HS: Winter state, region rankings, Jan. 4

by Sheldon Shealer

January 4, 2016

Results from three tournaments last week helped reshape in the California-South region and California state rankings as the winter season heads into the New Year.

The West Coast was the center of attention last week as the So Cal High School Soccer Classic and Golden State Invitational for boys and Excalibur event for girls crowned champions. Meanwhile, the Southeast states were largely idle. Texas public schools get under way this week.

Here's a look at some of the week's big winners:

BOYS

Los Alamitos (Los Alamitos, Calif.) stunned Cathedral (Los Angeles, Calif.) 1-0 in the So Cal High School Soccer Classic - National bracket. The move allowed Los Alamitos to leap to No. 2 in this week's state and region rankings, while former No. 1 Cathedral settles in at No. 3.

Paramount (Paramount, Calif.) moves to No. 1 in the state and region rankings after winning the Golden State Invitational, which featured runner-up Homestead (Cupertino, Calif.) and highly touted Buchanan (Clovis, Calif.).

In Arizona, host Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.) won the Arizona Soccer Showcase to retain its state and region No. 1 billing.

GIRLS

Esperanza (Anaheim, Calif.) made a surprising run through a star-studded Excalibur tournament to deliver the program its first-ever title. Esperanza was a three-loss team entering the tournament, yet knocked off last week's state No. 2 San Juan Hills (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.), SIMA FAB 50-ranked Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) and [Edison ca-w] (Huntington Beach, Calif.), Arizona No. 1 [Xavier College Preparatory az-w] (Phoenix, Ariz.) and former SIMA FAB 50 No. 2 Cathedral Catholic (San Diego, Calif.) to win the title. Esperanza won the last two matches in penalty kicks.

See the entire WINTER high school region and state rankings:

WINTER REGION RANKINGS: BOYS (Jan. 4) | GIRLS (Jan. 4)

WINTER STATE RANKINGS: BOYS (Jan. 4) | GIRLS (Jan. 4)

Related Topics: SIMA FAB 50 / Event