Providence, Burroughs at home to open girls’ soccer playoffs
For the second consecutive season, the Providence High girls’ soccer team captured an Independence League championship.
Aa a result, the Pioneers will host a CIF Southern Section first-round playoff contest.
Providence will be at home at a time to be determined Thursday for its Division VII opener at the Glendale Sports Complex.
When the pairings were first released Monday, Providence was scheduled to play Santa Clarita Valley International. But that opponent wasn’t able to play and the CIF had to make a change.
When the pairings were revised, the Pioneers’ new opponent was Desert Mirage.
Also qualifying for the playoffs is Burroughs, which will host Brentwood at 3 p.m. Tuesday in a Division IV wild-card match at Memorial Field.
Providence (11-1-2) will take on Desert Mirage (12-7-4), which placed fourth in the De Anza League.
“I guess the team we were first scheduled to play didn’t expect to be in the playoffs and they didn’t have enough players,” Providence first-year coach Brett LeQuesne said. “I guess they had only won a few games, so they had to put us against another team.
“We know that things are going to get more difficult for us in the playoffs. But one thing I don’t have to worry about with this team is their hard work. They have worked very hard to accomplish what they have so far.”
With a victory, the Pioneers will advance to the second round Feb. 20 where they would take on Fillmore (10-4-2, Frontier League No. 2) or St. Monica (4-9, Camino Real League No. 3).
The Indians (14-2-3) finished runner-up in league behind Arcadia. Brentwood (8-5-4) is the No. 4 team from the Gold Coast League.
“It’s kind of weird that we have to play a wild card after finishing second in our league,” Burroughs coach Brady Riggs said. “But hey, you have to play all the teams in the division sooner or later. So we will play whoever they put in front of us.
“We are happy to be in the playoffs and we are excited to see what we can do.”
If Burroughs gets past the wild-card round, it will be on the road Thursday for a first-round contest against Santa Yanez (16-1-1, Los Padres League champion).
Twitter: @jefftsports
