Expect a showdown when Lincoln hosts Newbury Park in the SoCal Regionals – San Diego Union-Tribune

CIF Southern California Regional Soccer Championships

When: Friday and Saturday

Tickets: Only via GoFan.co. $12 for adults, $8 for students and seniors.

Streaming: The NFHS Network winners advance to the state championship

Division 1-AA: Newbury Park (14-0) vs. Lincoln (10-2) at Southwestern College

When: Friday, 8 p.m

Preview: CIF Southern Section Division 2 champion Newbury Park defeated San Clemente (24-13), Yorba Linda (20-14) and Murrieta Valley (31-28) in the playoffs. The Panthers are led by junior QB Brady Smigiel, who chose Florida State. A four-star prospect, Smigiel completed 208 of 310 for 3,314 yards and 46 touchdowns with just three interceptions. He also passed for 416 yards and 10 touchdowns. Smigiel threw for 322 yards and three TDs against Murrieta Valley. Tyler Stromsoe rushed for 796 yards. Shane Rosenthal, a 3-star commit to Princeton, has 76 catches for 1,423 yards and 23 touchdowns. Drew Cofield had touchdown catches of 27 and 66 yards against Murrieta Valley. Tight end Blake Bryce is committed to BYU. Linebackers Carter Taylor, Balen Bethancourt and Ryder Sheehan lead the defense. The team has 36 sacks and 17 interceptions. … Lincoln is the San Diego Section Open Division champion and defeated Mission Hills (13-7 OT) and Cathedral Catholic (31-13) in the playoffs. The Hornets’ losses come to JSerra (28-19) and Nevada Arbor View. Lincoln is led by Oregon’s Aikili Smith Jr., who has thrown for 2,039 yards and 18 touchdowns. Aden Jackson has 180 carries for 1,423 yards and 20 touchdowns, while junior Curtis has 74 carries for 717 yards. Ty Olsen leads the team with 48 catches for 814 yards and 11 touchdowns. Courtney Miller-Thompson has 54 catches for 707 yards. King David Dunn leads the defense with 112 tackles. Eugene Rice had 106 and Niko Ta’a 92. Prince Pavion and Benjamin Jair both had eight sacks. The team has 40 sacks and 18 interceptions.

Rankings: Newbury Park is ranked 73rd nationally and 10th in the state by MaxPreps.com. Lincoln is ranked 87th nationally and 12th nationally.

Next: The winner will play the winner of Folsom (12-1)-Pittsburg (11-2) on Dec. 13 at Saddleback College.

Forecast: Lincoln 31, Newbury Park 28

Division 1-A: Granite Hills (11-2) at Huntington Beach Edison (10-4)

When: Saturday, 7 p.m

Preview: Granite Hills is the San Diego Section Division 1 champion and a three-time San Diego champion, having won Division 2 in 2022 and the Open Division last season. Sophomore Zach Benitez has thrown for 2,282 yards and 27 TDs. Max Turner, who signed with Utah Tech, gets the offense going, rushing for 1,606 yards and 29 touchdowns, including 211 yards and four touchdowns in a championship game win over San Marcos. Gage Spalding has 431 yards. Arizona State baseball player Brenden Lewis leads the team with 62 catches. Defensive back Trevor Smith leads the defense with 107 tackles. Parker Vance has 77 tackles and leads the San Diego Section with nine interceptions. Defensive end Gavin Taylor has eight sacks. … Edison is the Southern Section Division 3 champion, defeating Simi Valley, 35-21, in the title game. Sam Thomson threw for 223 yards and three TDs against Simi Valley and has 1,294 yards and 11 TDs in 11 games. Julius Gillick has 2,112 yards and 32 touchdowns. The team passed for 3,003 yards and 40 touchdowns. Linebackers Matt Lopez (122 tackles) and Jeremiah Ross (121 tackles) lead the defense. The team only has 20 sacks and six interceptions.

Common opponent: Granite Hills defeated Helix 35-21. Edison defeated Helix 42-14.

Rank: Granite Hills is ranked No. 34 in the state. Edison is No. 18.

Next: The winner will play the winner of San Francisco St. Ignatius (10-2)-Fresno Central (11-2) on Dec. 14 at Saddleback College.

Forecast: Granite Hills 35, Edison 27

Division 3-A: Arcadia Rio Hondo (12-1) at Poway (6-7)

When: Saturday, 6 p.m

Preview: Rio Hondo Prep, a private school with just 71 boys, defeated Downey Warren, 43-16, to win the Southern Section Division 3 title. The Kares run the ball behind Nathaniel Cutris, who has 79 carries for 943 yards and 13 touchdowns. Noah Penunuri had 228 yards rushing against Warren. The team… After going 0-6 in the Avocado League, Poway won the San Diego Section Division 2 championship, defeating Mater Dei Catholic 62-24 in the title game. The Titans scored 63 points in the semifinals. Luke Jorgensen rushed for 1,156 yards and 18 touchdowns. Colin McCann has 40 catches for 759 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also has a 763-yard kickoff return yardage performance, including a 99-yarder against Mater Dei Catholic. Oliver Vera leads the defense with 71 tackles.

Rankings: Rio Hondo Prep is ranked No. 86 in the state. Poway is No. 95.

Next: The winner will play Vaden Fairfield (11-2)-Chico Pleasant Valley (9-3) on Dec. 14 at Veterans Stadium in Long Beach.

Forecast: Poway 35, Rio Hondo Prep 21

Division 4-A: St. Augustine (4-10) at Downey St. Pius X-St. Matthias Academy (5-9)

When: Saturday, 6 p.m

Preview: St. Augustine went 0-10 in the regular season, secured a spot in the playoffs and started to score. The Saints, San Diego Division 3 champions, have won four playoff games by a combined score of 59-27, including 13-7 against San Pasqual in last week’s title game. Quarterback Vincent Smith has taken over and running back Caelyn Aguirre has thrived in the playoffs. Do-it-all sophomore Pai Polamalu leads the defense with 133 tackles and seven interceptions and is a force on offense. DB Charlie Berkley has 74 tackles and DL Jonathan Chavez has 72. … St. Pius X-St. Matthias moved into the Southern Section Division 8 playoffs with a record of 1-9. The Warriors topped the standings, defeated Serrano in the championship game and outscored their playoff opponents 104-69. Jassi Williams threw for 2,888 yards and 19 touchdowns but was intercepted 13 times. He had 444 yards and four touchdowns against Serrano. Kenneth Peevy had five catches for 145 yards and two scores against Serrano. Linebacker Geremya Hood leads the defense with 106 tackles.

Rankings: St. Augustine is ranked 233rd in the state. St. Pius X-St. Matthias is number 201.

Next: The winner will play Kerman (12-2)-Sonora (11-2) on Dec. 14 at Veterans Stadium in Long Beach.

Forecast: St. Augustine 21, St. Pius x-St. Matthew 17

Division 5-AA: Victorville Silverado (9-5) at El Capitan (10-3)

When: Friday, 7:30 p.m

Preview: Silverado defeated Long Beach St. Anthony, 30-14, to win the Southern Section Division 10 title. The Hawks, who have beaten three playoff opponents 175-88, are led by Jake Weiss, who threw for 2,998 yards and 37 touchdowns has, including four against St. Anthony. He also has 570 yards rushing and 18 touchdowns. Dallas Kincherlow has 201 carries for 982 yards. Weiss has three top targets in Sire Forster, who has 52 catches for 1,044 yards and 14 TDs, as well as Jarmarri Tharpe and Jayden Pauling. Tharpe also has five interceptions. MLB defense leads with 94 tackles, but the Hawks have just 11 sacks and 10 interceptions. … El Capitan has won nine straight, including a 17-14 victory over Westview in the San Diego Section Division 4 title game. Brandt Barker has thrown for 2,252 yards and 24 TDs with just five interceptions. Brady Joraleamon didn’t play against Westview, so Ayden Benegas is the top running back. Aaron Altamirano leads the defense with 126 tackles. Lucas Garcia has 97 tackles and 19 TFL. Marlon Ames has 11 1/2 sacks. The team has 35 sacks.

Rankings: Silverado is ranked No. 261 in the state. El Capitan is #307.

Next: The winner will play the winner of Lafayette Acalanes (10-3)-Carmel (13-0) on Dec. 13 at Fullerton UHSD Stadium.

Forecast: El Capitan 31, Silverado 28

Division 6-A: Pasadena (8-6) and Monte Vista (9-5)

When: Saturday, 6 p.m

Preview: Pasadena tops Gahr for the Southern Section Division 13 championship. It is Pasadena’s first CIF title since 1933. The Bulldogs are led by Josiah Rucker, who ran for 97 yards and scored the game-winning score against Gahr. Pasadena was 2-5 after its first seven games but has outscored four playoff opponents 103-48. … Monte Vista won the San Diego Section Division 5 championship, defeating Bonita Vista. The Monarchs are led by Alexander Villanueva, who rushed for 297 yards and five touchdowns against Bonita Vista. Villanueva now has a San Diego Section single-season record of 3,006 rushing yards. He rushed for 100 or more yards in 12 of 14 games.

Rankings: Pasadena is ranked No. 479 in the state. Monte Vista is #561.

Next up: TThe winner will play the winner of Tuolumne Summerville-Atherton Sacred Heart on Dec. 14 at Fullerton UHSD Stadium.

Forecast: Monte Vista 27, Pasadena 20

Last week: 3-2

Season: 119-53

Originally published: December 5, 2024 at 3:33 pm PST