Catholic high schools in Los Angeles and Orange are represented in the CIF-Southern Section regional qualifying basketball tournament which continued March 18 with semifinal action.
Top-seeded Mater Dei advanced to the boys’ Open Division semifinals against Etiwanda after a 65-38 win over St. Augustine. In Division 1, Loyola played Centennial after edging Mission Viejo 60-59, and St. John Bosco beat Sonora 94-67 and will play Mater Dei/Chula Vista in Division 2 semis.
In Division 3 second round play, Chaminade beat Santa Barbara 64-31, Santa Margarita stopped St. Francis 74-66, and Cathedral upended La Mirada 82-52. The semis March 18 featured Chaminade vs. Brea Olinda and Santa Margarita against Cathedral.
In Division 4, Serra of Gardena and Bishop Montgomery of Torrance met in the semifinals after wins over Oaks Christian (78-59) and Windward (67-52), respectively. Cantwell-Sacred Heart, a 51-48 winner over Village Christian, played Sierra Canyon, a 61-56 winner over J.Serra.
Games played March 12 included the following:
Loyola toppled Palisades 86-55 (Division 1); St. John Bosco beat Granada Hills 69-41 (Division 2); Chaminade beat Dinuba 74-31, Santa Margarita downed Independence 64-51, St. Francis edged Kearney 67-62, and Cathedral beat Hamilton 76-44 (Division 3); J.Serra smothered Tri-City Christian 83-38, Cantwell-Sacred Heart eliminated Bakersfield Christian 77-30, and Serra stopped Granite Hills 76-43 (Division 4).
Girls’ basketball
Mater Dei was scheduled to face Long Beach Poly in Open Division girls’ semifinal play March 18, with the final set March 22.
Alemany gained the Division 1 semis March 18 against Hanford after beating Narbonne. Chaminade, a 64-32 winner over Norco in Division 2, played Culver City, and Santa Margarita beat Garfield 78-57 to advance in Division 3 against Lakeside.
The Division 4 semifinal matches featured Serra against J.Serra, and Mater Dei/Chula Vista against Sierra Canyon. Serra beat Fairmont Prep 70-55; J.Serra edged Oaks Christian 34-31; and Mater Dei/Chula Vista got past Bishop Montgomery 46-45.
Games played March 12 included the following:
Alemany beat Granada Hills 58-34 (Division 1); Chaminade stopped Tulare Western 75-37 (Division 2); Santa Margarita beat Central 60-37 (Division 3); J.Serra beat Ocean View Christian, Bishop Montgomery whipped Exeter 61-27, and Rosary lost to Mater Dei/Chula Vista 48-44 (Division 4).
Soccer
Loyola won the Southern California Division 1 boys’ soccer title, edging Carlsbad 2-1 in the March 15 final at Warren High School in Downey, on a pair of goals by Sean Pleskow. Coached by Chris Walter, the Cubs (30-0-6 on the year) had beaten Bell 2-1 and Corona 4-2 to gain the final.
Cathedral was defeated by Southwest 2-1 in Division 2 semifinal play, after downing Animo Leadership 3-0.
In girls’ Southern Section regional championship soccer play, Marymount was edged 3-2 in the Division 3 regional final March 15 by Francis Parker after wins over St. Monica 4-0 and Oaks Christian 4-3 (penalty kicks). The Sailors ended 13-6-3 on the season.
In Round 1 of Division 2, St. Joseph lost to San Diego Cathedral 2-0, and Santa Margarita beat Hart 5-2 in Division 2. Santa Margarita met San Diego Cathedral in the March 13 semis.
