Here is a link to the brackets and schedules for the 2025 Northern and Southern California Regional Tournaments:
2025 CIF Regional Water Polo Championships - California Interscholastic Federation
Here are my predictions, often wrong, for the CIF Northern California and Southern California Regional Tournaments:
Northern California Division 1:
(1.) Miramonte. The possible championship game between Miramonte and SHP or De La Salle will be very close.
(2.) Sacred Heart Prep. The likely semifinal game between SHP and De La Salle could go either way.
(3.) De La Salle
(3.) Campolindo. The likely semifinal game between Miramonte and Campolindo will be closer than the NCS championship game.
Northern California Division 2:
(1.) Redwood. The possible championship game between Redwood and Buchanan will be close.
(2.) Buchanan
(3.) Saint Francis. Saint Francis will give Redwood a good game if the schools meet in the semifinals.
(4.) Clovis. The possible semifinal game between Buchanan and Clovis will be close.
Southern California Division 1:
(1.) Newport Harbor
(2.) Cathedral Catholic. Cathedral is the only team to beat Newport this year. I don’t think they can do it again.
(3.) Corona del Mar
(3.) La Jolla. Hats off to La Jolla for beating Cathedral Catholic in the San Diego Section Open Division finals. Cathedral beat La Jolla twice earlier in the season. I predict Cathedral will beat La Jolla in a close game if the schools meet in the semifinals.
Southern Section Division 2:
(1.) Bishop’s. Bishop’s may be missing a few players with injuries. If so, that could affect Bishop’s chances.
(2.) Santana
(3.) Carlsbad
(3.) Capistrano Valley
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In the Division 1 SoCal Regional, it appears very likely that we will at last have a final match between a CIF-SS and a CIF-SDS school. That’s progress.
…Of course, not before we likely have semi-finals on Thursday pitting Newport Harbor vs. Corona del Mar in one semi-final, and La Jolla vs. Cathedral Catholic in the other. Just five days after their section final contests. Oh well, the price of progress!
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Yes, it seems the reasonable desire to match different sections in the finals has caused these expected repeated matchups. However, switching CDM and CC could have resulted in two potentially more interesting semifinal matches and potentially an equally exciting final.
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The fact that we yearn for a regional finals championship game featuring teams from opposing sections is a reminder of how poorly conceived and constructed the Regionals are.
What makes sense about Newport playing CDM or Oaks in the regional semis when Newport just played both in the SS playoffs? And, how about La Jolla likely playing CC again less than a week after beating them?
Do this the right way and run a true CIF State Championship.
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The current regional format is pointless. Nobody cares about replaying the same matchups you just played for the only title that actually matters: the CIF Section Championship.
If CIF wants real growth — and if a full statewide format is truly beyond their reach — then start with a simple North–South Championship:
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Southern Section champion vs. San Diego champion
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North Coast champion vs. Central/Sac-Joaquin champion
Winners play one final game for the true statewide title. Two games total. No runner-ups, no watered-down brackets, no meaningless rematches , if you lost your regional CIF Title game you are DONE!
It’s inexpensive, clean, and avoids competitive imbalance while finally giving California water polo a real statewide stage.
If that model works, CIF can expand into divisions or a full tournament — and that momentum would push other regions to invest, develop, and close the gap.
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Best suggestion I have read in these forums and very simple formula that actually might work and more importantly might get the teams to be fired up again immediately after their CIF run. Hope someone from CIF is reading and can take notes! REGIONALS IN ITS CURRENT FORMAT IS POINTLESS with 3 additional games right after a CIF tournament with nothing to play for.
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We all heard it and it’s time to change and appeal such a bad decision! The boys are being punished for a scheduling issue that has nothing to do with them. Their season is aligned statewide and could easily support a real state championship, but CIF blocks it because the girls play fall in NorCal and winter in SoCal. That’s not equity — it’s collateral damage.
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Maybe the real solution is to not have girls sitting out in 50 degree weather in the dark playing water polo in the winter outdoors.
What do you mean? This toughens em up.
Does anyone have an idea on how Division 3 of Norcal/Socal Regional Tournaments will go?
Incoming sarcasm: Wow! So glad we have the Division 2 winner of SD CIF Oceanside in the same bracket as Open Division 3rd place (tied) Bishop’s and Santana. Oh and Carlsbad and Torrey.
Oceanside only needs to be better than 4(!) teams that were in divisions above them (1 D1 and 3 Open teams) in order to win their regional tournament.
Yikes. Makes no sense. Honestly, CIF needs to put something reasonable together or just scrap the idea altogether. This is ridiculous. Have only the section winners play each other for a legitimate regional championship.
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In fairness to Oceanside, they will be promoted to D1 for next year, and beat Div 1 finalist CCA and Div 1 3-seed Westview, while holding their own in losses to Open top 6 teams Poway and Carlsbad.
A few years back, before the Ormsby era, J Serra was SS Division 4.
Oceanside had a great year winning their league and Division 2. Props to them, for sure.
I just thinking lumping in 5 San Diego teams that are spread across 3 divisions with 3 SS teams that are spread across 2 divisions is quite odd.
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1st round winners (Boys)
Mitty
Turlock
Leland
Clovis East
Semifinals
Mitty over Turlock
Clovis East over Leland (this one may flip)
Finals
Mitty over winner of East vs Leland
1st round winners (Girls)
Merced over Christian Brothers
At Mary’s over Stevenson
Los Altos over Amador
Garces over Sierra
Semifinals
Merced over St Mary’s
Garces over Los Altos
Finals
Garces over Merced
No streams for Div 1 SoCal Regional games?
So, Cal D-1 Predictions:
Cathedral Catholic 10 - La Jolla 8. Hard to beat a really good team twice in one week. Cathedral hits their shots from the perimeter.
Newport 11 - Oaks Christian 7. Oaks had a chip on their shoulder vs. CDM, but Newport is too deep and their defense is suffocating.
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Good predictions @Kickout
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Newport beats Cathedral Catholic 14-12.
Here’s a rundown on today’s Division 1 SoCal Regional final match:
Division 1 Box 1 2 3 4 F
Cathedral Catholic 2 3 4 3 12
Newport Harbor 4 3 3 4 14
Game Summary: Cathedral Catholic scored the first goal at the 5:49 mark of the first quarter. Newport Harbor tied it and went ahead 2-1 at the 3:42 mark. This was the first and only lead change of the game. CC tied it at 2-2 at 2:03 left in the first. NH went ahead to stay at the 1:40 mark, making it 3-2 – then 4-2 by the end of the first quarter. From there, NH built a four goal lead, 7-3, at the 4:19 mark of the second quarter. But, CC narrowed the lead to 7-5 at halftime, and in the third quarter they got to within one goal four different times – finally making it 10-9 with just 0:03 left in the third. NH came out strong, however, at the beginning of the fourth – building their second four-goal lead, 13-9, with 5:25 left in the game. CC clawed back to within one goal once again to make it 13-12 with 2:14 left. However, they could not score further, and NH scored an empty net goal with 0:11 left to make the final score, 14-12.
Level of Play: This game seemed to me a bit different from previous regional final matches. Both teams seemed to be playing really hard, especially CC. Their bench and their fans were boisterous – NH is simply the better team and they met the challenge. NH beat CC five out of six meetings this year. Interestingly, though, NH had 12 games this year where the point spread was five goals or less. Six of those game – half of them – were played against CC (including the one game they lost). In addition, the 12 goals NH surrendered today is the second highest given up all year – CC scored 13 against them in another loss, back in the finals of the Elite 8 tourney.
A Personal Note: During halftime and into the third quarter a spectacular rainbow arched over the sky and the partial clouds made for a dramatic sunset. Living in Southern California is great! Two fantastic prep water polo teams putting on an amazing show, the fall weather was wonderful and what a facility Mt. SAC has! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
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