Clovis West still looking strong after Nike TOC win, but Archbishop Mitty, Stockton St. Mary’s and Long Beach Poly are right behind. Moving up into the top eight this week, meanwhile, is Oakland Bishop O’Dowd.
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1. (2) Clovis West (Fresno) 12-1
The Golden Eagles have a one-point OT loss to Archbishop Mitty in the Iolani Classic title game but they beat Miami Country Day 67-45 in the Nike TOC Joe Smith Division title game and that team beat a Colorado Grandview team that beat Mitty in the opening round.
2. (1) Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) 9-2
It was an overtime win over Clovis West at the Iolani tourney and not as if it was a blowout. That certainly makes it easier to reverse the No. 1 and No. 2 rankings after the Nike TOC.
Freshman Amaya Oliver waits for ball to drop through the net for St. Mary’s of Stockton during game at the West Coast Jamboree. Photo: Harold Abend.
3. (4) St. Mary’s (Stockton) 11-2
We moved up the Rams just ahead of Long Beach Poly on the ticker last week and it stays that way after they rolled to the Platinum Division title of the West Coast Jamboree.
4. (3) Long Beach Poly (Long Beach) 7-3
The Jackrabbits took Clovis West to overtime at the Iolani Classic and they only lost 63-58 to Miami Country Day but then they lost again at the TOC to Arizona Seton Catholic>
5. (7) Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth) 11-1
The Trailblazers took a close loss to an Oregon South Salem team at the Nike Interstate Shootout in Oregon that is one of Oregon’s top teams but bounced back to beat Southridge of Beaverton, another Oregon powerhouse Southridge.
6. (8) Harvard –Westlake (North Hollywood) 12-1
Even with a four-point loss to Ventura, it’s still a bump up for head coach Melissa Hearlihy and her girls after they have also posted wins over Valencia, Fairmont Prep, Windward and Santa Ana Mater Dei. They also just won the Title IX Tournament in Washington D.C. against a solid field.
7. (9) Cardinal Newman (Santa Rosa) 8-2
At this point in the rankings, no team is without a blemish and the Newman girls’ one is in a loss to an up and down Salesian team that was No. 14 in the last rankings. The D4 state champs from last year have two wins over D3 champ Sacred Heart Cathedral and one vs. Open Division champ Chaminade.
8. (19) Bishop O’Dowd (Oakland) 8-2
The Dragons’ two losses to Mitty are decisive but once you get past the top four teams everyone has holes. Since the last rankings, O’Dowd has won the Mike Desper Division of the Nike TOC that included wins over previous No. 12 Fairmont Prep.
