Unbeaten J.Serra, La Salle and Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy reached the championship round of the CIF-Southern Section girls’ soccer playoffs
with semifinal victories Feb. 16.

In Division 1, top-ranked J.Serra (19-0-3) dispatched No. 4 Villa Park 3-1 in the semifinals, and will encounter second-seeded Los Alamitos (25-0-5) in the title match the following weekend. The Lions of San Juan Capistrano are seeking their third straight D-1 title under coach Greg Baker.          

In Division 3, No. 10 Flintridge Sacred Heart (11-4-3) upset No. 3 Downey 1-0 on an overtime goal by Jillian Willis, assisted by Lauren Bolte, and will play No. 1 Oak Hills (21-2-2) for the championship. It would be the Tologs’ first CIF title since the 2011 D-1 championship.

And in Division 4, fifth-seeded La Salle (17-5) edged Palm Desert 1-0, earning a title-round match on Feb. 22 against second-seeded St. Margaret’s Episcopal (20-1-4), based in San Juan Capistrano. La Salle won the Division IV title in 2007.

The complete title match schedule and locations will be determined this week.

Mike Nelson is the former editor of The Tidings (predecessor of Angelus News).

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