League Champions Seeded in Volleyball

Three county teams were seeded among the top four in the Southern Section Division I-AA girls’ volleyball playoff pairings, which were announced Sunday using a new divisional alignment.

South Coast League champion Dana Hills (17-3) was seeded second, Pacific Coast League champion Laguna Beach (19-2) third and Sea View League champion Newport Harbor (14-3) fourth in Division I-AA. All three received byes for Tuesday’s first round and will host second-round matches at 7 p.m. Thursday.

The new divisional alignment groups schools into 10 divisions according to their 1995-96 enrollment. Division I-AA is composed of the largest schools and Division V-A, the smallest.

Teams could elect to play in higher divisions than their enrollment dictates, but not lower.

In the past, teams were grouped according to the strength of their league. The new format lumps perennial powerhouses with teams that played in lesser divisions in the past.

In a Division I-AA first-round match, for instance, Esperanza (11-4) hosts Rancho Cucamonga (9-4) at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Last year, Esperanza played in Division I and Rancho Cucamonga played in Division III.

What’s more, although the divisions were aligned by enrollment, teams were selected on the basis of league standing and overall record. As a result, several teams that were ranked high in their divisions did not make the playoffs because they did not place high enough in their leagues or have the requisite .500 overall record.

“I think we have some teams in our area that took fourth [place] in their leagues that are very strong teams that didn’t make it. It’s unfortunate,” said Fountain Valley Coach Lori Biller. “Now, coaches are going to go for easy preseason schedules so they can have a .500 record. As a coach you don’t want to do that.”

In Division II-AA, Marina was ranked fifth last week, ahead of four other teams that made the playoffs. Marina, 5-8 overall, finished 4-6 and in fourth place in Sunset League.

Sunset League champion Fountain Valley, 14-2 overall, was top-seeded in Division I-A, followed by Capistrano Valley, 11-3 overall and 8-2 in South Coast League.

Fountain Valley, Capistrano Valley and Irvine received byes for Tuesday’s first round and also will host second-round matches at 7 p.m. Thursday.

Huntington Beach (15-2), the top-ranked team in the county throughout most of the season, is seeded second in Division II-AA behind Channel League champion Santa Barbara (16-3).

San Clemente, 6-10 overall and 5-5 in South Coast League, is seeded third. Woodbridge, 8-8 overall, 3-7 and in fifth place in Sea View League, is seeded fourth.