SAN DIEGO – With one of the strongest senior classes in the entire CIF-San Diego Section, Clairemont High gained valuable experience during its run to last year’s Southern California Division 2 regional girls water polo final.
The Chieftains also benefited from San Clemente – the Division 2 regional champion last season – elevating to compete this week in the eight-team Division 1 playoffs.
Clairemont, the top seed in Division 2, overcame a few early misses to eventually find its offensive rhythm against No. 8 San Dimas and the Chieftains cruised the rest of the way in a 16-3 victory Tuesday at Cathedral Catholic High.
Clairemont (18-12) will compete in Thursday’s regional semifinal against No. 4 La Jolla (18-10) – a 10-6 winner Tuesday against Downey (22-6) – at a site to be determined since the Chieftains don’t have the ability to host postseason matches.
The Chieftains secured an 8-6 victory Jan. 24 against La Jolla, before enduring a 5-4 sudden-death overtime setback Feb. 5 against the Vikings.
Clairemont prevailed by a 9-8 margin against top-seeded Alta Loma in last year’s Division 2 regional semifinals, with Honore Holland producing the winning goal for the Chieftains.
Clairemont girls water polo team | Photo courtesy of Clairemont
Ava Gatewood and Audrey Harper both had four goals apiece Tuesday, with Ava Barclay recording 10 saves, three assists and three steals for Clairemont, which accumulated the first four goals of the match, before Chloe Perez finally broke the drought for the Saints (21-9) by scoring with 20 seconds remaining in the opening quarter.
The Chieftains responded with seven unanswered goals and held San Dimas – the CIF-Southern Section Division 4 champion – scoreless for a span of more than 12 minutes that stretched from the first to third quarters.
It was a reversal of fortune for the Saints, who held Troy scoreless for the final three quarters in a 9-2 victory Saturday in the section championship match at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut.
Ava Mercado scored back-to-back goals less than a minute apart in the third quarter for San Dimas, but the Saints were unable to add to their total during the final eight minutes of the contest.
Madison Curtis had five saves for San Dimas, making its first regional playoff appearance.
Kylie Sagastume, Nina Bunton and Sam Denny all scored twice for Clairemont, which also received goals from Cami Pryor and Haley Ballinger.
Valhalla (23-5), the No. 2 seed, cruised to a 20-8 victory Tuesday against No. 7 Rancho Bernardo (15-13).
The Norsemen will play host Thursday in the semifinals against No. 3 Murrieta Valley (22-11), which secured an 8-4 victory Tuesday against Elsinore (26-2).
Cathedral Catholic 16, Anaheim 3: The top-seeded Dons (26-4), the CIF-San Diego Section Division 2 champion, scored five goals in less than four minutes to open the match against No. 8 Anaheim (12-11) and rolled into the Division 3 regional semifinals.
Cathedral Catholic girls water polo team | Photo courtesy of Cathedral Catholic
Hailey Romano had four goals for Cathedral Catholic, which plays host in Thursday’s final four against No. 5 Palisades (11-10), an 11-10 winner over No. 4 Ramona (15-15).
Lillian LaRaia and Amalia Stehly both contributed three goals apiece for the Dons, who held Anaheim scoreless for a span of more than 13 minutes from the first to third quarters.
Joscelyn Briseno scored twice and Yalexxa Lopez added a goal for the Colonists, who received eight saves from Emily Maldonado.
Francesca McNeil and Kaitlin Motto each scored a pair of goals for CIF-San Diego Section Division 2 champion Cathedral Catholic, with Niamh Murphy and Lily Ritchie also contributing goals for the Dons.
Lily Dant and Ainsley Grosz combined for five saves for Cathedral Catholic, which is attempting to reach its first regional final since advancing to the Division 2 championship match in 2020 and suffering an 8-7 setback against San Clemente.
Anaheim was making its regional debut after capturing the CIF-Southern Section Division 6 crown Saturday at Mt. San Antonio College with a 5-3 victory against Nordhoff for the first championship in any sport in school history.
The Colonists endured another 10-minute stretch in between goals in the third and fourth quarters, before Briseno produced the final score with 50 seconds left in the contest.
Palisades 11, Ramona 10: The No. 5 Dolphins (11-10) rebounded from a 17-11 loss Feb. 19 against Birmingham in the L.A. City Section Open Division final to advance to the Division 3 regional semifinals with a victory Tuesday at No. 4 Ramona (15-15), the CIF-San Diego Section Division champion.
Palisades built an 8-6 halftime lead to advance to the final four for the second year in a row.
Lilli Fox produced seven goals, with Bailey Gair and Kylie Lupescu both scoring twice for the Dolphins.
Corinna Frankel and Triana Paris each recorded four saves for Palisades, which plays in Thursday’s regional semifinals at top-seeded Cathedral Catholic.
The Dolphins are pursuing their first appearance in the Division 3 regional final since 2022, suffering a 10-9 setback against Corona Centennial.
Birmingham (19-9), the No. 2 seed, prevailed by an 18-8 margin Tuesday against No. 7 Granada Hills (10-2) in a showdown of the L.A. City Section Open Division winner and Division 1 champion.
The Patriots will square off Thursday against No. 3 Santa Paula (18-13) – a 7-4 winner against No. 6 San Pedro (6-7) – in the Division 3 regional semifinals at Panorama High.