One team formed jubilant memories over the weekend. Two others endured painful losses.
Another team didn’t even play.
All four Santa Clarita Valley teams still alive this postseason now turn their sights to the CIF state and regional playoffs, which begin this week for basketball and soccer.
No. 6-seed Valencia High girls basketball (27-5), fresh off beating Canyon High on Saturday for the first CIF title in program history, hosts No. 11 Bakersfield High in the first round of the CIF Division 2 state playoffs Wednesday night at 7 p.m.
MORE:Â Valencia girls hoops defeats Canyon for first CIF-SS title
Bakersfield (23-4) finished as runner-up in the Central Section’s Division 2 playoffs.
No. 8-seed Canyon (21-10), coming off a second straight CIF finals loss, will start at home Wednesday in Division 2, hosting No. 9 Bishop Montgomery of Torrance (22-9) at 7 p.m.
As for Valencia and Canyon meeting again, in what would be the fifth matchup of the season, the teams wouldn’t play until the regional finals on March 18.
First thing’s first.
Bishop Montgomery beat Huntington Beach, 41-38, on Friday for the Southern Section’s Division 1A title.
Canyon plans to be ready for the Knights.
“The minute we get back in the gym,” Canyon coach Jessica Haayer said Saturday, “we’re focused on the next step.”
Saugus boys soccer (17-7-4) possessed the same mindset Friday night at Warren High in Downey after losing 2-0 to Bellflower in the CIF-SS Division 4 title game.
“We’re going to keep our heads high. We’re not done. We have a game Tuesday,” said Saugus assistant coach Joe Madick, who addressed reporters because head coach Seth Groller lost his voice during the game. “So it’s back to work on Monday, and we learn from this.”
The No. 5-seeded Centurions will play at No. 4 Lindsay High (23-2-1), south of Fresno, today at 4 p.m. in the first round of the CIF SoCal Regional Division 4 playoffs, a tournament that Valencia won last season.
Lindsay won the Central Section Division 4 title late last month.
No. 5-seed Hart girls soccer (22-3-4), which hasn’t played since losing in double overtime to Mater Dei of Santa Ana in the Division 1 semifinals on Feb. 28, is also headed north.
The Indians will play at No. 4 Bullard High of Fresno (16-7-2) at 4 p.m. today in the first round of the CIF SoCal Regional Division 1 playoffs.
Bullard beat Clovis North, 1-0, for the Central Section Division 1 title.
Mater Dei is the No. 3 seed in Hart’s bracket.