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The 2023 CIF-SS girls’ water polo brackets were released on Saturday morning, and as expected the Moore League has a number of teams in position to make deep playoff runs over the next two weeks.
Five teams from the Moore League were selected to this year’s postseason: the four automatic qualifiers–Wilson, Millikan, Poly, and Lakewood–plus an at-large selection for Cabrillo.
Oddly enough, none of the local teams will be at home in the first round, which could ultimately lead to more home games later in the playoffs.
Division 1
After eight teams were selected for the Open Division, that left the Moore League champion Wilson Bruins alone at the top of the D1 bracket. Wilson received a first round bye as the top seed in D1, and they’ll host the winner of Schurr and San Clemente next Saturday in the quarterfinals.
The Bruins are the only team in the bracket to receive a first-round bye, meaning they’re just three wins away from a CIF title.
“They’re excited,” said Wilson head coach Barry O’Dea of his team looking toward the playoffs. “We’re looking for ‘The Show’ and that’s the semifinals or better. That’s our goal. Because once you get to the semis, I’ve been doing this long enough, it’s a crap shoot from there, anything can happen. So our goal is to get to The Show and then we’ll see where we go from there.”
Division 2
The Moore League runner-up Millikan Rams are on the road to open the playoffs, despite being listed as the top seed in their bracket. The Rams have been considered one of the top teams in this division all season after earning the No. 1 seed in Division 3 last season.
Head coach Jose Guzman is looking for better fortunes in this year’s playoffs as his team visits Coastal Canyon League champions Camarillo on Wednesday.
“What I want from this postseason is to take it game by game, don’t look past the first team,” said Guzman. “And hopefully we come out with a ring. It’s my last season, this is it, and whatever happens I’m more than happy with what we did this year. These girls are best friends, man. You don’t see that often with a team.”
With a win, Millikan would face the winner of Beckman and Riverside Poly in the quarterfinals.
Division 3
Long Beach Poly will visit Brea Olinda in round one, but the Jackrabbits should be the favorites on the road. Poly was ranked 5th in the final D3 standings and will be playing a team under .500. Despite winning the North Hills League, Brea Olinda is listed at 7-8 overall this season.
The Jackrabbits, meanwhile, are 17-10 and coming off a third-place finish in the Moore League. Poly will need to win five games for a CIF title, falling into one of the three playoff brackets this year with a 32-team format.
Poly would face the winner of Chino Hills and La Habra in round two.
Division 5
Lakewood has had a terrific season so far and will be in a good spot in this bracket. The Lancers will hit the road to play Mt. Baldy League champion Chino, but are considered the No. 2 team in this bracket with their 15-7 overall record.
The Lancers reached the quarterfinals of this bracket a season ago, making one of their deepest postseason runs in recent memory. Now as one of the favorites in this division, Lakewood is looking for an even better outcome this time around.
With a win in round one, the Lancers would advance to play either Nordhoff or Warren in the second round.
Division 6
This year’s bracket release made some history on the Westside as the Cabrillo Jaguars earned a wild card big into the D6 tournament. The Jags will have to make the trek to Menifee on Tuesday, squaring off against Paloma Valley.
If the Jags can win that matchup, they’d travel to Tahquitz on Wednesday in round one. But regardless of how the playoffs shake out, seeing their names in the postseason is a big accomplishment for a growing Cabrillo program.
“The girls are so excited to be going to the playoffs,” said Cabrillo head coach Hailey Pedersen. “This is the first time in Cabrillo history that the girls’ team has had an opportunity to be in the playoffs! With that being said, the girls are stoked to have made history, ecstatic to showcase all their hard work this season, and ready to play more water polo.”
CLICK HERE to view all the brackets on the CIF-SS website. Be sure to come back to The562.org next week for coverage of the games!
