The 25th annual Excalibur Tournament kicks off Friday morning at Foothill High. The bracket-style showcase features 32 of the best teams on the West Coast, with the championship match Monday at 2:30 p.m.
Here is a breakdown of this weekend’s play.
County teams participating: Canyon, Capistrano Valley, Edison, Esperanza, Foothill, Huntington Beach, Los Alamitos, Mater Dei, Mission Viejo, San Clemente, Santa Margarita, Tesoro, Trabuco Hills, Yorba Linda.
Non-county teams participating: Agoura, Buchanan (Fresno), Buena (Ventura), Bullard High (Fresno), Canyon (Canyon Country), Chaminade (Canoga Park), Chino Hills, Coronado, Del Norte (San Diego), Harvard-Westlake (Studio City), Long Beach Poly, Long Beach Wilson, Los Osos (Rancho Cucamonga), Santa Ynez, Scripps Ranch (San Diego), Temecula Valley, Westview (San Diego), Xavier College Preparatory (Phoenix).
Friday’s schedule
All matches at Foothill High
8 a.m.: Canyon vs. Long Beach Poly (Field D); Edison vs. Trabuco Hills (Field B); Huntington Beach vs. Long Beach Wilson (Field C); San Clemente vs. Chino Hills (Field A)
9:30 a.m.: Mission Viejo vs. Yorba Linda (Field A); Los Alamitos vs. Agoura (Field C); Esperanza vs. Capistrano Valley (Field B); Temecula Valley vs. Santa Margarita (Field D)
11 a.m.: Foothill vs. Santa Ynez (Field A); Del Norte vs. Canyon (CC) (Field C); Tesoro vs. Chaminade (Field B); Scripps Ranch vs. Los Osos (Field D)
3:30 p.m.: Harvard-Westlake vs. Bullard (Field A); Westview vs. Buena (Field D); Mater Dei vs. Xavier Prep (Field C); Coronado vs. Buchanan
Five local teams to keep an eye on
Canyon: The Comanches were the county’s only squad to get out of the group stage in last week’s Mater Dei Premier Invitational. After topping Santiago of Corona, 3-0, in the semifinals, Canyon lost in penalty kicks to nationally ranked Cathedral Catholic of San Diego, 4-3, in the championship match. With a backline led by Sydney Bennett and Taylor Rasmussen, the Comanches have surrendered just three goals this entire season. They’re plenty capable of making back-to-back deep runs in preseason tournaments.
Edison: The Chargers come into this weekend with a 4-0-2 record, having earned draws against two of talented teams in Esperanza and Palos Verdes. Maybe the most impressive part of Edison’s start has been the production its gotten throughout its entire roster. Through just six matches, 10 different Chargers already have a goal credited to their name. Sophomore forward Mikayla Edwards leads the team with three assists in addition to a goal of her own. Defensively, senior Danielle Thomas leads a back line that has allowed only two goals up to this point in the year.
Foothill: Don’t overlook the tournament hosts. While the Knights’ record (2-3-2) doesn’t necessarily suggest they’d be a contender, Foothill sits in a nice part of the bracket. If the Knights can get past Santa Ynez in the first round, they’d have a favorable matchup with either Canyon of Canyon Country or Del Norte in the second round. Playing at home seemingly gives Foothill somewhat of an edge as well.
Huntington Beach: The Oilers remain unbeaten (5-0-2) and are coming off their best win of the season, a 1-0 triumph over Canyon on Monday. Junior forward Darcy Weiser has been on fire as of late for Huntington Beach, scoring a goal in each of the Oilers’ last three matches.
Santa Margarita: This will be the only county-based tournament the Eagles will participate in this preseason, so it’ll be interesting to see how the reigning Division 1 champs respond being one of the tournament favorites. If Santa Margarita can get past Temecula Valley in the first round, they will play either Capistrano Valley or Esperanza in round two. The Eagles already knocked off the Cougars, 3-0, earlier in the year. A matchup with the Aztecs would make for one of the better county matchups we’ve seen in this young season. Esperanza is currently ranked 20th in the state, while Santa Margarita is 18th.
Non-O.C. contenders
Chino Hills: The Huskies were ranked fifth in the state this week by Top Drawer Soccer, highest of any team participating in the tournament. Chino Hills’ one loss on the season came against Aliso Niguel in the championship match of the Aliso Cup (1-0).
Harvard-Westlake: The Wolverines have faired well in O.C.-based tournaments, winning both the 2012 and 2013 Mater Dei Premier Invitational. They figure to be a threat once again this season in the Excalibur as they were recently ranked seventh in the state.
Scripps Ranch: The Falcons make the trip northbound as one of the talented squads representing San Diego County. Ranked 10th in the state, they’ll open play against Los Osos, the 2013 Excalibur Tournament champs.
Los Osos: The Grizzlies are the reigning tournament champs, and also won King Arthur’s sword back in 2010. With a history of performing well in the loaded showcase, look for Los Osos to give Scripps Ranch everything it can handle in an intriguing first-round matchup.
Previous Excalibur Tournament winners
1990: Simi Valley
1991: El Toro
1992: Edison
1993: Marina
1994: Marina
1995: Marina
1996: La Costa
1997: Edison
1998: Capistrano Valley
1999: Capistrano Valley
2000: Mission Viejo
2001: Santa Margarita
2002: Dana Hills
2003: San Clemente
2004: N/A – Rained Out
2005: Cathedral Catholic
2006: Buena
2007: Los Alamitos
2008: San Clemente
2009: Mission Viejo
2010: Los Osos
2011: La Costa Canyon
2012: Capistrano Valley
2013: Los Osos
