The city's winter playoff hopes rest on the shoulders of the Santa Monica girls soccer team, which enters the CIF Southern Section semifinals today (March 3) at 5 p.m. on the road against La Mirada.
As the Vikings vie for a spot in the Division 4 title game for the first time in program history, the Daily Press examines how other area teams fared in the postseason.
Samohi
The Santa Monica boys basketball team finished its season in the Division 1AA first round with an 82-63 loss to Eastvale-Roosevelt on the road Feb. 20. The Vikings ended up with a 12-15 overall record and a 7-3 mark in Ocean League play. It was the last prep game for senior guard New Williams, who will continue his athletic career at Auburn.
The Santa Monica girls water polo team capped a fantastic campaign by reaching the Division 6 semifinals. The Vikings easily dispatched Morro Bay with a 19-1 victory in the first round Feb. 19 at Drake Pool, then edged Lake Elsinore-Temescal Canyon 11-9 in the quarterfinals two days later before losing 8-4 to Huntington Beach-Ocean View at Valley High School in Santa Ana. Samohi goalkeeper Sierra Kelly was named most valuable player in the Ocean League.
The Santa Monica boys soccer team reached the postseason but was unable to extend its campaign, losing 1-0 to Santa Paula in the Division 4 wild-card round Feb. 18. The Vikings went 7-12-1 overall and 5-5 in conference play in their first year under coach Corey Prost, a Samohi alumnus.
Crossroads
The sixth-seeded Crossroads boys basketball team reached the Division 5AA quarterfinals before falling 68-53 to Santa Maria-St. Joseph on the road Feb. 24. The Roadrunners (14-12) had defeated Winchester-Temecula Prep 75-49 in the first round Feb. 18 behind 18 points from Charlie Hall and 17 from Ethan Zakarin and upset Saddleback Valley Christian 53-49 in the second round at home Feb. 20.
The Crossroads girls basketball team's dream postseason was cut short. After upsetting seventh-seeded Heritage Christian 60-53 in the first round of the Division 4A playoffs Feb. 19, the Roadrunners (11-13) couldn't keep their momentum going and fell 63-40 to Los Angeles-Notre Dame Academy in the second round two days later.
The Crossroads boys soccer team was eliminated in heartbreaking fashion Feb. 20, when it fell to La Puente in a penalty-kick shootout in the Division 5 first round on the road. The Roadrunners went 9-3-7 overall and 7-1-6 in league action.
St. Monica Catholic
The St. Monica Catholic girls basketball team ended its year with a 57-51 loss to Fullerton-Rosary in the Division 4AA quarterfinals Feb. 25. The fifth-seeded Mariners had crushed Costa Mesa 67-25 in the opening round Feb. 19 and eked out a 41-39 win over Sherman Oaks-Notre Dame in the second round two days later.
The eighth-seeded St. Monica Catholic boys basketball team closed its campaign with a 77-57 loss to seventh-seeded San Gabriel Academy in the Division 4A second round Feb. 21. Under coach Miguel Villegas, the Mariners (15-14) had advanced with a 79-57 victory against Pomona-Ganesha in the opening round Feb. 18.
The St. Monica Catholic girls soccer team finished its season Feb. 17 with a 2-0 loss to Ventura-Foothill Tech in the Division 7 wild-card round at Airport Park.
Pacifica Christian
The Pacifica Christian girls basketball team made it as far as the quarterfinals before dropping a 54-46 decision Feb. 25 against Santa Barbara-Bishop Diego. Darielle Preston carried the 10th-seeded Seawolves, scoring a game-high 25 points in their 45-34 win over El Segundo-Vistamar in the first round Feb. 19 and logging 20 points in their 38-28 victory against Ojai-Villanova Prep in the second round two days later.
The Pacifica Christian girls soccer team closed its campaign Feb. 19 at Airport Park, where it fell 2-1 in overtime to Whittier Christian in the first round of the Division 6 playoffs. The Seawolves' goal was scored by senior Breena Berck in the first half.
The Pacifica Christian boys soccer team fell 4-0 to Avalon in the Division 7 wild-card round Feb. 18 at Airport Park.
Contact Jeff Goodman at 310-573-8351, jeff@www.smdp.com or on Twitter.