The Otay Ranch and Eastlake girls lacrosse teams squared off twice in Metro Conference play, and it took overtime on both occasions to determine a winner.
Otay Ranch won both match-ups to earn this year’s league title.
But there could be something even more momentous ahead for both teams, and a potential high stakes third meeting after Otay Ranch received the No. 1 seed and Eastlake received the No. 2 seed for the upcoming San Diego Section Division II championship playoffs.
Both teams received byes in Saturday’s opening round and will host quarterfinal games on Tuesday, May 10.
Otay Ranch enters post-season play 17-2 overall; Eastlake is 16-2.
“If we both make it to the finals, it would be a South Bay showdown,” Eastlake coach Robert Blas explained.
Otay Ranch will host either eighth-seeded Mission Bay (14-8) or ninth-seeded Mar Vista (13-7) in Tuesday’s quarterfinal. The Lady Mustangs have defeated Mar Vista twice on the season – 15-4 and 15-3 – but have yet to meet Mission Bay.
Otay Ranch’s lone league loss was 6-5 to Hilltop in the second game of league play on March 21. The Lady Mustangs’ only other loss this season was 10-5 to Mission Hills in the Patriot Classic on April 23.
Otay Ranch brings a four-game winning streak into Tuesday’s playoff game.
Junior Brooke Greene leads the Lady Mustangs in season scoring with 73 goals and 19 assists for 92 points. Sophomore Bridgette Greene ranks second on the team with 67 points (41 goals, 26 assists).
Senior Ariana Perez is third in team scoring with 25 goals and 34 points, followed by senior Amber Candelaria with 20 goals and 27 points and junior Kelly Stansel with 19 goals and 27 points.
Senior Samantha Linzaga has scored 13 goals this season while junior Christina Fontimayor has scored 11 goals.
Otay Ranch is averaging 12 goals per game while allowing an average of 3.7 goals per game.
Bridgette Greene tops the Lady Mustangs defensively with 52 ground balls while Brooke Greene ranks second with 36 ground balls. Brooke Greene has also won 68 percent of draws.
Junior Carolina Aceves has played the bulk of minutes in the net, with a 3.9 goals-per-game average and a 0.5 save percentage.
Mission Bay will host Saturday’s opening round contest against Mar Vista.
Mar Vista finished 8-6 in conference play and is 13-7 overall.
Mission Bay finished 4-5 in City Conference Western League play. The Lady Bucs enter postseason play with wins over Point Loma (14-7 on Monday) and Olympian (9-2 on Wednesday).
Eastlake will play either seventh-seeded Helix (12-8) or 10th-seeded El Camino (6-10) in Tuesday’s quarterfinal playoff match. The Lady Titans enter postseason play with a four-game winning streak.
Eastlake lost by scores of 8-7 and 10-9 to Otay Ranch but defeated every other league opponent to finish with a composite 12-2 league record. The Lady Titans won all four of their non-league games as well, including a 7-0 decision over Helix in their very first game of the 2016 season back on March 8.
Senior Julia Masias leads Eastlake in team scoring with 30 goals and seven assists for 37 points. Senior Payton Olson ranks second on the team with 26 goals and 31 points, followed by senior Abby Mina with 16 goals and 24 points, senior Sasha Thrower with 18 goals and 21 points, sophomore Janelle Fortuno with 17 goals and 20 points, freshman Erika Farrage with 10 goals and 18 points and junior Tiva Krahenbuhl with 16 goals and 17 points.
Sophomore Andie Araos gas scored 11 goals this season. Masias leads the team defensively with 26 ground balls while Thrower ranks second with 18 ground balls.
Sophomore goalkeeper Gio Hinojosa sports a 2.1 goals-per-game average and 0.7 save percentage.
The Lady Titans are averaging 11 goals per game and allowing two goals per game.
Eastlake has a 0.610 shot percentage while Otay Ranch has a 0.520 shot percentage in goals per shots taken.
Third-seeded Granite Hills (14-1) and fourth-seeded Grossmont (13-5) also received byes to Tuesday’s Division II quarterfinals.
Granite Hills will host either sixth-seeded Patrick Henry (12-8) or 11th-seeded Ramona (10-10) while Grossmont will host either fifth-seeded Pacific Ridge (12-4) or 12th-seeded San Diego (5-11).
Granite Hills won the Grossmont Conference championship with an 8-0 league record, followed by Grossmont in second place with a 5-3 league record and Helix in third place with a 4-4 league record.
Granite Hills’ lone loss on the season was 15-4 at Coronado on Monday. The Lady Eagles edged Grossmont, 9-8, on Wednesday to remain undefeated in league play.
A total of four Metro Conference teams qualified for this year’s section playoffs. Hilltop received the No. 8 seed in the Division I bracket and will host ninth-seeded Santa Fe Christian (11-8) in Friday’s opening round.
The Lady Lancers enter postseason play with a five-game winning streak. Hilltop defeated Santa Fe Christian, 7-4, on March 15 in non-league play.
The winner advances to Monday’s quarterfinals against top-seeded Scripps Ranch (10-6).
Coronado (12-8) received the No. 2 seed among Division I teams. Rancho Bernardo (14-3) is seeded third while Westview (6-8) is seeded fourth.
Other teams entered in the Division I field include fifth-seeded Mission Hills (13-11), sixth-seeded Carlsbad (8-10), seventh-seeded Del Norte (6-12), 10th-seeded Serra (6-12), 11th-seeded Mt. Carmel (8-12) and 12th-seeded Valley Center (0-15).
SAN DIEGO SECTION PLAYOFFS
DIVISION I
First Round
Friday, May 6
(8) Hilltop 12, (9) Santa Fe Christian 8
(5) Mission Hills 14, (12) Valley Center 0
(6) Carlsbad 15, (11) Mt. Carmel 4
(7) Del Norte 17, (10) Serra 1
Quarterfinals, May 9
(1) Scripps Ranch 16, (8) Hilltop 4
(5) Mission Hills at (4) Westview
(6) Carlsbad at (3) Rancho Bernardo
(7) Del Norte at (2) Coronado
Metro Conference 2016
Girls Lacrosse Standings
League/Overall
Otay Ranch 13-1, 17-2
Eastlake 12-2, 16-2
Hilltop 11-2, 15-6
Mar Vista 8-6, 13-7
Olympian 5-9, 7-12
Chula Vista 4-10, 7-12
Bonita Vista 3-11, 4-13
Castle Park 0-14, 0-17
