They’ll scramble for the Pac-5 wild-card berth

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With one week to go in the Southern Section football regular season, the race is on for the lone wild-card berth in the Pac-5 Divison, the toughest in the section.

Los Angeles Loyola, Santa Margarita and Los Alamitos could be battling it out for the wild-card spot. The decision, which will be made by the Southern Section office, will be based on five criteria in which points are rewarded.

Schools earn three points if they beat an opponent in head-to-head competition. They earn one point for a better overall record, one point for strength of league, one point for strength against common opponents and two points for strength of schedule.

Loyola would appear to have an edge if it can defeat La Puente Bishop Amat in its finale because the Cubs have played a stronger overall schedule than Santa Margarita or Los Alamitos. The Cubs’ opponents are a combined 54-24-2, which could help them overcome an inferior overall record. Loyola would be 5-5 with a win, while Santa Margarita (currently 4-4) and Los Alamitos (currently 6-3) can both finish with better records. Santa Margarita’s opponents are 48-21, and Los Alamitos’ opponents are 40-40-1.

The Pac-5 is also facing a potential problem in that the Trinity League could end up finishing in a three-way tie for first place, forcing a series of coin flips to decide the final positions for playoff berth purposes.

Mater Dei, ranked No. 1 in the division most of the season, would need to beat Servite on Friday to earn a share of the Trinity League championship (it’s pretty much a given that Orange Lutheran will beat JSerra the same night). But the Monarchs still could drop to third after the coin flips, taking them out of consideration for a top seed.

If Servite wins, it finishes No. 1, followed by Orange Lutheran and Mater Dei.

-- Eric Sondheimer

-- Image from www.keithmurphy.info