Nine local teams make CIF girls’ volleyball playoffs
The CIF Southern Section released its high school girls’ volleyball playoff brackets on Saturday.
Corona del Mar, Newport Harbor, Edison and Huntington Beach made the postseason in Division 2, while Laguna Beach and Sage Hill are in Division 3. Costa Mesa qualified in Division 4, Ocean View in Division 7 and Pacifica Christian Orange County in Division 9.
An element of uncertainty accompanied at-large hopefuls, as well as bubble teams in the combined Division 1 and 2 rankings.
Heading into the final week of the regular season, CdM had worked its way up to No. 16 in the combined Division 1 and 2 poll. The Sea Kings projected to be the last team into the Division 1 bracket, but they woke up on Saturday to find themselves with the No. 2 seed in Division 2.
After a turbulent start that saw the Sea Kings begin the season at 9-11 overall, CdM rattled off 15 consecutive wins to finish the regular season, claiming the inaugural Surf League title in the process.
CdM (24-11) is primed to go on a run in the Division 2 playoffs. The Sea Kings have a first-round bye, and in the second round on Saturday, they will host the winner of the first-round match between Palos Verdes (19-11) and Rancho Cucamonga Los Osos (12-16).
A three-way tie for second place in the Surf League necessitated tiebreaker matches to determine the league’s seeding. Los Alamitos won the second-place match over Edison 25-22, 25-18, with Huntington Beach winding up as the league’s fourth-place team.
All four teams in the Surf League made the playoffs, as Edison and Huntington Beach received at-large selections in Division 2.
First-round matches in all divisions except for Division 1 will be played on Thursday. Edison (16-14) will travel to co-Wave League champion Newport Harbor (10-20) in the first round.
In a Sunset Conference crossover match earlier this season, the Sailors topped the visiting Chargers 15-25, 25-23, 25-21, 18-25, 15-11. It was Newport Harbor’s first win over Edison since a five-set road win on Oct. 13, 2014.
Huntington Beach (13-12) will be at Esperanza (21-9). The Aztecs finished second in the Crestview League.
Newport Harbor handed Laguna Beach its first league loss since 2005 this season, but the Breakers beat the Sailors in the second half of league. In doing so, Laguna Beach extended its streak of league titles to 14.
Laguna Beach (14-12), the No. 2 seed in Division 3, will open the playoffs with a home match against Murrieta Mesa (13-10), an at-large selection from the Southwestern League.
The Breakers also hosted the Rams in the second round last year. Laguna Beach beat Murrieta Mesa 25-19, 25-23, 25-27, 25-23.
San Joaquin League champion Sage Hill (12-9) will host Mission Viejo (6-13) to begin its Division 3 run. The Lightning won their third straight league crown this season.
Costa Mesa (16-12) finished second in the Orange Coast League. The Mustangs have made the postseason for a third consecutive season. They will open the Division 4 playoffs at St. Margaret’s (16-10), the second-place team out of the San Joaquin League.
Ocean View (20-3), which repeated as Golden West League champion this year, earned the fourth seed in Division 7. The Seahawks have won 14 in a row, and they will host the winner of Anaheim (15-17) and Saddleback (13-12) in Tuesday’s wild-card round.
In the regular season, Ocean View swept Anaheim 25-19, 25-16, 25-15.
Pacifica Christian Orange County (11-8) will travel to Los Angeles New Covenant Academy (10-3) for its first-round match in the Division 9 bracket.
Twitter: @ProfessorTurner
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