The CIF San Diego Section playoffs took on the look of rivalry week in La Jolla, as The Bishop’s School and La Jolla High School faced off against each other in both the boys water polo semifinals and girls field hockey championships.
La Jolla came out on top in the pool, while Bishop’s took the crown on the field.
Meanwhile, the football season ended for both schools as they lost their games in the quarterfinals.
The news was much better for La Jolla’s girls cross country team, which won the section Division IV championship.
Here’s a recap of all the results.
Football
Helix 41, La Jolla High 25
In the quarterfinals of the San Diego Section Division II playoffs, No. 6 seed La Jolla traveled to third-seeded Helix on Nov. 15.
The Vikings trailed at halftime 28-17, but in the third quarter, La Jolla quarterback Hudson Smith’s 13-yard touchdown to wide receiver Hank Hansen cut the deficit to 28-25.
However, Helix scored two unanswered touchdowns to win comfortably.
Smith ended up with three touchdown es and two interceptions. Hansen scored two TDs and had 53 receiving yards in the game. Wide receiver Carson Diehl also had a big game, scoring a touchdown and finishing with 122 yards in receptions.
La Jolla ended the season with a 7-5 record.
Mater Dei Catholic 47, Bishop’s 14
After demolishing Mount Carmel 49-20 in the first round of the Division II playoffs, No. 7 Bishop’s traveled to Mater Dei Catholic for a quarterfinal game Nov. 15.
The No. 2 Crusaders jumped to a 14-0 first-quarter lead, but the Knights responded with a touchdown early in the second quarter, thanks largely to quarterback Cash Herrera’s 29-yard run on fourth down to keep the drive alive.
But Mater Dei opened the lead to 35-7 entering the fourth quarter. Bishop’s scored one more touchdown on a 21-yard on fourth down before eventually losing.
The Knights had a strong rushing game with 227 yards but struggled on the ing front with only 92 yards.
Mater Dei gained 427 total yards.
Bishop’s finished the season 7-4.
Boys water polo
La Jolla High 12, Bishop’s 11
Before their Nov. 12 clash, La Jolla and Bishop’s had already faced each other twice this season, with Bishop’s winning both meetings.
However, in the CIF San Diego Section Open Division semifinals, the No. 3 Vikings got the better of the No. 2 Knights in a very tight game.
La Jolla advanced to the Open Division championship game against top-seeded Cathedral Catholic.
Bishop’s (16-11) now prepares for the CIF Southern Section regional playoffs, where they will face JSerra Catholic, the second-ranked team in the nation, at 5 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 19.
Cathedral Catholic 13, La Jolla 9
After beating Bishop’s, La Jolla hoped to pull off a bigger upset in the Open Division title game Nov. 16 against No. 1 seed Cathedral Catholic, the defending champion and the third-ranked team in California and fourth in the nation.
But the Dons, who already had beaten the Vikings twice this season, won the title, though the game stayed fairly close throughout.
La Jolla (20-6) now focuses its attention on the CIF Southern Section regionals, where it will play Corona del Mar, the fourth-ranked team in California, at 5 p.m. Nov. 19.
Field hockey
Bishop’s 2, La Jolla 0
Going into the CIF San Diego Section Open Division championship game Nov. 16, No. 2 seed La Jolla had narrowly defeated No. 3 Scripps Ranch 2-1 a few days before, while Bishop’s had comfortably won its semifinal game 3-0 over No. 4 Cathedral Catholic.
Bishop’s had beaten the Vikings in their first two meetings this season, and the title game turned out to be no different.
Star freshman Lola Conway scored both goals for Bishop’s in the win. Her season tally is 40 goals — the most by any player in San Diego this season by 14 goals.
“I feel like we had lots of opportunities, so I tried to take them as much as I can,” Conway said.
Bishop’s defense allowed La Jolla just one shot on goal as the Knights won their first Open Division championship in field hockey.
Senior and team captain Addie Kessler called the win “a special moment” for the team.
“From spring, the captains met and set the goal to win, so to see that through was amazing,” Kessler said.
With no regional or state playoffs, the field hockey season ended for both teams.
La Jolla finished with a 15-6 record and ranked second in California and No. 14 in the nation. Bishop’s ended 25-1 and ranked first in San Diego and California as well as seventh in the nation.
Girls cross country
La Jolla High’s girls cross country team won the CIF San Diego Section Division IV title Nov. 16 at Morley Field in Balboa Park.
Star runner Chiara Dailey overcame a virus and won her third consecutive Division IV individual title, completing the approximately 3-mile course in 17:19.4.
“All I wanted was to break 17:20,” said Dailey, who had the fastest time of the day in winning by 57 seconds. “I’m sick, but a sub-17:20 was all that mattered.”
The Vikings next will run in the state championships on Saturday, Nov. 30.
— Writers Steve Brand and Brevan Honda contributed to this report. ♦
