In a stunning turnaround after scrambling to get into the playoffs, all of South Pasadena High School (SPHS) sports teams are out after the first round of CIF postseason play.
Varsity girls soccer, which won a squeaker against Temple City, 1-0, to get into the postseason, lost, 1-0, in the first round against Sierra Canyon.
Boys soccer was even more of a stunner. They had to win the last five games of the regular season to get into the playoffs, which they did quite easily with an overpowering offense and stifling defense. In fact, three of those victories were shutouts.
The turnaround was so dramatic that Athletic Director Greg Luna called out head coach Juan Zurita for his team’s success, saying SPHS was “lucky to have him.”
However, they couldn’t handle Pacific in the first round, losing 2-1. Zurita said that if his team didn’t recognize in the playoffs you have to “significantly” step-up your game, you’re going to be “one and done.”
The varsity girls water polo squad battled all year with a small number of players. They only had nine members but fought their way into the playoffs only to lose to a very good Newbury Park squad, 16-10.
Meanwhile, girls varsity basketball won four of its last five games to get into the playoffs and then were thoroughly whipped by Gabrielino by 15 points, 64-49.
And finally, five individual wrestlers advanced and were ousted in the preliminaries.
Luna summed it up by saying the brackets did not help.
“We got fairly challenging draws in our brackets,” he said.
Read all about the teams and their respective seasons in the next print edition of The Review. And then stay tuned to us on the web and in print for spring sports, such as baseball, men’s tennis and golf, track and field, and much more.
