The San Diego Section boys water polo playoffs are set to start with first-round play Tuesday, Nov. 5, in both Division I and Division III and Thursday, Nov. 7, in Division II. The Open Division quarterfinals are slated to make a splash on Wednesday, Nov. 6.
Championship finals in all four divisions are scheduled Nov. 16 at La Jolla High School.
The Eastlake Titans (No. 1 in Division I) and Hilltop Lancers (No. 2 in Division III) both look to gain favorable seeds. Metro Conference teams floating fairly high in the section power rankings include Southwest (No. 8 in Division III), Montgomery (No. 9 in Division III), Otay Ranch (No. 10 in Division III), Sweetwater (No. 11 in Division III) and Mater Dei Catholic (No. 14 in Division III).
The section seeding meeting is Saturday, Nov. 2.
Both Eastlake and Hilltop have made the division finals in the past, but a double championship would certainly be special this year.
It could happen if the seeding works in their favor.
Eastlake defeated Mar Vista, 20-7, in a Metro-Mesa League game Wednesday night at the spectacularly refurbished Loma Verde Pool to close out regular season play with a 23-5 overall record, 6-0 in league play as this year’s Metro-Mesa League champion and automatic playoff qualifier.
The Titans have been hovering in recent weeks between the top of the Division I rankings and the bottom end of the Open Division rankings. It’s a close call and likely will not be decided until all the late scores are in to determine the final seeding.
As of Tuesday, the Titans were No. 8 in the Open Division but were No. 9 overall (No. 1 in Division I) as of Thursday afternoon.
Either way, Eastlake coach Edgard Espinosa said his team is fine with whatever it is dealt with for post-season play.
“It would be the first time in history that a South Bay team has qualified for the Open Division, if it happens,” Espinosa said. “I think it makes our goals were with a purpose. I’ve talked to the boys about being in the Open Division playing tough teams or winning the Division I title, and they love it. They’ve bought into it.”
The Titans got off to a quick 3-0 lead in Wednesday’s game on goals by junior Juan Castillo and seniors Evan Salang and Hugh Juden.
The team’s four seniors were honored in a pregame ceremony. Joining Salang and Juden on deck for special recognition were goalkeeper Lawson Soukup and Ian Cortes.
Soukup had a memorable send-off by blocking two penalty shots. Salang contributed five goals while Juden scored twice and Cortes had one goal.
Junior Alex Gascon co-led Eastlake in scoring in the game with five goals while Castillo notched three goals.
Also scoring goals for the Titans were sophomores Robert Buell (one), Denny Hirzel (two) and Alejandro Tsubaki (one).
Tanner Kavanagh led Mar Vista with three goals.
Soukup is a four-year letterman in the sport, including three years at Eastlake and one year at Olympian. Castillo is a three-year letter-winner with the Titans.
Both were members of last year’s CIF semifinalist team.
“It’s been a pretty surreal experience seeing this group develop,” Soukup said. “We started in Division II and we could be in the Open Division. It’s pretty surreal. I’ve just been happy to see this team grow.”
“I’m really proud of my team,” Castillo said. “We’ve made hard work pay off.”
San Diego Section Power Rankings
(As of Tuesday, Oct. 29)
Boys Water Polo
Division I: 1. Cathedral Catholic (20-6), 2. La Jolla (18-6), 3. Santana (23-4), 4. Bishop’s (15-10), 5. Torrey Pines (19-7), 6. Canyon Crest Academy (19-6), 7. Carlsbad (1907), 8. Eastlake (22-5), 9. Poway (17-8), 10. Valhalla (14-9), 11. Pt. Loma (17-9), 12. Classical Academy (12-8), 13. San Dieguito Academy (15-9), 14. Patrick Henry (12-9), 15. Helix (14-12), 16. Coronado (6-9), 17. Clairemont (9-14), 18. Mt. Carmel (10-11), 19. Vista (7-17), 20. Rancho Bernardo (6-19)
Division II: 1. La Costa Canyon (16-9), 2. Granite Hills (16-11), 3. Oceanside (14-12), 4. Westview (9-12), 5. Francis Parker (14-12), 6. Steele Canyon (20-7), 7. Mission Bay (14-11), 8. High Tech High San Diego (14-9), 9. San Marcos (9-11), 10. La Jolla Country Day (10-12), 11. El Capitan (15-11), 12. Grossmont (5-18), 13. Del Norte (10-15), 14. Bonita Vista (10-12), 15. El Camino (7-9), 16. Ramona (10-16), 17. Olympian (7-13), 18. Mar Vista (9-12), 19. Pacific Ridge (4-14), 20. Mira Mesa (5-11)
Division III: 1. San Pasqual (17-5), 2. University City (18-9), 3. Hilltop (15-6), 4. Rancho Buena Vista (13-4), 5. Mission Hills (12-6), 6. Scripps Ranch (10-7), 7. West Hills (13-13), 8. Southwest San Diego ((9-4), 9. Montgomery (7-4), 10. Otay Ranch (11-12), 11. Sweetwater (2-2), 12. Army-Navy Academy (8-7), 13. Fallbrook (9-17), 14. Mater Dei Catholic (8-16), 15. Monte Vista (9-18), 16. Valley Center (6-13), 17. CVLCC (6-10), 18. Santa Fe Christian (4-12), 19. Canyon Hills (3-14), 20. Escondido (4-15), 21. Mt. Miguel (2-18), 22. San Ysidro (2-12), 23. Chula Vista (0-11)
