De La Salle has moved to the No. 1 spot in the Bay Area Preps HQ boys soccer Top 10, meaning the Spartans and neighboring Carondelet completed the regular season atop the boys’ and girls’ polls. Impressive.
The surging East Bay Athletic League boys’ and girls’ champions have each won 11 straight games entering Wednesday’s first round of the North Coast Section Division I playoffs.
Season-long Bay Area boys No. 1 Montgomery (19-0-1) drops a spot after a surprising 1-1 draw against Rancho Cotate to close the North Bay League-Oak season. The Vikings, who saw their 29-match regular season win streak end, still earned the No. 1 seed in NCS Division 1, with De La Salle at No. 2. The Spartans get a slight nod in the Bay Area rankings based on strength of schedule and current form.
Montgomery coach Jon Schwan offered no excuses after the draw.
“We created chances to score throughout the game, but we just didn’t capitalize on our opportunities,” Schwan told The Press Democrat. “Nobody is crying for us and we aren’t crying for ourselves.”
Carondelet, the No. 1 seed in NCS Division I and reigning girls section champion, completed the East Bay Athletic League season with a hard-fought 1-0 win over California. Sophomore Annaliese Giusto scored the winner assisted by junior Jordyn Young.
Monte Vista, which held the No. 1 Bay Area girls spot most of the season, fell to rivals Carondelet and San Ramon Valley in two of its last three league games. Thus, the Mustangs dropped to No. 3 in the Bay Area behind new No. 2 Archbishop Mitty, but Monte Vista can still make amends in the postseason.
HEADY SPARTANS MARCHING IN LOCKSTEP: De La Salle coach Derricke Brown really likes this bunch. The Spartans are playing elite team defense.
“Team is playing well,” Brown said via email. “It’s one of the better groups that we’ve had with regards to team chemistry. I’m really enjoying the time this season with all of the players. It’s actually a really smart group as well and I think they are aware of the urgent situation that we now face … It’s playoff time. We can celebrate the regular season at the team banquet later, for now it’s all about making it to have practice on Thursday.”
Danny McGowan scored the winner for De La Salle in the 1-0 triumph over tough host California, which gave an inspired effort on senior night.
MIGHTY MITTY: The Archbishop Mitty girls team put the finishing touches on its West Catholic Athletic League title with a 1-0 win over St. Ignatius on Tuesday.
Since losing to Saint Francis on Jan. 15, Mitty ran off seven consecutive wins, outscoring opponents 22-3 including five shutouts.
“We clinched the league last week and are playing really good soccer right now,” Mitty coach JT Hanley said via email. “Our training sessions have been really sharp and competitive and the things we’re working on in training are turning up in the matches,” Hanley shares. “Most importantly, the girls are enjoying themselves right now and playing good football. I think their mentality is right where it needs to be heading into the postseason.
BELLS DROP WCAL FINALE: Bellarmine College Prep entered the week in first place in the tough WCAL circuit after blanking Mitty 1-0 and Serra 5-0 to extend its winning streak to four and unbeaten run to nine (7-0-2). But Sacred Heart Cathedral upended the Bells 4-0 on Tuesday, the fourth win in a row for the Fightin’ Irish, to wind up tied with the Bells for first place.
NCS HOT SPOTS: Berkeley and San Ramon Valley high schools will be action spots to open the Division I playoffs on Wednesday night. The defending boys champion Yellowjackets, seeded fifth, will host No. 11 seed Freedom at 5 p.m., and the No. 5 seed Berkeley girls will host No. 12 Logan, in a battle of league champs, at 7. Both Berkeley teams won league titles this season.
San Ramon Valley will also do the double as the No. 3 seeded Wolves boys will host No. 14 Castro Valley, after the No. 6 San Ramon Valley girls will face No. 11 College Park at 5 p.m. The Wolves girls knocked off Monte Vista 2-0 in the teams’ EBAL finales, thanks to first-half goals by sophomore Courtney Wong and junior Madilyn Lee.
Montgomery will also have a soccer doubleheader in Round 1. The boys will host No. 15 seed Foothill at 7 p.m., after the Vikings girls, seeded first in Division 2, will host Washington at 5 p.m.
KNIGHTS MAKE IT RIGHT: Las Lomas boys soccer team locked up the DAL title with a run of three consecutive shutouts to finish the league season, including a 1-0 triumph over strong Acalanes, which finished tied for second with Clayton Valley. How big was this for the Knights? Well, they earned just a third league championship in the 51-year history of the program. After a 2-1 loss at Ygnacio Valley on Jan. 24, the Knights made it happen with a five-game unbeaten streak. Las Lomas enters the NCS Division II playoffs as the No. 1 seed, and Redwood is the No. 2 seed.
Records through Feb. 18
1. Carondelet (18-4-1)
2. Archbishop Mitty (16-1-3)
3. Monte Vista (14-2-2)
4, Amador Valley (13-2-2)
5, Los Gatos (14-1-4)
6, Liberty (13-5-1)
7, Montgomery (16-3-0)
8. Cardinal Newman (13-3-1)
9, Berkeley (15-4-3)
10 (t), St. Ignatius (9-3-6), San Ramon Valley (10-6-2), Maria Carrillo (12-7-1)
Records through Feb. 17
1. De La Salle (19-1-1)
2. Montgomery (19-0-1)
3. San Ramon Valley (18-3-3)
4. Vintage (16-3-0)
5, Sacred Heart Cathedral Prep (15-2-3)
6. Bellarmine College Prep (15-3-2)
7. Watsonville (15-3-2)
8, Archbishop Mitty (13-2-4)
9, Las Lomas (19-1-1)
10 (t) Monte Vista (11-4-5), Berkeley (14-4-4), Clayton Valley Charter (16-1-4).
