Bay League representatives swam to victories in the opening round of the CIF Southern Section/Ford Division 3 playoffs Wednesday, but formidable foes await them in quarterfinals on Saturday.
In a battle between two strong South Bay programs, Bay runner-up Mira Costa held off Ocean runner-up El Segundo 10-7, capitalizing on Justin Pratt’s four-goal performance.
Pratt scored three of his four goals in the third period to put the Mustangs ahead. Dylan Colbert recorded three goals, Mitchell Trainoff added two and Dan Burdiak scored once for No. 7 Mira Costa (15-13) who will host top-seeded and defending champion Laguna Beach (19-5) in a contest slated for 5 p.m. Saturday.
El Segundo finished with a 10-12 record.
Ranked No. 7, Bay League champion Palos Verdes (17-11) overcame a four-goal deficit in the final quarter to eliminate No. 9 South Pasadena 12-10 and will host No. 3 Capistrano Valley (15-13) in the quarterfinals.
Peninsula (18-11) also advances after a 19-7 victory over No. 10 Beverly Hills who captured the Ocean League title. The No. 8 Panthers will host No. 2 Damien (24-6) on Saturday.
In Division 5, No. 9 Chadwick (19-6) recorded an upset victory on the road defeating No. 6 La Quinta 10-6. The Dolphins advance to host No. 1 Bonita (19-10), a 20-4 first-round winner over Pasadena.
Semifinal contest are scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 16. The finals will be held at the William Woollett, Jr. Aquatic Center in Irvine on Saturday, Nov. 19.
Complete brackets are available at www.cifss.org.
