Hunters Gather a Final Spot

Canoga Park advanced to its first City Section boys’ soccer championship game with a 4-1 victory over visiting San Pedro in a rain-soaked playoff semifinal Monday.

The top-seeded Hunters (18-1-2) had four players score in the victory, including the 22nd goal of the season by Jorge Paez and the 19th from Allanyire Lopez.

Fifth-seeded San Pedro (16-5-4) was missing three starters -- including goalkeeper Logan Adams -- who were issued red cards in a 3-2 overtime victory over Reseda in a quarterfinal Thursday.

Canoga Park, which was 1-11-1 last season, will play 10th-seeded Los Angeles Jordan (13-1-4) in the title game at East L.A. College on Saturday at 7 p.m.

Jordan, which has never won a City title, defeated host and third-seeded Bell, 3-1, in a shootout Monday. The score was tied, 2-2, after two overtimes.

Bell (14-1-7) will meet San Pedro in a third-place game at East L.A. College on Saturday at 11:30 a.m.

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The fact that Pomona Diamond Ranch is the only one of the four seeded teams to make it to the semifinals of the Southern Section Division I boys’ soccer playoffs has not been lost on Coach Juan Chavez.

He knows that some coaches had questioned the Panthers’ No. 3 seeding. But it is Diamond Ranch (21-3-3) and not top-seeded La Verne Damien, second-seeded Huntington Beach Edison or fourth-seeded Redlands East Valley that is still alive heading into a game today at Anaheim Esperanza (23-4-2) .

“No one has really given us credit,” Chavez said. “Everyone has overlooked us. But you can do all the talking you want. It’s our playing on the field that does our talking.”

-- John Ortega

Girls’ Basketball

A 57-53 loss to Ventura more than two months ago has been eating at Newhall Hart. You know, there were circumstances. Half the team had flu, including leading scorer Ashlee Trebilcock, and it was the only blemish on an otherwise perfect season.

Hart (27-1) gets its rematch tonight as the Indians play host to Ventura (26-1) at Valencia in a Southern Section Division I-A semifinal game.

Waiting on Friday or Saturday at the Pyramid will be the winner between top-seeded San Clemente (24-4) and fourth-seeded Moreno Valley Canyon Springs (24-4), which play tonight at Moreno Valley Valley View. Division I-A is one of only two of the 10 in the Southern Section in which the four seeded teams reached the semifinals.

Other top semifinal games include third-seeded Long Beach Wilson (27-4) against second-seeded Lynwood (24-2) at Cerritos Gahr in Division I-AA at 6:30 p.m., third-seeded Norco (26-3) vs. second-seeded Riverside North (26-4) at Corona in II-AA; and second-seeded Buena (22-6) vs. third-seeded Santa Ana Mater Dei (16-10) at Irvine Woodbridge in II-A.

-- Martin Henderson

Girls’ Soccer

Coach John King sees the similarities between his Anaheim Esperanza team and Mission Viejo Capistrano Valley, the Aztecs’ opponent in a Southern Section Division I semifinal today at Capistrano Valley.

Both teams have defeated two league champions in the playoffs. Esperanza has knocked off Upland from the Baseline League and Aliso Viejo Aliso Niguel from the Sea View League on winning goals by junior forward Joanna Idom. Capistrano Valley has beaten North Hollywood Harvard-Westlake from the Mission League and Los Alamitos from the Sunset League.

Esperanza finished third in the Sunset League, while Capistrano Valley was fourth in the South Coast.

“No one expected us to be here,” King said. “Both teams peaked at the right time.”

Still, King knows that many Southland soccer observers expect the winner of today’s other semifinal between San Clemente and Santa Margarita to take the title.

The top-seeded Tritons, ranked No. 1 by The Times, are reigning co-champions and have not lost a game since early December. Host Santa Margarita, ranked fifth, won the Serra League title and has looked impressive during its postseason run.

-- Elia Powers