Kylie Reed (left) of Norco is now at Cal but her alma mater has returned to this week’s State Top 20. At right, Quinn Brodey from state-ranked L.A. Loyola pitches at Area Code Games. Photos: Courtesy Gary Evans (garysnorcopics.com) & Student Sports.
The big news this week is on the softball side as No. 1 Mission Viejo suffers first loss but in the end it’s not enough to cause a change. In baseball, Clovis moves up to No. 2 with one week to go in its season.
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NEW BASEBALL STATE
TOP 20 OVERALL RANKINGS
If Clovis were to win the CIF Central Section Division I title on Saturday night of this week, it could be a two-week wait before the Cougars find out if they will end the season No. 1 or No. 2 in this year’s final state rankings.
The Cougars, of course, have to get there first and it won’t be easy. They play Clovis West in Tuesday’s semifinals with Buchanan and defending champion Clovis North pairing up in the other semifinal.
Clovis did move up to No. 2 in this week’s rankings after previous No. 2 Elk Grove saw its 19-game win streak end in the CIF Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs with a 4-3 loss to Rocklin. Fortunately for the Thundering Herd, the loss was not in the first-round (when it’s one-and-done) and instead came in the double-elimination portion of the north tournament. Their season, therefore, did not end.
Top-ranked Rancho Bernardo of San Diego continued to roll last week and enters the CIF San Diego Section Open Division playoffs at 25-3. Those playoffs are double-elimination and don’t end until the finals on June 7. That is why it could be a very long wait for Clovis and for any other team hoping that the Broncos slip up enough for there to be a change.
(Compiled with assistance from Paul Muyskens; updated through games played Saturday, May 17; previous rating in parentheses)
1. (1) Rancho Bernardo (San Diego) 25-3
2. (3) Clovis 31-5
3. (7) St. Francis (Mountain View) 25-4
4. (5) Huntington Beach 23-4
5. (2) Elk Grove 23-5
6. (12) Cathedral Catholic (San Diego) 21-4
7. (11) Norco 24-2
8. (10) Loyola (Los Angeles) 22-5-1
9. (14) College Park (Pleasant Hill) 23-3
10. (15) Hart (Newhall) 21-4-1
11. (4) Wilson (Long Beach) 25-5
12. (6) Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) 22-6
13. (16) Clovis North (Fresno) 22-8
14. (17) Buchanan (Clovis) 25-7
15. (18) Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood) 21-6-1
16. (NR) Great Oak (Temecula) 21-6
17. (20) JSerra (San Juan Capistrano) 19-7
18. (8) Fountain Valley 20-7
19. (NR) Agoura (Agoura Hills) 23-5
20. (NR) Maria Carrillo (Santa Rosa) 24-2
Dropped Out:
Previous No. 9 Pleasant Grove (Elk Grove); No. 13 Otay Ranch (Chula Vista); No. 19 Clayton Valley (Concord).
NEW SOFTBALL STATE
TOP 20 OVERALL RANKINGS
This isn’t going to be good news for fans of the girls at Amador Valley of Pleasanton, who probably were thinking that their team would be moved up to No. 1 in the state this week after season-long leader Mission Viejo suffered its first loss of the season.
Here’s why Mission Viejo does not drop:
1. Even though the coaches used their top pitchers and players, Mission Viejo’s 2-1 loss came in a somewhat meaningless non-league regular season finale to Pacifica of Garden Grove. The Diablos already have two wins over Pacifica and had already wrapped up everything they needed to do in order to get a top seed for their playoff division.
2. Looking at the playoff divisions that are in front of both Mission Viejo and Amador Valley, the division that Mission Viejo will need to win in order to finish No. 1 in the state (the CIF Southern Section Division II bracket) is going to be tougher to win than the one that Amador Valley will be in (the CIF North Coast Section in Division I). Other state-ranked teams in the CIFSS D2 bracket will be Chino Hills, Chino and Yucaipa. The only other state-ranked team in Amador’s bracket will be James Logan of Union City.
It’s a tough call and it’s probably not going to be matched in at least one or maybe two national rankings. Still, from our analysis, 30 years of doing rankings and more, it shouldn’t change. Mission Viejo did enough in its season so far and stays on top in this week’s rankings.
(Compiled with assistance from Paul Muyskens; updated through games played Saturday, May 17; previous rating in parentheses)
1. (1) Mission Viejo 21-1
2. (2) Amador Valley (Pleasanton) 24-0
3. (3) Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) 27-1
4. (4) Pacifica (Garden Grove) 24-4-1
5. (5) Vacaville 25-0-1
6. (6) Alhambra (Martinez) 21-2
7. (7) Esperanza (Anaheim) 23-4
8. (8) Los Osos (Rancho Cucamonga) 23-3
9. (11) Cathedral Catholic (San Diego) 24-2
10. (10) Chino Hills 26-5
11. (13) Chino 24-4-1
12. (14) James Logan (Union City) 22-2
13. (9) M.L. King (Riverside) 23-5
14. (16) Yucaipa 22-4
15. (18) El Camino Real (Woodland Hills) 22-1
16. (19) Clovis 29-3
17. (NR) Pioneer (San Jose) 22-4
18. (12) Huntington Beach 20-5
19. (NR) Norco 23-7
20. (NR) Murrieta Valley (Murrieta) 21-7
Dropped Out: Previous No. 15 Santiago (Corona); No. 17 Leland (San Jose); No. 20 Roseville.
Mark Tennis is the co-founder and publisher of CalHiSports.com. He can be reached at markjtennis@gmail.com. Don’t forget to follow Mark on the Cal-Hi Sports Twitter handle: @CalHiSports
