CIF-Southern Section playoffs: are major changes upcoming?

Below is a letter that CIF-SS Commissioner Rob Wigod sent out on Thursday, March 26. Below, I will have my take.

wigod letter 3-26-15

I don’t fault the CIF-SS for exploring this option, because ultimately, the CIF-SS serves its member schools. So if member schools want it, then that’s what they’re supposed to do.
An exact proposal won’t be due until the fall, so several details aren’t available yet, but it sounds like teams could be put into playoff divisions based on their individual results, not league placement. That has already happened to some extent for basketball.
In some ways I like the idea of schools being placed into divisions based on that year’s results (and maybe recent past?), so that teams aren’t able to take advantage of a low division as a result of having poor seasons in recent years.
It’s no secret that schools are placed into leagues based primarily on football. Why were San Bernardino and Pacific shipped out of the San Andreas League and Rim of the World and Jurupa Hills brought in? Football. As a result, some schools are misplaced in leagues in sports other than football.
But I could see issues with exactly how this might work. I will admit most of the plan isn’t known, so that’s a big reason why there are more questions than answers.
But, if you put teams in playoff divisions based on their strength, could you see teams that are not putting full effort into winning games at the end of the season? What if a team, in football say, is the No. 16 team in the top division entering the season’s final week, with a playoff spot already guaranteed? What’s to prevent them from resting starters, perhaps losing that last game and dropping down to the next bracket where they could be the top seed and favorite in a lower division?
It seems possible.
And what about at-large spots? Assuming there would still be at-large spots for the playoffs, would those all go to schools in the top leagues? It seems like Jurupa Hills’ run to the 2012 CIF-SS East Valley Division semifinals from a fourth-place finish in the Mountain Valley League might be a thing of the past.
I’ll remain open-minded to the idea, but there are at least three things I don’t want to see happen: don’t devalue league play, don’t shut out the small schools and don’t make it a clear advantage to lose games late in the season.

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CIF-SS football playoff pairings

OK, here are Eastern, Inland, Central and West Valley Division playoffs. Not all alternate sites not available yet, although I’ve heard Barstow-Norte Vista will be played Thursday.

INLAND DIVISION
North vs. No. 1 Redlands East Valley at Citrus Valley HS; Jurupa Hills at Elsinore; Paloma Valley at Rancho Verde; Citrus Valley at No. 4 Citrus Hill; Tahquitz vs. No. 3 Riverside Poly at King HS, Cajon at San Gorgonio; San Jacinto at Carter; Rim at No. 2 Heritage.
CENTRAL DIVISION
La Canada at No. 1 Colony, Summit at Glendora at Citrus College; Colton at Charter Oak; Claremont at No. 4 San Marino; Bonita at No. 3 Kaiser; Chaffey at West Covina; Los Altos at South Hills; Don Lugo at No. 2 Monrovia.
EASTERN DIVISION
Apple Valley at No. 1 La Quinta; Patriot at Vista Del Lago; Barstow at Norte Vista (Thursday); Palm Desert at No. 4 Serrano; Hesperia at No. 3 La Sierra; Moreno Valley at Palm Springs; Rubidoux at Silverado; Cathedral City at No. 2 Oak Hills.
WEST VALLEY DIVISION
San Juan Hills at No. 1 Upland; Hart at Edison; Canyon Country Canyon at Vista Murrieta; Newport Harbor at No. 4 Tesoro; Great Oak at No. 3 Chino Hills; El Toro at Los Alamitos; Rancho Cucamonga at Valencia; Temecula Valley at No. 2 Mission Viejo.
NORTHWEST DIVISION
Mission Prep at No. 1 Maranatha; Arrowhead Christian at Cantwell Sacred Heart; Heritage Christian at Templeton; Rio Hondo Prep vs. No. 4 Big Bear at Big Bear MS, Saturday 1:30 p.m.; Riverside Notre Dame at No. 3 Shadow Hills; Bishop Montgomery at Nipomo; Cerritos Valley Christian at Linfield Christian; Morro Bay at No. 2 Pasadena Poly.

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Football playoff quarterfinals picks

I hadn’t recapped my picks the last two weeks, but I went 20-8 with one exact margin in Week 10 (Big Bear winning by 42 points) and 20-4 in the first week of the playoffs. That gives me a record of 287-74 with the margin exactly correct seven times.

Here are my CIF quarterfinals picks

CENTRAL DIVISION
Kaiser 21, Paloma Valley 17
Riverside Poly 35, Colony 28
EAST VALLEY DIVISION
Jurupa Hills 48, Shadow Hills 21
Western Christian 35, Santa Clara 24
Citrus Valley 28, Big Bear 24
Rim of the World 27, St. Margaret’s 19
EASTERN DIVISION
San Gorgonio 48, Tahquitz 24
Oak Hills 42, Norte Vista 31
Citrus Hill 21, Apple Valley 10
Serrano 28, Moreno Valley 7
INLAND DIVISION
Norco 35, Rancho Cucamonga 31
Corona Santiago 31, Upland 28
NORTHEAST DIVISION
Rio Hondo Prep 45, Excelsior 17

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Oak Hills holds on to beat Ontario Christian 5-4 in CIF-SS Division 5 semifinals

That’s the final out of Oak Hills’ CIF-SS Division 5 semifinal win over Ontario Christian, 5-4.

Although it was a tight game, there was not nearly as much drama as Ontario Christian’s quarterfinal win over Templeton when the Knights recorded a triple play and got the benefit of a call when a Templeton runner failed to touch home plate.

This time, the big difference was extra-base hits. Oak Hills had nine hits, including four doubles and a home run. Ontario Christian had seven hits, all singles.

Here is how things shape up for Sun baseball and softball teams in the CIF-SS Finals.

Continue reading “Oak Hills holds on to beat Ontario Christian 5-4 in CIF-SS Division 5 semifinals” »

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VIDEO/SCORES: Kaiser’s Chris Mathewson finishes off 2-hitter with strikeout; CIF-SS updates

In the above video, Kaiser’s Chris Mathewson strikes out the side in the seventh of a 3-0 victory over Nogales on Friday. Mathewson struck out 10 in the two-hitter.

Here are other San Bernardino County baseball scores on Friday, with an updated upcoming schedule for baseball and softball

BASEBALL
Friday’s results
DIVISION 2
Redlands East Valley 3, Arcadia 1
Yucaipa 1, Crescenta Valley 0 (8 inn.)
Santa Barbara 6, Redlands 3
DIVISION 4
Anaheim Savanna 9, Fontana 1
Santa Ana Calvary Chapel 4, Chino 0
Laguna Beach 5, Victor Valley 4
Pico Rivera El Rancho 3, Don Lugo 2
El Segundo 5, Granite Hills 1
Kaiser 3, La Puente Nogales 0
DIVISION 6
Irvine Crean Lutheran 13, Mesa Grande Academy 0
Irvine Tarbut V’Torah 7, Excelsior 4
Lake Isabella Kern Valley 7, Upland Christian 1
Capistrano Valley Christian 20, Joshua Springs 1
Lebec Frazier Mountain 14, Academy of Academic Excellence 7
Pasadena Poly 6, Bloomington Christian 0
Tuesday’s local schedule
Games 3;15 p.m. except where noted
Continue reading “VIDEO/SCORES: Kaiser’s Chris Mathewson finishes off 2-hitter with strikeout; CIF-SS updates” »

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Thursday’s San Bernardino County CIF-SS baseball and softball scores

Thursday’s San Bernardino County first-round baseball and softball playoff scores. Divisions 2, 4 and 6 in baseball play Friday.

BASEBALL
Thursday’s Results
FIRST ROUND
DIVISION 3
Peninsula 9, Carter 0
La Quinta 4, San Gorgonio 0
DIVISION 5
Riverside Woodcrest Christian 5, Hesperia 0
Citrus Valley 11, Beaumont 0
Ontario Christian 5, Apple Valley 4 (12 inn.)
Big Bear 6, Jurupa Hills 4
Oak Hills 7, Desert Hot Springs 0
DIVISION 7
Sylmar Concordia 4, University Prep 3
Riverside Prep 26, Pilgrim 1
Temecula Prep 19, Academy of Careers and Exploration 6
SOFTBALL
Thursday’s Results
FIRST ROUND
DIVISION 1

Continue reading “Thursday’s San Bernardino County CIF-SS baseball and softball scores” »

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San Bernardino County first round matchups in baseball and softball

After Tuesday’s wild-card contests, here are the first round matchups involving Sun teams, with the Sun teams in bold

BASEBALL

All games 3:15 p.m. except where noted

THURSDAY”S GAMES

DIVISION 3

Rolling Hills Estates Peninsula at Carter; San Gorgonio at La Quinta.

DIVISION 5

Hesperia at Riverside Woodcrest Christian; Beaumont at Citrus Valley; Apple Valley at Ontario Christian; Jurupa Hills at Big Bear; Desert Hot Springs at Oak Hills.

DIVISION 7

University Prep at Sylmar Concordia; Los Angeles Pilgrim at Riverside Prep; Academy of Careers and Exploration at Temecula Prep.

FRIDAY
DIVISION 2

Arcadia at Redlands East Valley; Yucaipa vs. Crescenta Valley at Stengel Field, 6 p.m.; Burbank Burroughs at Los Osos; Santa Barbara at Redlands.

DIVISION 4

Fontana at Anaheim Savanna; Santa Ana Calvary Chapel at Chino; Victor Valley at Laguna Beach; Pico Rivera El Rancho at Don Lugo; El Segundo at Granite Hills; La Puente Nogales at Kaiser.

DIVISION 6

Mesa Grande Academy at Irvine Crean Lutheran; Tarbut V’Torah vs. Excelsior at Mojave Vista park, 2 p.m.; Kern Valley at Upland Christian; Joshua Springs at Capistrano Valley Christian; Academy of Academic Excellence at Lebec Frazier Mountain; Bloomington Christian at Pasadena Poly, 4 p.m.

SOFTBALL
THURSDAY’S GAMES

DIVISION 1

Continue reading “San Bernardino County first round matchups in baseball and softball” »

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CIF-SS football quarterfinals predictions

OK, here we go with quarterfinals predictions. After last week, when Summit lost (among others) some of my predictions were killed. But, let’s look forward and not back, shall we?

By the way, I am scheduled to be at the Rim of the World game, so you can follow my tweets from there: twitter.com/PeteMarshallLaw.

This week’s predictions, with county teams in bold

INLAND DIVISION
Vista Murrieta 45, Norco 20
Rancho Cucamonga 24, Charter Oak 21
Upland 28, Redlands 24
Corona Centennial 48, Murrieta Valley 34
CENTRAL DIVISION
Paloma Valley 24, Colony 17
Elsinore 42, Rancho Verde 38
Kaiser 21, Temescal Canyon 17
Heritage 38, Arlington 17
EASTERN DIVISION
Citrus Hill 48, Rialto 22
Oak Hills 31, Tahquitz 27
Serrano 31, Beaumont 20
Carter 27, Ridgecrest Burroughs 10
EAST VALLEY DIVISION
Ontario Christian 41, Big Bear 27
Citrus Valley 26, Jurupa Hills 20
Banning 49, Linfield Christian 24
Rim of the World 35, St. Margaret’s 31

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Saturday’s San Bernardino County playoff scores: football, volleyball and water polo

Here are Saturday’s prep playoff scores for San Bernardino County

FOOTBALL
First Round
EAST VALLEY DIVISION
Big Bear 27, Brethren Christian 20 (John Hawkins scores go-ahead TD with 3:36 left. Big Bear is at Ontario Christian next Friday)

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
Quarterfinals
DIVISION 2AA
Los Osos 3, Downey 0 (Los Osos is at No. 2 South Torrance in semifinals Tuesday)
DIVISION 2A
Yorba Linda 3, Serrano 2
DIVISION 3AA
Rim of the World 3, La Serna 0 (Top-seeded Rim is at No. 4 Chatsworth Sierra Canyon in the semifinals Tuesday)
DIVISION 3A
Aquinas 3, San Gabriel 1 (Aquinas hosts No. 1-seeded San Juan Capistrano St. Margaret’s in the semifinals Tuesday)
Ontario Christian 3, Crean Lutheran 0 (No. 2 Ontario Christian hosts No. 3 Newport Beach Sage Hill in the semifinals Tuesday)
DIVISION 4AA
Hemet 3, Colony 1
DIVISION 5A
St. Monica Academy 3, Lake Arrowhead Christian 0

BOYS WATER POLO
DIVISION 4
Cerritos 20, Upland 7
Los Osos 16, Santa Monica 5 (plays Arroyo Grande in semifinals Wednesday at Woollett Aquatics Center, 2 p.m.)
DIVISION 7
Citrus Valley 11, Segerstrom 6 (plays Brentwood on the road in semifinals Wednesday at an alternate site)
Don Lugo 9, Yorba Linda 6 (Don Lugo hosts Cypress in semifinals Wednesday at an alternate site)

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