SEEDED TEAMS
1. Servite – The Friars won their second consecutive Trinity League title last week, beating JSerra, 1-0. The Friars didn’t look as sharp as usual in the match against the host Lions, but Servite coach Jon Spencer said the Friars would be up for the challenge in the playoffs. “The boys have worked hard to get here. Some guys weren’t performing as well as they needed to in the first half (against JSerra). The second half was better. We had to work through it. We need to do some work. We need a challenge. It has not been easy going through league. We needed more challenging games.” And they will get that with potential matchups against perennial powers San Clemente and Loyola in the quarterfinals and semifinals. Defense is once again Friars’ strength, having a plus-52 goal differential and a 0.70 goals against average. Senior goal keeper Keith Murphy posted a 0.60 GAA, which believe it or not is close to twice as high as he had last year. He posted 12 shutouts and finished with a 16-2-1 record. But there’s more to the Friars’ defense than just Murphy. JT Cook, the reigning Register Player of the Year, is among the top defensive midfielders in the division and CSF-bound Elijah Barajas has been a fixture in the Friars backline. But one thing is different about the Friars this season. They are scoring goals again. Maybe not at the rate as when Conner Bevans knocked in 27 in the 2011-12 season, but Garrett Amador is among the top-five goal scorers in the county with 17.
First-round opponent: Fountain Valley, Sunset at large
2. Warren – The San Gabriel Valley League champion Bears are unbeaten in their last 19 games. Their most recent loss came on Dec. 12 when Norwalk shut them out, 2-0. The Bears cruised through league, outscoring their opponents, 27-7, posting shutouts in five of their 10 league games.
First-round opponent: Ventura, Channel League at large
3. El Toro – The Chargers are back, having a team that rivals the CIF champion squad that now retired coach Ken Sjobom had several years ago. They know how to defend. Ethan Thrall is among the best center backs in this division, and he possesses a devastatingly accurate long throw, which is among the Chargers’ best weapons. The Chargers wrapped up the South Coast League championship on Thursday, edging host San Clemente, 3-2. Khalid Francis finished with a goal and an assist in that game. In the games that I have seen, Francis is very good in the air and hard to defend on set pieces. He knocked in a beautiful header early in the Chargers’ 2-1 victory against Mission Viejo. Even though he is just a sophomore, Mac Hutchins has become a solid keeper, posting five shutouts in eight league games.
First-round opponent: Peninsula, Bay League at large. They will be the host team because of a Chargers’ uniform violation.
4. Loyola – The Cubs are not as good as last year’s squad which won this division last year. That was one of the best high school teams in recent history. But with that said the Cubs should not be taken lightly, entering the playoffs having allowed just two goals in their past seven games. A 2-2 tie to Harvard-Westlake was sandwiched between a pair of three-game shutout streaks. The Cubs, winners of four consecutive Mission League championships, outscored their last three opponents, 8-0. Here’s hoping they make it to the semis so they can possibly face Servite. They have played the Friars in the semis the past two season, and both were epic games between two rivals. The Friars and Cubs split the series.
First-round opponent: Capo Valley, South Coast, at large.
FIRST ROUND GAMES INVOLVING COUNTY TEAMS
Buena (Channel #3) at San Clemente (South Coast #2); Santa Margarita (Trinity 3) at Huntington Beach (Sunset #1); Los Alamitos (Sunset #3) at Dos Pueblos (Channel #1); Mission Viejo (South Coast #3) at Edison (Sunset #2)
OC PLAYERS TO WATCH
Garrett Amador (Servite, Jr., F); Tyler Bagley (San Clemente, So., MF); Elijah Barajas (Servite, Sr., D); Chris Brennan (Huntington Beach, Sr., GK); JT Cook (Servite, Sr., MF); Calvin Cruz (Huntington Beach, Sr., MF); Hampton Erwin (Mission Viejo, Sr., GK); Jake Fisher (Santa Margarita, Sr., F); Brendan Fix (Edison, Jr., GK); Khalid Francis (El Toro, Sr., D); Alex Funez Gomez (Mission Viejo, Jr., F); Mac Hutchins (El Toro, So., GK); Taylor Kane (Edison, Sr., D); Shayan Khademi (Capistrano Valley, Sr., D); Matias Ledesma (San Clemente, Sr., F); Roman Manning (Servite, Sr., F); Liam McVicar (San Clemente, Sr., F); Keith Murphy (Servite, Sr. GK); Charlie Ross (Los Alamitos, Sr., F); Jacob Shubin (Fountain Valley, Jr., F); Jack Slavick (Edison, Sr., F); Christian Tait (Huntington Beach, Sr., GK); Ethan Thrall (El Toro, Sr., D); Larry Turner (Fountain Valley, Sr., F)
