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By Keith Peters
Palo Alto Online Sports
The second season begins this week in fall high school sports. For some, it’s another opportunity to improve upon an already successful season. For others, it’s another chance to make up for some disappointments in this or past seasons.
Those opportunities get under way in girls’ tennis and volleyball, plus boys’ and girls’ water polo.
Those teams with the best chance of competing for Central Coast Section titles have most of the week off after receiving first-round byes following title-winning league seasons. One of those teams is the Palo Alto girls’ volleyball squad.
Paly coach Dave Winn had hoped to receive either a No. 2 or 3 seed for the Division II playoffs in order to be in the bracket opposite nationally No. 1-ranked Mitty. Winn got his wish as the Vikings got the No. 2 after finishing the regular season with a 33-3 record and a 31-match winning streak.
Winn has been very successful in previous seasons, as well, going 33-7 last season, 27-11 in 2007 and .27-9 in 2006. In each of those years, however, Paly faced either Mitty or St. Francis and never reached the CCS finals thus having its season end before the NorCal playoffs.
By getting the No. 2 seed on Saturday during the CCS seeding meeting, the Vikings will have a bye into this weekend’s quarterfinals. They’ll face the winner of No. 7 Aragon (22-9) and No. 10 Pajaro Valley (22-8) on Saturday at a site yet to be determined. Aragon, the likely opponent, trailed Burlingame, Menlo-Atherton and Carlmont in the PAL Bay Division this season.
“We are very excited in the Paly camp,” said Winn. “It’s the best draw we could have hoped for in Division II. Aragon wasn’t easy the last time we played them, and Pres is one of the three teams that beat us. So, it’ll still be hard, but at least it’s a good shot at the CCS finals.”
Menlo-Atherton, meanwhile, will take its solid 19-7 record and No. 2 seed into the CCS Division I playoffs. The Bears have a first-round bye and will open Saturday in the quarterfinals against the winneer of No. 7 Gilroy (15-10) and No.10 Watsonville (20-11).
Also in Division I will be Gunn (16-22), which gained entrance likely based on points accrued in tournament play this season. The Titans went 0-12 in the tough SCVAL De Anza Division, which has five teams competing in the postseason. Gunn will play a first-round game Wednesday at ninth-seeded Monta Vista (19-12) of the SCVAL El Camino Division at 7 p.m. Should the Titans win, they’ll play No. 1 seed Salinas (24-4) on Saturday.
The CCS Division IV volleyball playoffs offers an interesting quarterfinal matchup on Saturday as rivals Menlo and Sacred Heart Prep will meet again. The Gators (20-10) received a No. 3 seed while the Knights (16-18) got the No. 6. Menlo was on the bubble following a 4-6 season in the West Bay Athletic League (Foothill Division) and having an overall losing record. The Knights, however, missed their top player, junior Allie Frappier, for a handful of matches due to injury, but she’s back and Menlo is closer to full strength.
Menlo and SHP met for the second time just last Tuesday, with the Knights winning an emotional five-game match on Senior Night. The winner likely will face WBAL (Foothill Division) regular-season champ Mercy-Burlingame in the semifinals on Nov. 18. Mercy-Burlingame swept both Menlo and SHP this season.
In the CCS Division V volleyball playoffs, Castilleja (15-12) received the No. 2 seed and The Priory (20-10) got the No. 5. Both will open Saturday in the quarterfinals. The Gators, who are the defending state champions, will play No. 7 Pacific Collegiate (13-7) while The Priory will take on No. 4 Crystal Springs-Uplands (18-11) in a matchup of WBAL (Skyline Division teams. Sites and times will be determined following first-round matches.
Girls’ tennis
It could be a very short postseason for three local squads in the 24-team CCS tournament that begins this week.
Sacred Heart Prep (11-9) opens Tuesday at home against Scotts Valley (10-0) at 2:30 p.m. Should the Gators win, they’ll visit No. 3 seed Saratoga (14-4) on Wednesday.
Menlo-Atherton (16-2), which is the No. 8 seed, will host the winner of Carmel (14-5) and Harker (14-4) on Wednesday, also at 2:30 p.m. Should the Bears win, they’ll face No. 1 seed Monta Vista (18-1) on Friday.
And Menlo (13-8), seeded No. 5, will host either Salinas (17-4) or Notre Dame-Belmont (14-7) on Wednesday in a second-round match at 2:30 p.m. The reward for a victory will pit the Knights against No. 4 St. Francis (15-3) on Friday. Awaiting the winner of that match will be Monta Vista in the semifinals next week.
Boys’ water polo
Gunn and Menlo-Atherton will continue their seasons in Division I while Menlo and Sacred Heart Prep do the same in Division II this week.
Gunn (18-6) received a No. 6 seed and will open Tuesday against No. 11 Salinas (14-12) at a “neutral” pool at Live Oak High in Salinas at 5:30 p.m. The Titans are coming off a 10-5 loss to Los Altos in the SCVAL De Anza Division playoff finals on Saturday.
Menlo-Atherton (14-11) received the No. 3 seed despite falling to Menlo, 7-3, in the Peninsula Athletic League championship match Saturday. The Bears have a bye into Saturday’s quarterfinals and will face the Gunn-Salinas winner.
Bellarmine (17-7) is the No. 1 seed in Division I with St. Francis (12-15) the No. 2. The Lancers are the defending section champions.
In Division II, defending champ Sacred Heart Prep (21-5) is the No. 1 seed and 2008 CCS runnerup Menlo (20-6) the No. 2. Both are favored to return to the title match on Nov. 21 at Santa Clara University. Both also have first-round byes and will open Saturday. The Gators will face either No. 8 Live Oak (12-10) or No. 9 Burlingame (11-13) while the Knights take on either No. 7 Willow Glen (10-10) or No. 10 Carmel (13-11).
Semifinal opponents likely will be No. 4 St. Ignatius (for SHP) and No. 3 Soquel (for Menlo).
Girls’ water polo
Gunn, Palo Alto and Menlo-Atherton will be busy in Division I while Sacred Heart Prep, Menlo and Castilleja take on challengers in Division II beginning this week.
Palo Alto (16-11), which finished fourth in the SCVAL De Anza Division playoffs on Saturday, will take its No. 7 seed and host No. 10 Salinas (20-5) in a first-round match Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. Gunn (12-7), which upset Los Altos in the semifinals but fell to Los Gatos in the De Anza Division finale (9-7), is seeded No. 6 for CCS and will have to travel to Aptos High to play No. 11 Gilroy on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.
Menlo-Atherton (25-1) is the obvious No. 1 seed will play in Saturday’s quarterfinals against either No. 8 Monta Vista (19-5) or No. 9 Aragon (15-9). The Bears are riding a 23-game winning streak after sweeping through the PAL tournament — toppling Castilleja in the finals last Saturday, 15-3. M-A won the NorCal Championships two weeks ago and ranks among the best teams in the state this season.
The Bears are favored to reach the finals and likely face No. 2 St. Francis (24-2) in a rematch of last year’s section title match that was won by the Lancers in overtime.
Despite its perhaps misleading 8-19 record, Menlo earned a No. 8 seed and will face No. 9 Pioneer (11-6) on Wednesday in a first-round match at Live Oak High at 5:30 p.m. The Knights won twice in the PAL playoffs before falling to Menlo-Atherton in the semifinals, and have played a tough schedule this season.
Should Menlo get past the opening round, the Knights will face No. 1 Sacred Heart Prep (19-8) in the quarterfinals on Saturday. The Gators are the defending CCS champions in this division, but are coming off a loss to St. Francis in the West Catholic Athletic League playoff finals. Also in SHP’s side of the bracket is No. 4 Mitty, a team the Gators have beaten routinely this season.
Castilleja (17-9), which lost to SHP in the section finals last season, has another good shot at reaching the finals again. The Gators are seeded No. 2 and will open in the quarterfinals against either No. 7 Live Oak (18-4) or No. 10 Soquel (9-9). A victory means a match against No. 3 St. Ignatius next week.
All four CCS championship matches will be played at Santa Clara University on Nov. 21.
CCS TENNIS TEAM TOURNAMENT
TUESDAY, Nov. 10
First round (All matches at 2:30 p.m.)
St. Ignatius (14-7) at Carlmont (12-7)
Scotts Valley (10-0) at Sacred Heart Prep (11-9)
Burlingame (17-4) at Independence (16-1)
R.L. Stevenson (14-4) vs. Evergreen Valley (10-9) at Mt. Pleasant)
Notre Dame-Belmont (14-7) at Salinas (17-4)
Notre Dame-Salinas (11-7) at Leland (12-3)
Harker (14-4) vs. Carmel (14-5) at Carmel Valley Athletic Club
Piedmont Hills (12-3) vs. Half Moon Bay (14-1) at Burlingame High
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 11
Second round (All matches at 2:30 p.m.)
St. Ignatius-Carlmont winner at No. 6 Homestead (11-6)
Scotts Valley-Sacred Heart Prep winner at No. 3 Saratoga (14-4)
Burlingame -Independence winner at No. 7 Milpitas (16-2)
R.L. Stevenson-Evergreen Valley winner vs. No. 2 Mitty (19-1) at Decathlon Club
Notre Dame-Belmont/Salinas winner at No. 5 Menlo (13-8)
Notre Dame-Salinas/Leland winner vs. No. 4 St. Francis (15-3) at Cuesta Park
Harker-Carmel winner at No. 8 Menlo-Atherton (16-2)
Piedmont Hills-Half Moon Bay winner at No. 1 Monta Vista (18-1)
CCS GIRLS’ VOLLEYBALL PLAYOFFS
Division I
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 11
First round
No. 10 Watsonville (20-11) at No. 7 Gilroy (15-10), 7 p.m.
No. 8 Gunn (16-22) at No. 9 Monta Vista (19-12), 7 p.m.
SATURDAY, Nov. 14
Quarterfinals
No. 6 San Benito (19-17) vs. No. 3 Evergreen Valley (22-7)
Watsonville-Gilroy winner vs. No. 2 Menlo-Atherton (19-7)
No. 5 Carlmont (20-13) vs. No. 4 N. Salinas (16-16)
Monta Vista-Gunn winner vs. No. 1 Salinas (24-4)
Division II
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 11
First round
No. 11 Westmont (18-15) at No. 6 Mountain View (20-12), 7 p.m.
No. 7 Aragon (22-9) at No. 10 Pajaro Valley (22-8), 7 p.m.
No. 12 Lynbrook (18-8) at No. 5 Los Gatos (23-9), 7 p.m.
No. 4 St. Francis (25-6) at No. 13 Pioneer (20-5), 7 p.m.
No. 9 Los Altos (19-15) at No. 8 Leland (20-9), 7 p.m.
SATURDAY, Nov. 14
Quarterfinals
Westmont-Mountain View winner vs. No. 3 Presentation (31-7)
Pajaro Valley-Aragon winner vs. No. 2 Palo Alto (33-3)
Lynbrook-Los Gatos winner vs. Pioneer-St. Francis winner
Los Altos-Leland winner vs. No. 1 Mitty (33-0)
Division IV
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 11
First round
No. 10 Santa Catalina (12-12) at No. 7 King’s Academy (20-10), 7 p.m.
No. 9 San Lorenzo Valley (12-14) at No. 8 King City (19-10), 7 p.m.
SATURDAY, Nov. 14
Quarterfinals
No. 6 Menlo (16-18) vs. No. 3 Sacred Heart Prep (20-10)
Santa Catalina-King’s Academy winner vs. No. 2 Mercy-Burlingame (24-4)
No. 5 Soquel (21-10) vs. No. 4 Carmel (23-11)
San Lorenzo Valley-King City winner vs. No. 1 Notre Dame-Salinas (23-5)
Division V
SATURDAY, Nov. 14
Quarterfinals
No. 6 St. Thomas More (19-14) vs. No. 3 St. Francis-CCC (19-12)
No. 7 Pacific Collegiate (13-7) vs. No. 2 Castilleja (15-12)
No. 5 The Priory (20-10) vs. No. 4 Crystal Springs-Uplands (18-11)
No. 8 Liberty Baptist (13-14) vs. No. 1 Mt. Madonna (23-6)