Prep water polo rankings, Sept. 17, 2024: Bay Area News Group Top 10
Bay Area News Group water polo Top 10
(Mercury News & East Bay Times)
BOYS
No. 1 SACRED HEART PREP
Last week: 1
The Gators retain the top spot after an impressive showing against excellent competition from Southern California. Sacred Heart Prep lost 11-9 to Junipero Serra-San Juan Capistrano and 13-9 to Mater Dei. SHP then defeated Palos Verdes 15-13, toppled Foothill-Santa Ana 11-8 and took down Loyola-Los Angeles 14-12. The Gators wrapped up the weekend with a 12-8 defeat at the hands of Cathedral Catholic-San Diego.
No. 2 DE LA SALLE
Last week: 3
The Spartans move up to No. 2 after taking down Miramonte, last week’s second-ranked team. De La Salle went 4-2 this week with close losses to Junipero Serra (13-10) and an overtime loss to Mater Dei (12-11). The Spartans took down Miramonte (12-7), Monte Vista (19-11), San Juan Hills (16-10) and Bishop’s-La Jolla (11-10).
No. 3 MIRAMONTE
Last week: 2
The Matadors are still one of the best teams in Northern California and proved it by defeating Cathedral Catholic (9-7) and Corona Del Mar (14-13, OT). Defeats to Oaks Christian-Westlake Village (10-9) and De La Salle kept them out of the top two this week. Miramonte also took down Los Alamitos 21-11 last week.
No. 4 CAMPOLINDO
Last week: 6
Campo moves into the top four after wins over previous No. 4 Bellarmine (16-10) as well as Foothill-Santa Ana (13-12, OT) and Woodrow Wilson-Long Beach (14-8). The Cougars didn’t escape the South Coast Tournament unscathed, losing to Oaks Christian (15-12) and Cathedral Catholic (10-5).
No. 5 LOS GATOS
Last week: 5
The Wildcats went 2-0 last week, taking down Harker 14-8 and Mountain View 19-3. They face tests this week against Serra-San Mateo (Monday, 14-7 win); Soquel (Tuesday) and Gunn (Thursday).
No. 6 BELLARMINE
Last week: 4
Bellarmine had a mixed week, defeating Valley Christian (18-10) and San Marcos (12-9) before losing to Junipero Serra (17-4), Bishop’s (19-8) and Campolindo (16-10). The Bells finished out their run at the weekend tournament with a 15-10 win over San Clemente. They face key tests this week against St. Francis on Wednesday and Miramonte on Friday.
No. 7 ST. FRANCIS
Last week: 7
The Lancers are rolling right along at 7-2. St. Francis posted a perfect 5-0 record last week, defeating Serra (17-12), Arroyo Grande (16-8), Garces Memorial-Bakersfield (14-8), Serra again (18-7) and Jesuit-Carmichael (18-12). The Lancers have a league game against Bellarmine on Wednesday before facing Harker in nonleague play on Saturday.
No. 8 SAN RAMON VALLEY
Last week: 8
SRV picked up an easy 12-4 win over Dougherty Valley in league play. The Wolves continue their league slate against Dublin on Thursday.
No. 9 AMADOR VALLEY
Last week: 10
The Dons are now 6-1 after a narrow 6-5 loss to Las Lomas and a 17-8 victory over California. Amador Valley takes on Castro Valley, Dougherty Valley, Novato and Heritage this week.
No. 10 LOS ALTOS
Last week: Not ranked
Los Altos enters the rankings after knocking off previous No. 9 Archbishop Mitty 10-9 on the road. The Eagles are 6-1 this year and have won six games in a row, picking up victories over Gunn (15-11), Palo Alto (17-5), Aptos (17-8), Soquel (12-9), Mitty and Leland (17-12) last week.
GIRLS
No. 1 SACRED HEART PREP
Last week: 3
The Gators were idle, with no games last week. They next face Mitty on Sept. 25.
No. 2 CARONDELET
Last week: 5
Carondelet defeated Monte Vista 15-8 last Tuesday. The Cougars will next play at Granada on Wednesday.
No. 3 CAMPOLINDO
Last week: 2
Campo picked up easy wins over Clovis West (17-1) and Clovis (14-7) on Saturday. The Cougars next face San Ramon Valley on Sept. 25.
No. 4 MIRAMONTE
Last week: 1
The defending NorCal Division I champs defeated Soquel 19-7 last Wednesday. They next face Arroyo Grande on Sept. 27.
No. 5 ACALANES
Last week: 4
Acalanes took down St. Ignatius 21-12 last Saturday. The Dons face Gunn on Friday.
No. 6 LELAND
Last week: 6
The Chargers dominated Gilroy 20-2 on the road last Wednesday. They face Westmont this Wednesday.
No. 7 ST. FRANCIS
Last week: 7
The Lancers were off last week and remain 4-0 this season. They begin West Catholic Athletic League play against Presentation on Wednesday.
No. 8 PALO ALTO
Last week: Not ranked
The Vikings are undefeated at 4-0 and have wins over Archbishop Mitty (11-8) and Menlo-Atherton (11-7) on their resume in nonleague play. Last week, Palo Alto picked up wins over Lynbrook (17-1) and Los Altos (15-7) to commence league play. Paly faces Harker and Mountain View in league matchups this week.
No. 9 WASHINGTON-FREMONT
Last week: 9
Washington improved to 5-1 with an 11-6 win over Liberty last Tuesday. The Huskies face Irvington on Wednesday.
No. 10 NORTHGATE
Last week: Not ranked
The Broncos improved to 6-2 this year with wins over Archbishop Mitty (13-12), Oak Ridge (12-11) and Del Oro (12-5) over the weekend. They next face Clayton Valley Charter on Wednesday.
Editor’s note: Teams eligible for the Bay Area News Group rankings come from leagues based predominantly in Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. The news organization’s high school staff chooses the teams.