The CIF-SS announced the boys soccer playoff pairings for its seven divisions Monday, and only one Orange County team earned a No. 1 seed.
Servite, ranked second in the state and 10th nationally by Maxpreps, topped the Division 1 bracket. The Friars will play host to Fountain Valley, an at-large team from the Sunset League, on Friday in the first round.
The Friars weren’t at their best when they clinched their second consecutive Trinity League championship with a 1-0 victory against JSerra last week, but Coach Jon Spencer said the team is ready for the challenges that await in the playoffs.
“The boys worked hard to get here,” Spencer said. “Some guys weren’t performing as well as they needed in the first half (against JSerra). “We need to do some work. We need a challenge. We needed more challenging games.”
There will be plenty of challenges for the Friars in the playoffs. They could end up facing perennial powers San Clemente and Loyola in the quarterfinals and semifinals.
Defense is once again the Friars’ strength, having a plus-52 goal differential and a 0.70 goals-against average. Senior goalkeeper Keith Murphy posted 12 shutouts and a 0.60 GAA this season.
One thing is different about the Friars this season. They are scoring goals again. Not at the same rate as when Conner Bevans knocked in 27 goals in the 2011-12 season, but Garrett Amador is among the top-five goal scorers in the county this winter with 17 goals.
South Coast League champion El Toro is the third seed in Division 1, but instead of playing host to Peninsula, an at-large team from the Bay League, in the first round, the Chargers have to travel to Rolling Hills Estates because of a uniform violation.
El Toro coach Shawn Watts said in a text message the Chargers are being punished for using jerseys that “had the adidas stripes” on the sleeves.
Six other Orange County teams earned top-four seeds. Aliso Niguel, Santa Ana and Sunny Hills took spots 2-4 in Division 2. Godinez and Valencia are seeded third and fourth in Division 3.
Santiago is fourth in Division 5. The Garden Grove League champion has the county’s No. 3 goal scorer in David Yepez, who finished the regular season with 20 goals.
Contact the writer: ddottore@ocregister.com
