ESPNHS California

El Diamante is the first major upset victim, but more could be on the list very quickly. Two divisional state titles also are already down to two possible winners.

This week’s new Cal-Hi Sports divisional state rankings for softball were compiled after games of Wednesday but before the CIF Southern Section quarterfinals played on Thursday.

There are no new No. 1 teams, but on Wednesday highly-regarded El Diamante of Visalia saw its hopes for a second straight CIF Central Section Division I title wrecked with a 7-6 upset loss to Clovis West of Fresno.

Here are the third divisional state rankings for the 2012 season (with contributions from Paul Muyskens; through games of Wednesday, May 15):

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There’s at least one new team in every top 10 this week, but none of the newcomers are entering any higher than ninth.

Changes should be fast and furious in the Cal-Hi Sports divisional state softball rankings as the section playoffs get through with the early rounds.

That wasn’t the case this week, though, as nearly all teams didn’t play or had little trouble in regular season finales.

Here are the second divisional state rankings for the 2012 season (with contributions from Paul Muyskens; through games of Tuesday, May 15 and including other results from this week):

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Pacifica of Garden Grove and Norco still lead the pack as the regular season in many places in the state ends this week.

The first seven positions in this week’s new state softball top 20 remained in place, but there was some scrambling at the bottom.

Tuesday games are not normally taken into account for the weekly rankings, but it was impossible not to check a couple of key scores. That ended up helping Camarillo join the top 20 as a newcomer at No. 19 and also enabled Del Oro of Loomis to stay in at No. 20 despite taking a loss last week to Roseville.

(Through games played Monday, May 7) (Some results from Tuesday, May 8 also included)
(Contributing: Harold Abend, Paul Muyskens) (Previous ranking in parentheses)

1. (1) Pacifica (Garden Grove) 25-1
The Mariners remain the top team in the state (they also are No. 1 in the POWERADE FAB 50) after an 11-1 road win over Tustin and a 7-2 home win over Western of Anaheim. Nicole DeWitt led the way in the first win of the week as she homered and drove in four runs. Pacifica looks to wrap up an undefeated Empire League championship this week.

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Tough call at No. 2 as Norco stays in that position despite loss to Corona Santiago. Highest rising newcomers are Los Osos and Del Oro.

Knee-jerk reactions in the rankings game are common, but looking way down the road is more important.

A knee-jerk reaction would have been to dump Norco from its No. 2 statewide ranking after a loss last week to Corona Santiago.

That move was seriously considered this week in favor of unbeaten Amador Valley, but Norco still has just two losses overall, beat Santiago 12-4 earlier in the season and still has a win over No. 1 Pacifica. Throw all that together and compare a possible final No. 1 decision if Norco were to win the CIF Southern Section Division I title and it still looks like the Cougars would have the edge over Amador due to strength of schedule. It’s also much smoother to leave the rankings as is now than the alternative, which would be to move up Amador now and possibly have to hop Norco in front later.

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State’s top honor goes to Archbishop Mitty of San Jose’s 6-foot-8 junior. The last junior to be the Cal-Hi Sports Mr. Basketball State Player of the Year was Tyson Chandler and the one before that was Jason Kidd.

It’s one thing to be chosen as the Mr. Basketball State Player of the Year for a state as big as California. But doing it as a junior puts that player in an even more exclusive club.

Aaron Gordon, the dynamic 6-foot-8 forward from Archbishop Mitty of San Jose, is now a member of that club after being named as the 2012 Mr. Basketball honoree.

Gordon tops a group of four other finalists – Mater Dei’s Katin Reinhardt and Xavier Johnson along with La Verne Lutheran’s Grant Jerrett and Richmond Salesian’s Jabari Bird – primarily due to his dominant showing in leading Mitty to its second straight CIF Division II state title.

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Five teams get added into each expanded version of the final rankings with teams to watch for next season included as well. Teams getting final bumps include Brea Olinda, Miramonte of Orinda, Modesto Christian and Ripon Christian.

With help from Stockton office assistant editor Paul Muyskens, here are the ninth and final listings of the top-ranked girls teams in the state this season for each division (records listed after state championship games played on Saturday, March 24; previous ranking in parentheses):

CIF Division I
1. (1) Mater Dei (Santa Ana) 34-3
2. (2) Long Beach Poly (Long Beach) 31-4
3. (4) Brea Olinda (Brea) 26-7
4. (3) Berkeley 29-3
5. (5) Summit (Fontana) 28-4
6. (6) Santiago (Corona) 31-2
7. (8) Huntington Beach 26-6
8. (9) Edison (Huntington Beach) 23-4
9. (7) Etiwanda 23-4
10. (10) El Toro (Lake Forest) 27-4
11. (11) Hanford 25-5
12. (12) Troy (Fullerton) 19-8
13. (14) Narbonne (Harbor City) 28-7
14. (15) San Diego 27-6
15. (13) Kennedy (Sacramento) 26-9
Drops: None.
Expanded Next Five Teams: 16. Pleasant Grove (Elk Grove) 22-10; 17. Oak Ridge (El Dorado Hills) 25-9; 18. Deer Valley (Antioch) 22-9; 19. Stockdale (Bakersfield) 26-5; 20. Rialto 25-2.
Honorable Mention: Canyon Springs (Moreno Valley) 20-8, Granite Hills (El Cajon) 30-5*, Gunn (Palo Alto) 21-7, Heritage (Brentwood) 25-6, Lowell (San Francisco) 25-6, Palo Alto 19-6.
Teams to Watch Next Season: Berkeley, Corona Santiago, Mater Dei, Long Beach Poly, Huntington Beach Edison, Hanford, Troy, Sacramento Kennedy.

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There’s limited movement in this week’s rankings, but that could change after this weekend’s Michelle Carew Classic and the Livermore Stampede.

As rankings compilers, it sure is nice sometimes when just about every team from the week before doesn’t lose. In most weeks, especially in baseball and softball, it’s the opposite.

For this week’s new top 20 for California softball, the only team to lose and drop was previous No. 8 Torrey Pines. The Falcons didn’t drop far after losing to San Marcos on Monday because it was just their first loss of the season.

Previous No. 15 Simi Valley didn’t lose, but had to take a tie when weather forced a halt to a tie game between the Pioneers and El Segundo in the title game of the Savanna tourney in Anaheim.

Next week’s rankings don’t figure to be as calm. Many top teams will be in the brackets of the Michelle Carew Classic in Anaheim Hills and the Livermore Stampede in Livermore.

(Through games played Monday, April 2)
(Previous ranking in parentheses)

1. (1) Norco 14-0
The Cougars, who were idle last week, hope to add the Michelle Carew Classic title to previous tournament crowns they’ve won at Bullhead City, Ariz., and Torrance, Calif.

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For each division in the final rankings, we have expanded the number of teams by five and take a look at a few teams to watch for the 2012-13 season. The most changes for the final rankings were in Division III and Division V due to the outcome of the CIF state championship and due to a couple of head-to-head wins that were discovered from early in the season.

With help from Stockton office assistant editor Paul Muyskens, here are the ninth and final listings of the top-ranked boys teams in the state this season for each division (records listed after state championship games played on Saturday, March 24; previous ranking in parentheses):

CIF Division I
1. (1) Mater Dei (Santa Ana) 34-2
2. (2) Long Beach Poly (Long Beach) 29-3
3. (4) Loyola (Los Angeles) 26-6
4. (3) Sheldon (Sacramento) 29-6
5. (5) Bullard (Fresno) 32-4
6. (7) De La Salle (Concord) 28-3
7. (9) Taft (Woodland Hills) 29-4
8. (6) Jesuit (Carmichael) 27-6
9. (8) Etiwanda 30-3
10. (10) Lutheran (Orange) 22-11
11. (11) Mission Viejo 28-5
12. (15) Crenshaw (Los Angeles) 24-6
13. (12) Capistrano Valley (Mission Viejo) 25-7
14. (13) McClymonds (Oakland) 19-11
15. (14) Dorsey (Los Angeles) 27-9
Drops: None.
Expanded Next 5 Teams: 16. Santa Monica 21-9; 17. Fairfax (Los Angeles) 20-10; 18. Westchester (Los Angeles) 22-9; 19. Deer Valley (Antioch) 28-9; 20. Palisades (Pacific Palisades) 17-11.
Honorable Mention: Bellarmine (San Jose) 18-12, Castro Valley 22-8, Clovis West (Fresno) 22-7, Crescenta Valley (La Crescenta) 26-8, Foothill (Tustin) 24-6, Piedmont Hills (San Jose) 28-4, Upland 20-10.
Teams to Watch Next Season: Long Beach Poly, Mater Dei, Loyola, Sheldon, De La Salle, Woodland Hills Taft, Deer Valley.

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Norco shows how to enhance ranking even when team already is No. 1. This week’s new rankings also sees significant rises for Northern California powers Sheldon and San Benito.

It is possible to strengthen a No. 1 ranking and proof of that is what the Norco softball team did during last week’s Torrance National Tournament.

Coach Rick Robinson’s club rolled to the tourney title and although the lineup of teams wasn’t exactly the same as the Arizona Tournament of Champions, state-ranked Edison of Huntington Beach was there along with Nevada power Damonte Ranch and a sprinkling of other dangerous squads.

Norco improved to 14-0 on Tuesday with a victory over Centennial of Corona. The Cougars not only remained No. 1 in the state, but are likely going to be lifted to No. 1 in this week’s POWERADE FAB 50 national rankings on the ESPNHS softball page on Thursday.

At this point, even if Norco were to drop a game in the ultra-tough Big VIII League, the Cougars would still be hard to drop from the No. 1 state ranking.

(Through games played Tuesday, March 27)
Contributing: Paul Muyskens, Harold Abend
(Previous ranking in parentheses)

1. (1) Norco 14-0
Ohio State-bound Ashley Goodwin hit a two-run home run and the Cougars defeated North of Torrance 8-0 in the championship game of the Torrance National Tournament. Emily Lockman dominated in the circle as the Cougars won four of their five games at the tournament without allowing a run.

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As is our custom prior to CIF state finals in football and basketball, we take a crack at choosing which teams we think will win.

Note: All of the following writeups and selections are done with the highest level of respect to both teams and all coaches. We never use point spreads and, sure, some of the scores might be a bit more lopsided than we might think. But you also never know what might happen. After all, these are teenagers.

We had one of our worst years ever in last year’s CIF finals (boys and girls combined) with just six correct and four wrong. We were 7-for-10 in 2010 and were 9-for-10 in 2009.

The following writeups were completed by Ronnie Flores, Harold Abend, Mark Tennis, Paul Muyskens.

Boys Division I
(Saturday, March 24, 8 p.m.)

Cal-Hi Sports’ predicted score:
Mater Dei (Santa Ana) 77, Sheldon (Sacramento) 66

The marquee game of the 2012 CIF boys state championships could live up to its billing as both teams look for historic victories.

Mater Dei, the top-ranked team in the state and the No. 8 team in the country in the POWERADE FAB 50, is gunning for its second consecutive CIF state title. Sheldon is looking to become the first Sacramento-area Division I state champion ever.

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This year’s CIF state championships on the girls side feature four strong favorites and one game that is almost too close to call.

Note: All of the following writeups and selections are done with the highest level of respect to both teams and all coaches. We never use point spreads and, sure, some of the scores might be a bit more lopsided than we might think. But you also never know what might happen. After all, these are teenagers.

We had one of our worst years ever in last year’s CIF finals (boys and girls combined) with just six correct and four wrong. We were 7-for-10 in 2010 and were 9-for-10 in 2009.

The following writeups were completed by Harold Abend, Paul Muyskens.

Girls Division I
(Saturday, March 24, 9:30 a.m.)

Cal-Hi Sports’ predicted score:
Mater Dei (Santa Ana) 61, Berkeley 48

There’s little surprise that these two teams are meeting again for the state’s big school title. What’s different is the makeup of the two teams from last year.

Two-time defending state champion Mater Dei sent Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis off to Connecticut leaving USC-bound and ESPNHS Girls Basketball Class of 2012 No. 2 Jordan Adams and Washington State-bound Alexas Williamson to carry on.

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With one game to go, Mater Dei (D1), Archbishop Mitty (D2), Alemany (D3), Salesian of Richmond (D4) and St. Joseph Notre Dame (D5) look to complete almost wire-to-wire runs atop their state divisions.

More highlights from this week’s lists include:

Our picks of which teams in the north and which teams in the south can still move up in the final rankings depending on which team wins in the CIF state championships.

With help from Stockton office assistant editor Paul Muyskens, here is the eighth and next-to-last listing of boys teams this season for each division (records listed after regional championship games played on Saturday, March 17; previous ranking in parentheses):

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There is a new No. 1 team going into this weekend’s CIF state championships as Archbishop Mitty of San Jose goes to the top in Division II.

More highlights from this week’s lists include:

CIF state title favorites Mater Dei (D1), Bishop O’Dowd (D3) and La Jolla Country Day (D4) heading into their last game in the No. 1 position.

Mission Prep of San Luis Obispo holding on to D5 No. 1 ranking over Brookside Christian with what looks like a toss-up game in Sacramento.

With help from Stockton office assistant editor Paul Muyskens, here is the eighth and next-to-last listing of girls teams this season with analysis and bubble teams for each division (records listed after regional championship games played on Saturday, March 17; previous ranking in parentheses):

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Unbeaten Orange Lutheran surges to No. 4 after another week of significant victories. Highest rising newcomers are West Ranch of Valencia and James Logan of Union City.

A great deal of the movement in this week’s state softball top 20 revolves around teams from the Sunset League in the CIF Southern Section.

Sunset member Los Alamitos, which was No. 1 in the state two weeks ago, lost its second straight game on Monday and fell down to No. 19 in this week’s rankings. Sunset teams going up, however, would be new No. 13 Edison of Huntington Beach plus bubble team Fountain Valley.

Combined with Marina of Huntington Beach, which stayed at No. 5 in this week’s state rankings, the Sunset has four teams close to being among the top 20 in the state.

(Through games played Tuesday, March 20)
(Previous ranking in parentheses)

1. (1) Norco 7-0
With the help of a nine-run inning, the Cougars picked up a 12-4 win over defending CIF Southern Section Division I champ Santiago of Corona to end the week after earlier defeating Roosevelt of Corona 6-0. In their first five games, the Cougars had failed to score more than four runs in a game before having their bats come alive in a big way last week.

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CIF state finals will be No. 1 vs. No. 6, No. 3 vs. No. 9, No. 5 vs. No. 11 and No. 2 vs. No. 8. Biggest riser of the week is Price of Los Angeles. Biggest dropper is De La Salle.

Other highlights of this week’s rankings include:

*Bullard of Fresno latching onto a top 10 position due to its buzzer-beating victory over Long Beach Poly

*Lincoln of San Diego breaking into the honor roll as the only newcomer even with 10 losses on the season

*Mater Dei and Archbishop Mitty getting closer to preseason starting positions of No. 1 and No. 2.

Get all the details in the ESPNHS rankings tool.