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Baseball Falls to San Juan Hills, Misses At-Large Playoff Berth
Two weeks ago, there was a three-way tie at the top of the Sea View League standings between San Clemente, San Juan Hills and Aliso Niguel.
Three games later, there is a two-way tie for first place in the Sea View League, and San Clemente is on the outside looking in.
The Tritons dropped their third straight game to a league-leading team with a shutout loss to San Juan Hills, 8-0, on Tuesday, April 23, at San Clemente High.
Paired with two losses to Aliso Niguel last week, San Clemente (13-14, 5-7) will not be able to claim one of the two automatic CIF-SS playoff berths from the Sea View League and will finish in third place. San Juan Hills (20-7, 9-3) and Aliso Niguel (18-7, 9-3) remain tied for first place going into each team’s season finales.
San Juan Hills hosted San Clemente on Thursday, April 25, and Aliso Niguel as at last-place El Toro, also on Thursday. The Stallions and Wolverines split the Sea View League championship.
San Clemente held out hope for an at-large berth in the CIF-SS Division 2 playoffs, as the Tritons could have won on Thursday to be considered. However, the Tritons fell to San Juan Hills again, 3-2.
With the loss, the Tritons’ overall record fell below .500, and the first criterion for CIF-SS at-large entries is a .500 or better overall record.
Boys Lacrosse Wins Share of South Coast League Championship
With upsets of the top two teams in the South Coast League in each of their past two games, the San Clemente boys lacrosse team had the opportunity to force a three-way split of the league championship on Wednesday, April 24.
San Clemente hosted last-place Mission Viejo (9-8, 0-5) in the season finale on Wednesday, and the Tritons took care of business in a 16-6 victory. Trey Ghyzel scored six goals.
The Tritons would win their first South Coast League championship since a split title in 2019. San Clemente (13-5, 4-2) split with Tesoro (12-3, 4-2) and Trabuco Hills (9-6, 4-2).
After their first win over Trabuco Hills last week to open the door for the league championship, the Tritons put their title destiny in their own hands by stealing a win on the road at Tesoro on Monday, April 22.
San Clemente won, 10-9, with three goals by Brady Fish, two goals and two assists from Jack Bunker, two goals by Kai Morgan and a goal and an assist from Miles Bonner. Jackson Blunt made eight saves to make the Tritons’ advantage stand up.
San Clemente will learn its CIF-SS playoff draw when the brackets are released on Saturday, April 27, with the playoffs beginning next week.
Girls Lacrosse Clinches Fourth Consecutive League Championship
The San Clemente girls lacrosse team continued its unending roll through the South Coast League, as the Tritons look to reach greater heights in the CIF-SS playoffs.
With a 16-9 win over El Toro on Friday, April 19, San Clemente clinched its fourth straight South Coast League championship with its 33rd consecutive league victory. The Tritons have not lost a South Coast League contest since April 16, 2019.
San Clemente also posted a 20-7 road victory over Trabuco Hills on Thursday, April 18. The Tritons have outscored league opponents this season by a combined 70-goal margin, 119-42.
The Tritons also moved up to No. 3 in the CIF-SS Division 1 rankings, behind No. 2 Marlborough and No. 1 Foothill, which the Tritons upset on April 12.
San Clemente looked to secure its fourth straight unbeaten run through the South Coast League on Wednesday, April 24, at San Juan Hills, but results were not available at press time. San Clemente beat San Juan Hills, 16-6, in the first round of league play.
CIF-SS playoff brackets will be released on Saturday, April 27.
Boys Volleyball Earns No. 1 Seed, Opens Playoffs Thursday
For returning to the top of the South Coast League with its first league title since 2022 and first unbeaten run through the league since 2021, the San Clemente boys volleyball team earned the No. 1 seed in the CIF-SS Division 3 playoffs.
San Clemente (22-6) will open the CIF-SS playoffs at home on Thursday, April 25, against Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks. Notre Dame (10-12) won a wild-card game at Thousand Oaks in a sweep, 25-18, 25-12, 25-23.
If San Clemente advances, the Tritons will travel to either Windward of Los Angeles or Oak Park on Saturday, April 27. The CIF-SS quarterfinals are scheduled for Wednesday, May 1.
San Clemente closed out its South Coast League championship run with back-to-back sweeps last week, on the road at Trabuco Hills and at home against Aliso Niguel. The Tritons dropped only two sets in South Coast League play, both in four-set wins over Tesoro.
Despite falling down to Division 3, San Clemente posted major victories over higher-division competition all season. Tesoro finished No. 6 in CIF-SS Division 1, and San Clemente beat the Titans three times this season. San Clemente also posted a tournament win over Division 1 No. 4 Newport Harbor, a four-set win over Division 1 No. 8 Mater Dei and two wins over Division 2 No. 5 Beckman.
San Clemente had been in the combined Division 1 and 2 grouping since 2020 before their 11-17 season last year, their first sub-.500 season in modern memory. The Tritons bounced back for their most wins in a season since 2019.