach, as being aggressive on the playing court.
The Titans recorded three-game sweeps in 10 of their 12 league matches this season.
Five seniors were honored last Friday in a pregame ceremony. They included Breanna Agustin, Alayna Edquid, Lauren Clifton, Madi Bogle and Sonya Googins.
The Titans will end the season in the state playoffs, as Open Division teams now receive seeds into the divisional field.
Eastlake received the No. 5 seed to make the top eight cut for the Open Division playoffs.
Eastlake will open the playoffs at fourth-seeded Bishop’s (27-9) on Saturday, Nov. 2, at 5 p.m.
The winner advances to semifinal play on Wednesday, Nov. 6.
Torrey Pines (33-2) is seeded first, followed by Cathedral Catholic (28-4), La Costa Canyon (27-13) and Bishop’s.
La Jolla (25-8) is seeded sixth, La Jolla Country Day (22-6) is seeded seventh and Del Norte (22-11) is seeded eighth.
It’s an elite group.
The Open Division championship game is scheduled Nov. 9 at Cathedral Catholic High School.
The higher-seeded school will host quarterfinal- and semifinal-round matches.
CIF playoffs
The Division I playoffs, which started on Wednesday, are followed by quarterfinals on Saturday and semifinals on Nov. 6. The championship game is scheduled Nov. 9 at Cathedral Catholic.
Otay Ranch and Olympian (7-13) were seeded 13th and 14th, respectively, in the 16-team single-elimination field.
Otay Ranch lost 25-21, 25-10, 25-16 to fourth-seeded Canyon Crest Academy (18-15) while Olympian lost 25-12. 25-18, 25-22 to third-seeded Carlsbad (29-11).
Santa Fe Christian (16-10) received the No. 1 seed and easily swept past 16th-seeded Ramona 25-6, 25-11, 25-19 to advance to Saturday’s quarterfinals.
The Division III playoffs, which were also scheduled to start on Wednesday, are followed by quarterfinals on Saturday and semifinals on Nov. 6. The championship game is scheduled Nov. 9 at Cathedral Catholic.
Six South County teams received playoff berths: No. 1 Mater Dei Catholic, No. 7 Bonita Vista (13-16), No. 10 Ocean View Christian Academy (13-4), No. 11 Chula Vista Learning Community Charter (15-5), No. 12 Mar Vista and No. 13 Montgomery (16-15).
Mater Dei Catholic swept 16th-seeded El Centro Southwest (19-15) by scores of 25-10 25-16, 25-20 to advance to Saturday’s quarterfinals against ninth-seeded San Pasqual (17-19).
Bonita Vista eliminated Ocean View Christian by scores of 25-14, 25-12, 25-18 to advance to Saturday’s quarterfinals against second-seeded Tri-City Christian (27-8).
Montgomery pulled off the upset of the night by defeating fourth-seeded Mira Mesa (20-13) in five games to advance to Saturday’s quarterfinals against fifth-seeded Coronado (17-17), which eliminated Mar Vista by scores of 25-13, 25-13, 25-21.
Sixth-seeded Helix (20-9) eliminated CVLCC by scores of 25-17, 25-12, 25-16
The Division IV playoffs, which started Tuesday, are followed by quarterfinals on Friday, Nov. 1 and semifinals on Tuesday, Nov. 5. The championship game is Nov. 8 at Canyon Crest Academy.
Four area teams earned playoff berths: No. 3 High Tech High Chula Vista, No. 4 Sweetwater, No. 10 Southwest and No. 18 San Diego Academy.
SDA (6-11) dropped a play-in game to St. Joseph Academy, 3-2, on Monday while Sweetwater and Southwest both lost first-round matches.
Sweetwater (22-13) dropped a 3-0 decision to 13th-seeded Hoover (7-16) while seventh-seeded Valley Center (11-14) swept Southwest (13-15).
HTH Chula Vista (16-15) was the only local team to advance after capturing a highly competitive match-up against 14th-seeded Foothills Christian.
The Bruins won the first two games 25-13 and 25-20 but the Knights evened the series with 25-22 and 25-21 victories in the next two games.
HTH Chula Vista won the deciding fifth game 18-16.
The Bruins will host sixth-seeded Oceanside (10-19) on Friday at 7 p.m.
Escondido Charter (9-7) received the No. 1 seed in the division.
Sweetwater and Southwest tied for the South Bay League lead with 8-2 records while San Yisdro (11-2) and Hilltop (10-121) both finished two games back at 6-4.
“It was a challenge to be able to get this co-championship,” SuHI head coach Erick Hernandez said. “Many teams had players and systems in place that made it challenging. The girls had to learn that they needed to handle their own destiny by going out and playing at maximum effort every game. We finished league winning four straight games with a 3-0 score. One more loss at the end of the year would have taken us out of contention since Southwest also had the same record.
“Most of our seniors have been with us for at least three years and had known what it was like having the least amount of wins three years ago and improving to end their high school career as league champs. This year will carry over to the next couple of years since we have seven underclassmen (three all-league) coming back next year.”
The Division V playoffs, which also started on Tuesday, are followed by quarterfinals on Nov. 1, and semifinals on Tuesday, Nov. 5. The championship game is scheduled Nov. 8 at Canyon Crest Academy.
Bayfront Charter (13-10) received the No. 4 seed and a bye to Friday’s quarterfinals. Calvary Christian Academy (8-12) received the No. 10 seed and opened the playoffs with a 26-24, 25-23, 25-21 setback to seventh-seeded High Tech High North County (12-12) on Tuesday.
West Shores (16-4) received the No. 1 seed in the division.
Fifth-seeded El Cajon Valley (14-17) ended Bayfront Charter’s playoff odyssey with a sweep on Friday to advance to the Tuesday’s semifinals against top-seeded West Shores.
Top story lines:
No. 13 Lady Aztecs upset fifth-seeded Coronado, 3-0, in Division III quarterfinals on Nov. 2, advance to semifinals against top-seeded Mater Dei Catholic on Wednesday, Nov. 6. The winner meets either second-seeded Tri-City Christian or sixth-seeded Helix in Saturday’s division championship game (Nov. 9) at Cathedral Catholic High School.
Meter Dei Catholic swept ninth-seeded San Pasqual in the quarterfinals while Tri-City Christian eliminated Bonita Vista in four games.
Fourth-seeded Bishop’s captured a 3-1 decision from fifth-seeded Eastlake in Saturday’s Open Division quarterfinals to advance to Wednesday’s semifinal (Nov. 6) against top-seeded Torrey Pines.
Third-seeded HTH Chula Vista swept six-seeded Oceanside in last Friday’s Division IV quarterfinals to advance to Tuesday’s semifinals (NOv. 5) against seventh-seeded Valley Center. The winner advances to Friday’s championship game at Canyon Crest Academy against either top-seeded Escondido Charter or 12th-seeded Holtville.
Semifinals
Division III: Top-seeded Mater Dei Catholic (30-7) defeated 13th-seeded Montgomery 25-18, 25-12, 25-11 to advance to Saturday’s division championship against second-seeded Tri-City Christian (11-9) at 11 a.m. at Cathedral Catholic High School.
Division IV: Third-seeded High Tech High Chula Vista defeated seventh-seeded Valley Center in five games 25-13, 23-25, 17-25, 25-18, 15-13 to advance to Friday’s division championship against 12th-seeded Holtville at 7 p.m. at Canyon Crest Academy.
BOYS WATER POLO:
The San Diego Section playoffs will include four divisions: Open Division, Division I, Division II and Division III. First-round games in Division I and Division III are scheduled Tuesday, Nov. 5, and Division II on Thursday, Nov. 7.
Tuesday, Nov. 5
Division I
(7) Mar Vista vs. (10) Torrey Pines, 3:45 p.m. at Southwestern College
(11) Mater Dei Catholic at (6) Grossmont, 6 p.m.
Division III
(6) High Tech High San Diego vs. (11) Olympian, 5:45 p.m. at Southwestern College
(5) Hilltop vs. (12) Escondido, 7:45 p.m. at Southwestern College
Thursday, Nov. 7
Division II
(8) Eastlake vs. (9) Mission Hills, 7:45 p.m. at Southwestern College
GIRLS FIELD HOCKEY:
The section playoffs face off Nov. 9 for Division I and Division II teams and Nov. 12 for Open Division teams. Championship games in the three divisions are scheduled Nov. 16 at Serra High School.
