Baseball: La Habra, Cal get good good draws for CIF-SS playoffs

By Steve Ramirez, SGVN
twitter.com/DailyNewsSports

The top goal for the La Habra High School baseball team this season was to win its first Freeway League title since 2004.
Now that the Highlanders have accomplished that aspiration, they are turning their attention to a bigger prize — a CIF-Southern Section Division 4 title.
La Habra looks to have a good shot after receiving a favorable draw when the CIF-SS released playoff pairings Monday.
The Highlanders (16-10), one of eight area teams who received bids, open the playoffs at home against either either Northview or Nordhoff on Friday.
Wild-card rounds, which feature La Mirada, El Rancho and La Serna, are today with the first rounds slated for Thursday and Friday. The finals in Divisions 1-3 are slated for June 1 at Dodger Stadium, with Division 4 at UC Riverside on June 2.
All games, except for the championship round, are slated for 3:15 p.m.
“Winning a league title is the one thing we’ve talked about since day one,” said La Habra coach Paul Caffrey, who is in his fourth season with the Highlanders. “Our big emphasis when we got here was to change the culture.
“But when we won the league (last week), our guys didn’t celebrate. They were happy they won it. But they wanted more. We’re not satisfied.”

CIF-SS PLAYOFFS
WILD-CARD ROUND
Today
Division 2

Damien at La Mirada
Division 3
Diamond Bar at La Serna
El Rancho at Los Amigos
Division 4
Sunny Hills at St. Paul
FIRST ROUND
Division 3
Friday

Garden Grove at Montebello
Paramount at California
Ocean View at Whittier
Division 4
Thursday

Nordhoff-Northview winner at La Habra
Sunny Hills-St. Paul winner at Nogales


La Habra is one of eight area teams to make the field, four of which earned first-round home games.
The others include Del Rio League champion California. The Condors (18-7), who swept Whittier last week to win a league championship, host Paramount (17-9), which finished third in the San Gabriel Valley League.
“I believe we’re one of only two league champions who didn’t get a wild-card team in the first round,” California coach Tony Nieto said. “I think that’s a slap in the face to us, because we had a very good nonleague schedule. But it is what it is.
“Paramount i a very good team, and we know to advance and win a CIF title, we have beat some good teams. I feel Paramount is a good team, but so are the Condors.”
Also hosting Division 3 games are Whittier (16-10), which faces Ocean View (13-13), and Montebello (15-9), which meets Garden Grove (18-6). The Cardinals and Oilers, who each finished second in their respective leagues, could face the Nos. 3 and No. 1 seeds, respectively, in the second round.
Four area teams will play wild-card games today.
In Division 2, La Mirada (14-15-1), the area’s lone representative in the division, will host Damien (13-10-1).
The Matadores finished second behind Mayfair in the Suburban League. The Spartans were third in the Sierra League.
In Division 3, La Serna (15-9-1) hosts Diamond Bar (15-8-2). The Lancers won three of four to finish in a tie for third in the Del Rio League. The Brahmas were fourth in the Hacienda League, which was won by top seed Bonita.
El Rancho (13-11) received an at-large bid in Division 3 and will travel to Los Amigos (10-11). The Dons tied for third in the Del Rio League after splitting with Santa Fe last week.
St. Paul (10-11) will host Sunny Hills (14-11-1) in a Division IV wild-card game. The Swordsmen finished third in the Del Rey League, but earned a win over No. 2 seed La Salle last week.
Sunny Hills was third in the Freeway League, behind La Habra and Sonora. The winner faces Valle Vista League champion Nogales on Thursday.

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