Prep Notebook: State playoffs come to San Luis Obispo and other musings
After a couple of heartbreaking losses in the Southern Section playoffs, all is not lost for the Mission Prep girls basketball and San Luis Obispo High soccer teams.
Mission Prep (21-9) lost in the CIF-Southern Section Division 5AA championship game in overtime to Flintridge Prep, but the team will get a chance at redemption when it hosts a first-round state playoff game Wednesday against Minarets (19-6) at 7 p.m. after playing its last four playoff games on the road.
Junior center and power forward Kristy Berry figures to be the biggest problem for the Royals. Berry averaged a double-double (11 points, 11 rebounds) this season. Minarets (O’Neals, near Madera) was a No. 3 seed in the CIF-Central Section Division 5 playoffs before falling to Caruthers 45-24 in the semifinals on March 2. The Mustangs come in as the No. 15 seed.
Mission Prep, seeded No. 2 in the Division 5 Southern Region, will need a much better shooting game than it got on Saturday. San Jule hit a dramatic shot to send the championship game into overtime, but the normally consistent shooter was 2 for 15 in the game. The team was 11 of 53 (20 percent) from the field.
The Royals are fighting against history, too. Mission Prep is 0-7 all-time in state title games--a record for most appearances without a victory. To win, the team might have to go through a familiar rival, No. 1 seeded Flintridge Prep.
Girls Soccer
The San Luis Obispo girls soccer team also felt playoff sorrow with a controversial upset loss to Yorba Linda in the CIF-Southern Section Division 3 semifinals last week, its first loss of the season. The Tigers’ chance at redemption comes in the form of Liberty (Madera) in Tuesday’s CIF-Southern California Regional Division 3 first-round playoff game.
San Luis Obispo (25-1-1) will again be the favorites, as they have been most of the season. The Tigers are ranked 30th in the state while Liberty comes in ranked 125th, according to MaxPreps.com. But the Hawks (20-4-2) are hot. The team entered the playoffs as a number one seed in the CIF-Central Section Division III playoffs and ran the table, only giving up one goal on the way to a championship. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Tuesday at San Luis Obispo High.
San Luis Obispo is the first girls soccer team from the county to make it to the state tournament since 2009.
Baseball
Baseball, like the other spring sports, is now underway as the winter sports wind down. San Luis Obispo is off to an impressive 3-0 start. The Tigers have scored 28 runs and yielded just two. Senior pitcher Jeremy Jess (3-0) is leading the way for San Luis Obispo with 15 strikeouts in 14 innings pitched. Paso Robles and Arroyo Grande (last season’s PAC 8 co-champions) are also off to 2-0 starts in the PAC 8 while Morro Bay is 2-0 in Los Padres Leauge play and 3-2 overall.
Softball
Arryo Grande is picking up right where it left off last season. After sharing the PAC 8 league title with Righetti last season, Arroyo Grande (2-0) has won both of its game this season by a combined score of 24-0. Paso Robles is also off to a 2-0 start.
Boys Volleyball
On Thursday, one of the best boys volleyball rivalries will return to the court. Arroyo Grande (2-0) cruised to an undefeated PAC 8 title last season without dropping a set. This season, Arroyo Grande is younger but playing well so far. San Luis Obispo tied for second place with Righetti last season and this has seven seniors and a new coach in Braidy Halverson. It should be a good one at Arroyo Grande High School at 5:30 p.m.
This story was originally published March 7, 2016 at 5:49 PM with the headline "Prep Notebook: State playoffs come to San Luis Obispo and other musings."