- East Bay Prep Corner
East Bay Area Girls Soccer rankings – through Jan. 21
By Matt Schwab
Tuesday, January 22nd, 2013 at 3:23 pm in Uncategorized.
Here are the latest East Bay Area Girls Soccer rankings. I’ll be attending the Livermore-Monte Vista match tonight, and I’m anticipating another thrilling East Bay Athletic League contest.
The league is amazingly balanced, although unbeaten San Ramon Valley remains in charge after a hard-fought 1-0 win over young Granada. Washington remained unbeaten in the Mission Valley Athletic League but survived a scare in a draw with Irvington.
Beyond that, Berkeley made a strong statement with a 4-1 win over highly regarded Castro Valley in a WACC-Foothill showdown, and Campolindo did likewise with a respectable 1-0 loss against No. 2 Bishop O’Dowd in a nonleague battle of Division II powers. Campo looks poised for a strong postseason run.
Rankings (Through Jan. 20)
1, SanRamonValley(11-0-4, 5-0-3 EBAL)
2, Bishop O’Dowd (13-1-1, 8-0-0 WAC-Foothill)
3, Granada (5-2-0EBAL)
4, Berkeley (10-2, 9-1-0 WAC Foothill)
5, Washington (11-0-3, 7-0-1 MVAL)
6, Castro Valley (13-2-2, 8-2-0 WAC-Foothill)
7, Livermore (6-5-3, 2-3-3 EBAL)
8, Amador Valley (8-6-0, 4-4-0 EBAL)
9, Monte Vista (5-4-4, 3-2-2 EBAL.)
10, Campolindo (9-1-2, 7-0-1 DFAL)
11, California (5-5-5, 1-3-4 EBAL)
12, College Park (13-2-5, 7-1-0 DVAL)
13, Logan (7-5-2, 6-1-1 MVAL)
14, Freedom (8-3-1, 3-0-1 BVAL)
15, Heritage (8-3-2, 3-0-1 BVAL)
Also noted: Alhambra, Carondelet, ClaytonValley, Dublin, Foothill, Liberty, Piedmont, YgnacioValley.
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January 22nd, 2013 at 4:34 pm
I would like to see BoD come over to EBAL. I think they would do well.
Somebody tell me what happened at Washington. They were never that strong – if this were college I would say NCAA violations but good for them.
January 22nd, 2013 at 4:36 pm
and of course – thanks to Matt.
January 22nd, 2013 at 7:52 pm
Washington has some amazing defense in #8 Madison Cook, and #15 Janelle Herrera.
January 22nd, 2013 at 9:37 pm
Tough night for Livermore in Danville. The Mustangs created a bunch of chances and looked their old NCS selves in a 2-0 win on Tuesday. It could have been 4-0 or 5-0. The Cowboys, a tough nut to crack on defense, struggled to get the ball out of the back and transition smoothly to the attack. A wave of aggressive players in white jerseys were in the way, but the Cowboys cracked the code a few times. Monte Vista was extremely dangerous on corner kicks. But Cowboys goalkeeper Savannah Winters had a brilliant night, her best of the season, keeping her team close. Mustangs coach Brett LeQuesne said formation adjustments and improved health after injuries (a plague on the league at large) have contributed to Monte Vista’s recent surge. Plenty of time for Livermore to rebound, though. Very encouraging season for the Cowboys program so far. Would be nice to see them make the postseason as a reward.
January 23rd, 2013 at 8:33 am
@eastbayref
Washington is on their 3 year of rebuilding their program. They have a number of players who have come of age after gaining a lot of “experience” in their 2-14-4, 2-8-2 2012 season. The program is heading in the right direction. On the comical side: athletes aren’t dying to transfer to Washington so NCAA violation would be out of the question ha!
January 23rd, 2013 at 9:50 am
Foothill’s win over granada last night will shake up the rankings it should put Foothill in the top 15, plus with ties against washington, castro valley, monte vista, cal and livermore surely states that they are at the same level.
January 23rd, 2013 at 11:45 am
David nice to hear about Washington – thanks for the update.
Oh and I’m a bit lost on a 2-14-4 and a 2-8-2.
Good luck.
January 23rd, 2013 at 6:59 pm
Yep, that’s correct, Bob. Big win for Foothill. I was stunned to hear about just how many injuries to key players the league has suffered this year. Are the Falcons healthy? If so, they might be ready for the big move. California keeper Lauren Holden stopped two PKs last night. Amazing.
January 23rd, 2013 at 7:00 pm
I’m also delighted about Washington’s turnaround season. I remember the Huskies’ glory years when they would battle Mission San Jose for the league title each year.
January 23rd, 2013 at 9:27 pm
Foothill over granada…the EBAL is uo for grabs aside from SRV…They are the class of the NCS….fact is, EBAL is all over the Map…The team with the worst record has everyright to make NCS if they qualify. Carondelet has beaten Monte Vista, Logan, and Livermore along with draws v Amador and Cal. Foothill, Cal, Livermore, Granda and Amador all have quality wins….The records outside of EBAL are dominating…
January 23rd, 2013 at 11:04 pm
Went to the Washington-American game where American dominated Washington 3-0. American came out and was real aggressive from the very beginning, and Washington looked overwhelmed. This may open the door for Logan as well as American to get back in the MVAL title race, and it looks like it will be a 3 team battle for the league title.
January 24th, 2013 at 10:36 am
@EastBayRef.
Washington in the past has been a top team in the MVAL. Seems like they have just fallen on hard times.
Sad to see Piedmont not get more respect with a better record overall and league record than many of the other teams on the top 15 list. They also play in the same league as Castro Valley, Berkeley, Odowd and a scrappy Encinal squad. With less than 900 students to pick from and some quality girls committed to local college programs Dan has put a tough team on the field.
January 24th, 2013 at 11:12 am
@eastbayref that’s over all and MVAL records for 2012. Experience is what you gain when things don’t go your way.
@tricitydude
Washington did few things right which only proves the point that’s it’s difficult in the high school game to be sharp game in and game out. American is the only fremont school who opts to play home games at home 3:30 kickoff on grass. It’s a tough place to go into an perform. Check their track record for home games. American is heating up specially since they have that ” home field ” advantage.
January 24th, 2013 at 11:14 am
Follow us on twitter: @GirlsSoccerWHS
January 24th, 2013 at 11:53 am
David, I do wonder why American wants to play at 3:30 at every home game. I’m not sure exactly how it helps them achieve such a great home record, but it must work for them. And they also did lose to Logan at home on 12-11-12 by the score of 4-2.
January 24th, 2013 at 12:28 pm
@tri-city Dude
It’s one of those things were teams are just used to having a later game on the nice TAK turf. It’s really just a mental thing that any team who is focused should be able to avoid. On 12-11 Logan was still a team that believed in their strengths and American was still figuring things out. Over the Winter break Logan lost 4 in a row and American put together some good wins, shifting things around. American is a much stronger team now and Logan is getting back to it after the rough break. The 1-0 American Loss at Logan also shows the advantage that Logan has playing on their home “CARPET”. Circle 1-31-13 Logan @ Washington.
January 24th, 2013 at 12:37 pm
Does American still plays at American for home games?
January 24th, 2013 at 12:59 pm
Piedmont is a good D2 program but they lost to Alhambra pre-season and were lucky to come back to tie Albany. That said they play Miramonte next week so a good result will push them up a bit but not above BOD, Campo, Alhambra, Dublin, or Ygnacio Valley IMO. Also the program needs to report/post all their scores.
January 24th, 2013 at 2:26 pm
@Soccer
I agree about Campolindo. I don’t know the other schools records. Still all the EBAL teams are in the top 15 regardless of their record. Cal has one win in league. There is a huge bias in that list.
Those losses and tie came when Piedmont’s starting gk was out, Kesy Platt, an excuse I know. She is an amazing talent. Plays for the Rage ECNL U18 girls program. She makes a difference for that team.
January 24th, 2013 at 3:04 pm
@MVAL Alumni yes American girls play home games at American.
January 25th, 2013 at 10:26 am
@ MVAL…
As continues to be stated over and over…put ANY MVAL team in the EBAL..and see how they do. Yes, Washington had very early season wins over Cal and Livermore, and tied Foothill….all in the first two or three weeks of the season. Put them in the EBAL NOW and see how they would do against those teams. It is about strength of schedule…not how many wins you have. Put any EBAL team in ANY other league and they will not finish lower than 2nd, and would win 90% of the other leagues. Case and point..let’s see how all of the non-EBAL teams fare in NCS. My guess is, like the previous 30 of 31 NCS’…the team that wins it all will come from..you guessed it…the EBAL. Nuff said.
January 25th, 2013 at 10:59 am
@top of the box….
All ya got to do is look at the talent pool in the EBAL San Ramon has an absolute Beast of a lineup with all Juniors and Seniors By my count, of their starting 11, at least 7 are going to top 25 D! Colleges (2 UCLA, 3 Cal, an Ohio State and a Pepperdine) And that is just what is public knowledge. Monte Vista, Amador, Granada are no different, and the young talent at Cal Carondelet Foothill and Livermore are sure to keep that run going. I know there are some special players out there (particularly at BOD, but its kinda hard to argue with what EBAL puts on the field game in/game out
January 25th, 2013 at 11:38 am
@top of the box
The argument here is not weather MVAL teams are stronger than EBAL: it’s common knowledge that EBAL opportunity to develop is much higher due club opportunities in the off season. Playing EBAL teams in the preseason is a way for MVAL teams to prove their “Strenth of schedule” since MVAL teams are not as strong. The truth of the matter is that MVAL teams can’t be placed in EBAL or vice versa: the best they an do is schedule preseason games in an attempt to prepare for NCS competition. Once there it’s one game at a time.
January 25th, 2013 at 12:21 pm
Whats cook’n or really not cook’n at Carondelet? Truly a down year.
January 25th, 2013 at 12:36 pm
EBAL’s advantage in girls soccer runs even deeper than the top players. Year-in and year-out some EBAL schools have as many as 80 players or more try out for the three teams: V, JV and Frosh, and many of the teams carry 18-25 players on their roster. This depth advantage works during matches and during practice. Imagine the resources and flexibility to have full scrimmages at practice, and withstand injuries and illness. One year, one EBAL school reportedly had 12 seniors with soccer scholarships, so you had non-starters earning scholarships. Crazy!
See you at the pitch!
January 25th, 2013 at 1:45 pm
Why is it so difficult to find TCAL scores and standings?
January 25th, 2013 at 6:04 pm
Good question, TCAL fan. It appears the TCAL is less organized than the other East Bay leagues. If you call up El Cerrito on maxpreps.com (where I get most of my updated schedules, standings ansd records), no TCAL standings are available.
January 25th, 2013 at 6:24 pm
As someone with a bit of info on Carondelet…most games this season have been one-goal games….all playoff atmosphere…quality wins vs Monte Vista, Logan, Livermore, along with draws at AV and Cal. Look at the schedule…not an easy game when you realize they have all eval games, went 2-2 in TVC invitational division and have 5 freshmen starting….This is a great group of girls
January 25th, 2013 at 8:58 pm
A little credit for some outstanding Washington talent would be nice. Teams on this side of the hill actually do have some ya know. Washington has played strong, not just collected wins. Their defense is top notch, and there are a couple offensive standouts too. Stop being so busy trying not to give them any credit to notice….
January 25th, 2013 at 10:25 pm
@ Top
I wasn’t talking about MVAL teams over EBAL teams. I’m speaking about WAC teams. I was only speaking about MVAL teams in the past. Just to clarify. Berkeley, Castro Valley, and O’Dowd are very strong teams that make runs in the NCS. Piedmont and Encinal have been pretty scrappy.
@ David
No wonder they still have 3:30 games. That field is an advantage. They don’t even let the boys practice on it, unless Al was able to get that changed recently.
January 27th, 2013 at 8:50 pm
Carondelet should be down due to a different philosophy than the one at DLS. They built a dynasty team A few years ago. This is the result of it. Some players didn’t prosper by staying in JV too long and some didn’t wish to play for the coaches after that. For long term purposes, You need to build a program and not draft one.
January 28th, 2013 at 6:35 am
@diamonddog
Thats a load of BS First…what does DLS have to do with this? A different school that happens to be next door. Second, its a bit more difficult to compete when the only time the girls have to practice is at 630 in the morning twice a week because they cant get a field. Kinda hard to build a dynasty without players that can perform on the pitch (evident by senior night against MV last week when they started 9 seniors and got smoked in the first ten minutes) Couple that with multiple serious injuries and thats what you get.
January 28th, 2013 at 12:32 pm
I’ve seen the process for the past 6 years at Carondelet. The girls might be a great group of girls but This years and next years teams are going to be in knee deep, especially playimng in EBAL. How many of those seniors play on a consistent basis this year or last that got smoked on senior night. The coaches flat out want players ready to go from Mustang. DLS makes players and teams better and Carondelet doesn’t.
Evident by the 2010-11 team being their only superior team. Almost all of them brought in from Mustang as freshman and played 4 years varisty to create a championship team their senior year. It is what is as long as the A.D. is still there.
January 29th, 2013 at 8:32 pm
I like reading the comments about Carondelet… No offense to any of the players because the year is not a reflection of the talent whatsoever but rather a strategy to go for another NCS Title down the road and nothing else. Stingray’s comments are interesting considering Carondelet hasn’t been competitive all year with any of the top ranked teams. When you play (5) Freshman most all year who have 2-3 years less experience, are physically less developed then you end up with the record they have had. No the schedule isn’t easy as it hasn’t been in past years. This is a coaching issue and nothing else. All of the girls have played their hearts out.
February 8th, 2013 at 8:35 pm
what stingray says is true, 5 freshmen did start. the real truth is they did not make a difference, in fact one gave up 31 goals, many were given up when carondelet had late leads. no senior leadership, because seniors were not allowed to play much. the coach should do the math, 4 loses could have been won, lost late leads. 4 more wins equals 11 wins, 8 losses. playoff time. the ebal has alot of depth, as stated in one of the blogs, however carondelet failed to use their depth, leaving many tired and injured players on the field.
February 8th, 2013 at 8:48 pm
another true statement from diamondog. DLS does build their players the DLS way. commitment, bonding, and brotherhood. unlike the soccer program at carondelet, which is mustang. diamonddog is making a point how a winning program evolves. stingray is new on the block. he has no DLS ties. bye the way, seperate schools who have been together since the beginning. carondelet should take some lessons.
February 9th, 2013 at 5:50 pm
the truth is the seniors on the team were never given the opportunity to compete for positions. Rick had his agenda from the beginning of hopefully getting an NCS title down the road so he gave his freshman time on the turf. Unfortunately, they did not perform and now they have probably the worst record in school history. The team was separated from the start and had he played all the girls throughout the season, the stats would probably look a whole lot better. Lets face it, the best players were NOT the starters.
February 9th, 2013 at 11:16 pm
by the way, stingray, on senior night the seniors were told to play in positions that many had never even played before, unlike the second half when those girls were in their proper positions and had played together all season. In your words the seniors got “smoked” for 40 mins but the team got “smoked” all season.
February 9th, 2013 at 11:48 pm
dont pay no mind to stingray, he be swimmin in the septic tank. thats the shit that he supported on the field. the dude is ignorant. just cause you got a i-pad in the stands takin stats dont mean that you know whats going on. best keep your new freshman mouth shut and keep stats on those 31 goals given up. yea now!