May Madness is underway with spring sports championships
May Madness has arrived in the form of spring athletic championships. Get ready to enjoy the best high school competition in Southern California as the 2022-23 school year draws to a close.
Let’s take a little taste of what’s to come:
rail
Southern section: The Section Championships and Masters Meet will be held at Moorpark High over the next two Saturdays. Nobody should be more cheered than Rodrick pleasant of Gardena Serra because Moorpark was where he ran a state record of 10.14 seconds in the 100 meters last season. Afar star Sadie Engelhardt from Ventura to hurdler Davis Davis Poetry from Upland the competition will be tough.
District: Get ready for records to be broken on May 18 at El Camino College with an all-star cast including a 400-meter sprinter Dijon-Stanley by Granada Hills, Sprinter Jordan Coleman from Granada Hills and the Carson Girls Sprint Crew from Lordship of Redmond, Ta’Ahjan Fann, Christine Gray And Kaitlyn Williams.
The state championships will be held May 26-27 at Buchanan High in Clovis.
Boys Volleyball
Southern section: It will be Newport Harbor taking on Corona del Mar in the Division 1 Finals at Cerritos College on Saturday after Corona del Mar handed Loyola a rare loss at his home court.
District: The finals will be held at Cal State Northridge on Saturday. Chatsworth, led by Blake Pohevitz, is the favourite, although defending champions Palisades are not to be overlooked.
baseball
Southern section: No. 1 Sherman Oaks Notre Dame went through their opening game of the Southern Section Division 1 Playoffs 1-0, but still has a long way to go to reach the championship game on May 20 at Blair Field in Long Beach. The Knights and No. 2 Santa Margarita look like the teams to beat.
Oliver Boone will start against Bonita on the mound for Notre Dame on Tuesday.
(Nick Koza)
District: The finals will take place on May 27th at Dodger Stadium. There are three main contenders in the Open Division: Granada Hills, Palisades and Lake Balboa Birmingham. All have shown excellent pitching and strong defense.
soft ball
Southern section: Norco and Los Alamitos are considered the best teams in Southern Section Division 1, with the championships being played May 19-20 at Deanna Manning Stadium in Irvine. Can a pitcher get hot in the playoffs? That’s the big question for the next two weeks.
District: West Valley League champion Granada Hills led by a sophomore pitcher Addison Moorman, is the clear favorite to win the City title and was seeded No. 1 on Saturday. The championships will be held in Birmingham on May 19th and at a location to be determined on May 20th.
golf
Southern section: The Team Championships will be held on May 15 at seven different courses, with Division 1 at the Cross Creak Golf Course. The singles final will be held on May 18 at River Ridge Golf Club’s Vineyard Course.
District: defending champion Turner Osswald is back for his junior season and is preparing to take on the challenges of a group of Palisades golfers when the finals are held at Harding Golf Course on May 17th.
lacrosse
Southern section: The Championships take place in Downey on Friday and Saturday. Loyola is seeded at No. 2 in the Division 1 boys with Corona del Mar. Both have reached the semifinals. For the girls, top seeded Santa Ana Foothill has advanced to the final and meets LA Marlborough.
District: Palisades won the boys’ and girls’ championships on Wednesday.
Bathe
Southern section: The Santa Margarita boys’ and girls’ teams won Division 1 championships and Rex Mauer of Loyola set a national record in the 500 freestyle.
District: The San Pedro boys’ team and Granada Hills girls’ team won Saturday’s Valley College City titles.
Beach volleyball for girls
Southern section: The first-ever team final was held in Long Beach on Saturday, and Manhattan Beach Mira Costa defeated Redondo Union in Division 1. Irvine Crean Lutheran won Division 2.
District: Taft won the City Section title.
tennis
Southern section: The Open Division Finals will be held at the Claremont Club on Friday. Irvine University has been the team to beat all season.
District: Palisades won its 14th consecutive boys’ title.
