Valencia, Saugus advance to second round; Hart, West Ranch eliminated from CIF playoffs
After losing in the first round in last year’s playoffs, the Valencia Vikings returned to the postseason this year in the Division 3 playoffs and secured a 3-0 home win over the North Saxons of Torrance in the first round Thursday.
“We are extremely excited to make it through to the next round,” Valencia head coach Brian Miller said. “I’m pleased with the way we played and I’m just very proud of the girls.”
With the win, the Lady Vikings advanced to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since the 2017-18 season.
One of the leading players who helped lead Valencia in the win Thursday night, Vikings’ senior captain Taya Pickup, secured the brace after bagging two goals throughout the match.
In the 28th minute of the first half, Pickup scored her first goal as the Vikings took an early 1-0 lead. And in the second half, Pickup scored her second goal after multiple opportunities throughout the match with shots on goal.
After the match, Miller spoke on his senior captain’s performance and is glad to see Pickup’s hard work from practice translate into the playoffs.
“She’s a great player, very composed, works hard in training and I’m so glad that the practice and dedication came through to score a couple of goals,” he said.
Valencia’s Sienna Darland scored the third goal in the 22nd minute of the second half.
Another performance that Miller said helped Valencia win the game was that of junior goalkeeper Atalya Cooper.
During the match, Cooper made timely saves and didn’t let the pressure from the Saxons’ offense manage a goal into the post.
“She did everything by the book,” he said. “She did everything perfectly, not just Atalya in goal but the whole defense. They did a great job in keeping [Saxons] out to score zero.”
For the second round, the Lady Vikings are set to be on the road Saturday and match up against the La Mirada Matadores.
Despite the short turnaround, Miller is excited for the second round and is hoping to utilize the momentum from the win for success in the next match.
“We’ll enjoy this win and then park the bus and focus on the next game,” he said. “I don’t tend to worry too much about the opponents. I concentrate on what we can do, so we’ll work on that and then we’ll be on the road on Saturday and hopefully get another win and keep moving along.”
After Thursday night’s games, here are scores from the first round of the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section playoffs:
Canyon of Anaheim 3, Hart 2: In the first round of the Division 1 playoffs, the Hart Hawks were defeated at home by the Canyon Comanches of Anaheim.
With the loss, the Lady Hawks are eliminated from the playoffs.
Saugus 3, Laguna Beach 0: In the first round of the Division 2 playoffs, the Saugus Centurions took the home win over the Laguna Beach Breakers.
Makea Leonard, Gianna Sandoval and Audrey Smith all tallied goals in the win with Leonard contributing two assists.
With the win, the Centurions are on the road in the second round on Saturday and match up against the Temecula Valley Golden Bears with kick-off scheduled for 4 p.m.
Crean Lutheran 2, West Ranch 0: In the first round of the Division 2 playoffs, the West Ranch Wildcats lost on the road to the Crean Lutheran Saints of Irvine.
In the loss, the Wildcats were shut out and eliminated from the playoffs.
Photos below from Valencia’s win over the Saxons:
