SOUTHERN SECTION PLAYOFFS : No. 1 Huntington Beach Top-Seeded in Girls’ Volleyball

The Huntington Beach girls’ volleyball team, ranked No. 1 in the nation by one publication, is the overwhelming favorite in the Southern Section Division I playoffs, which begin tonight with wild-card matches.

The Oilers, 16-0 overall and Sunset League champions, play a first-round match Thursday at Huntington Beach against the winner of a wild-card match between Redondo Beach Redondo Union (10-7) and Laguna Hills (9-7). The Oilers are headed for a potentially tough quarterfinal match Saturday against Sea View League champion Newport Harbor (10-5), which is ranked No. 7 in Orange County. Newport Harbor plays Thursday against the winner of a wild-card match between Simi Valley Royal (12-4) and Ventura Buena (11-8).

“I don’t think they did us any favors with the seedings,” Huntington Beach Coach Rocky Ciarelli said. “I have a problem believing that there are seven other teams better than [eighth-seeded] Newport Harbor, but that’s the way they do it.”

Second-seeded Dana Hills (10-6), which finished tied for first place in the South Coast League along with Mater Dei and San Clemente, won a coin toss and received the league’s top spot in playoffs. Dana Hills, ranked No. 3 in the county, will play host to ninth-ranked Esperanza (10-4) at 7 p.m. Thursday.

* PLAYOFF PAIRINGS: Complete Southern Section playoffs pairings are on C9.