Sage Hill, Newport Harbor, Pacifica Christian Orange County girls’ basketball earn seeds in CIF playoffs
Newport Harbor High School senior Willa Rath is playing two sports in the same season by necessity, not necessarily by choice.
Girls’ basketball is usually a winter sport, with lacrosse in the spring. But Rath, a center in basketball and defender in lacrosse, is gearing up to play in both postseasons — and both start Saturday.
Rath, a four-year varsity starter for the Sailors’ girls’ basketball team, and her teammates hope for a long run in the CIF Southern Section Division 4A playoffs. They have earned the No. 2 seed, one of three local girls’ basketball teams seeded in their respective divisions.
Sage Hill is the No. 2 seed in Division 3A, while Pacifica Christian Orange County is the top seed in Division 5A. Other local girls’ basketball teams qualifying for the postseason include Huntington Beach (Division 1), Corona del Mar (Division 2AA), Edison and Fountain Valley (Division 3A).
Newport Harbor (14-2) won the Wave League championship this season, its first league title since 1993-94. The Sailors, making their first playoff appearance since 2010-11, open against Indio (5-4) of the Desert Valley League on Saturday at 7 p.m.
Junior transfer guard Chase Dionio — the team’s leading scorer — and junior point guard Cydney Jover are other key players for coach Jillian Angell.
“It’s been a lot of hard work,” Angell said. “It’s the first time in a decade that we’ve made playoffs ... Willa has been back and forth and giving 100% to both sports. She hasn’t had to miss one game either way, and lacrosse also won their league as well, so she got two league titles her senior year. That’s huge.”
Sage Hill (13-6) finished third in the tough San Joaquin League, which would explain why the Lightning didn’t earn a first-round bye in Division 3AA like some other teams. Sage Hill has to travel to Lake Elsinore in the first round Thursday night, for a game at Sunbelt League No. 2 representative Temescal Canyon (6-3).
Senior forward Emily Elliott and junior point guard Isabel Gomez are key players for coach Kerwin Walters’ Lightning, who have yet to advance past the second round in his seven-year tenure.
Freshmen Emily Eadie, Kat Righeimer and Zoie Lamkin are also big contributors for Sage Hill.
“They make this a lot of fun,” Walters said. “Emily Eadie has been a consistent double-double every night.”
Top-seeded Pacifica Christian Orange County (13-4), the Academy League champion, needs to win just three games in Division 5A for its first CIF title. The Tritons have a first-round bye and host San Gabriel Academy (7-5) in a quarterfinal game on June 2.
Freshman Annika Jiwani is a key player for the Tritons. Jiwani finished the regular season averaging 21.5 points, 9.7 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game, coach James Parker said.
Huntington Beach (14-2) and CdM (13-6) split the Surf League title, and each opens the playoffs with a home game Thursday night. The Oilers host Del Rey League No. 2 Bishop Montgomery (8-4) in Division 1. The Sea Kings host Tesoro (9-5), the third-place team from the South Coast League, in Division 2AA.
Wave League runner-up Edison (9-7) hosts Palmdale Knight (9-5), which finished tied for third in the Golden League, in a Division 3A first-round game Thursday. Fountain Valley (8-7), which made the postseason as an at-large team from the Surf League, travels to Rio Hondo League champion South Pasadena (11-5).
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