Seventh-seeded Mira Costa outscored third-seeded Redondo 9-4 in the second half to defeat the host team 14-6 in the semifinals of the U.S. Lacrosse Southern Section North Division Championships.
Lia Sepanek scored four goals, Taylor Pool and Susanna Sieke scored three goals apiece and Kira Hagaman added two goals for Mira Costa (12-5) while Monique Rohrbach had 13 saves in the net.
Mira Costa had split the regular season series with Redondo, beating the Sea Hawks 9-6 before dropping a 13-10 decision to its rival.
“It was a huge win for us,” Mira Costa head coach Amanda Cross said. “The girls were focused and determined. They were able to move the ball well and took good shots. This is the first time our program has made it to the finals.”
The Mustangs will most likely face top-seeded Palos Verdes (13-2) in the title game on Thursday. The Sea Kings played No. 4 Palisades on Tuesday.
“PV is a very good team, so it will take a lot of hard work and focus to beat them,” Cross added.
Palos Verdes is ranked No. 17 in the Southern Section in the LAX Power Rankings and defeated Mira Costa (No. 19) by scores of 7-6 and 16-11 in two league meetings.
In first-round of the playoffs, Mira Costa beat No. 10 Peninsula 13-12 when Pool scored the winning goal with 2:47 remaining in regulation. Lexi Kurigian scored four goals and Sepanek added three goals for the Mustangs.
Mira Costa advanced and upset No. 2 Cate 15-13 on Thursday behind Carly McGuire’s seven-goal performance. Pool added three goals and Sepanek and Sieke tallied two goals apiece for the Mustangs.
After earning a first-round bye, Palos Verdes escaped with a 9-8 overtime victory at No. 8 Thacher last Thursday.
The winner of the North Division Championship will face the South Division champion (either Los Alamitos or Corona Del Mar) on Saturday at 11 a.m. at Mission Viejo High School. Los Alamitos and Corona Del Mar are ranked first and second, respectively, in the CIF Southern Section.
Redondo (13-4) began the postseason by eliminating No. 6 Oak Park 10-7 in the second round last Thursday. Ariel Mistuloff scored four goals and Brittany Ross added three goals while goalkeeper Heather Czech recorded 15 saves for the Sea Hawks.
Boys Lacrosse
Eleventh-seeded Mira Costa beat No. 6 Harvard-Westlake 13-8 in the first round of the U.S. Southern Section Northern Division playoffs. Dakota Randall recorded four goals and five assists and Austin Hafdell, Mark Matsushima, Chris O’Brien and Mike Whinfrey scored two goals apiece.
The Mustangs (9-11) saw their season come to an end Thursday with a 15-11 loss to third-seeded Westlake. Westlake defeated No. 14 Redondo 13-3 in the opening round.
In a battle of Bay League rivals, top-seeded Palos Verdes (18-2) defeated Peninsula 20-4 in the first round. The Sea Kings advanced to rout No. 8 Malibu 23-4 on Friday and No. 5 Loyola 14-1 in the semifinals on Monday. Palos Verdes will play No. 2 Palisades Charter in the North Division championship game on Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Redondo Union High School.
The winner of the North Division will face either Corona Del Mar or San Clemente (the winner of the South Division) on Saturday at 1 p.m. at Mission Viejo High School. In the LAX Power Rankings, Palos Verdes is ranked No. 2 in the Southern Section behind Corona Del Mar.
