The CCS boys soccer finals set for Saturday feature several teams looking for their first-ever CCS title, including a school that has just five varsity sports total.
Division 1: #3 Archbishop Mitty (15-2-4) vs #4 Gunn (17-1-2) @ Fremont, 5:30 pm
Archbishop Mitty returns to the site of its championship victory where the Monarchs won the CCS Division 2 crown last year after they defeated Alvarez in the semifinals on Wednesday.
Trailing at halftime the Monarchs got a penalty-kick goal from junior Nicholas Coldiron, his fourth playoff goal after scoring a hat trick against Santa Clara in the quarterfinals. With three minutes left and overtime looking likely junior Noah Robertson scored a wonder goal which sent the Monarchs to the final. Mitty will be looking for its sixth CCS championship.
Gunn returns to the CCS championship game for the first time since 2005, which also took place against Mitty and resulted in defeat.
Gunn had the daunting task of traveling to Salinas for the semifinals where they took a 2-1 halftime lead. But the Cowboys scored with 15 minutes left to even the score and had a few chances to win the game in regulation and overtime. But Gunn held strong and won the shootout 4-2 to advance.
The only common opponent between the two teams is Santa Clara, whom both teams defeated. Gunn has had a truly remarkable season. In addition to winning the SCVAL-El Camino Division, the Titans have only lost once all season - back in mid-December.
Division 2: #1 Branham (15-6-2) vs #6 Mt. Pleasant (16-1-5) @ Del Mar, 5:30 pm
It will be the second year in a row in a CCS final for Branham, which got a goal with under two minutes left in the second overtime to edge Wilcox 1-0 in the semifinals. Senior Carter Thompson scored on a header off a free kick from junior Jin Lee. It was Thompson’s second goal of the postseason, with the first one coming in the first minute of a 3-0 win over Los Gatos in the quarterfinals. Last year Branham fell 1-0 to Bellarmine in the Open Division championship game.
Mt. Pleasant, winners of the BVAL Santa Teresa “B” Division defeated Leigh 3-1. The Cardinals will face a second straight opponent from the BVAL-Mount Hamilton “A” Division. Ricardo Tovar Herrera, last year’s Prep2Prep Sophomore of the Year, has not slowed down as a junior, scoring 28 goals, including a pair in the win over the Longhorns.
Division 3: #3 Harker (15-3-3) vs #4 St. Francis (14-7-1) @ Fremont, 3:00 pm
Harker advanced to its first-ever CCS championship game, needing penalties to get past Sequoia in the semifinals. The Eagles have played only one WCAL team all year in Valley Christian, the seventh-place finisher, losing 2-0.
Meanwhile, the Lancers have had an up and down season, at one point tied for the lead in the vaunted WCAL at the midpoint of the season only to fade into fourth place. Saint Francis is looking for its second straight win over a WBAL opponent after getting past Menlo 3-1 in the semifinals.
The Lancers, looking for their first CCS championship since 2010, are led in attack by Rory Forlan and defensively by Abraham Ramirez and John Galbraith.
Division 4: #1 Summit Prep (18-0-0) vs #2 Del Mar (18-3-1) @ Del Mar, 10:00 am
Tiny Summit Prep, which has only five varsity sports for boys, is in the running for Cinderella team of the season alongside Sacred Heart Prep. The Huskies remain perfect after 18 games after they netted three second-half goals to get past King City in the semifinals. Target man Pedro Ontiveras scored twice to increase his total to 31 goals for the season.
Del Mar will have the distinct advantage of being the lone CCS finalist to play in a final at home, but it will have played a home championship already. The Dons defeated league rival Live Oak in the BVAL’s West Valley division championship game to qualify for the section playoffs. The Dons are led by Arturo Hernandez and David Arenas and are looking for their first-ever CCS championship in boys soccer.
