Tangled playoff picture remains
Green Valley football coach Brian Castro and his staff met this week intending to figure out the Division I Sunrise Region playoff scenarios.
But they didn’t get very far.
The regular season concludes Thursday, and there are all sorts of potential outcomes in the Sunrise Region. Green Valley (Southeast League) and Las Vegas (Northeast League) control their own destiny for the No. 1 seeds, but after that it gets pretty tricky.
“Anytime you’re in a position where you don’t need any help and can take care of yourself, that’s the best position to be in,” Castro said. “We’ve done a good job getting ourselves to this point. Now, we need to finish strong, and that’s been our focus all week.”
Green Valley (7-1, 3-0) hosts Foothill (4-4, 2-1) and will earn the league title with a victory or a loss by nine points or fewer coupled with a Coronado win over Basic. Foothill can earn the top seed with a win and a Basic win, while Coronado (5-3, 2-1) needs a victory and a Foothill win by 10 or more points.
If there is a three-way tie for second place in the Southeast between Basic, Coronado and Foothill, Basic must win by nine points or more to snag the No. 2 seed.
It’s a similar situation in the Northeast, where Las Vegas (5-3, 3-0) hosts Liberty (6-2, 2-1) with a chance to clinch the league title. Liberty will claim the No. 1 seed with a victory and a Canyon Springs loss to Silverado. Canyon Springs (5-3, 2-1) is the top seed with a win and a Liberty win by virtue of the head-to-head point-differential tiebreaker.
Should there be a three-way tie for second place involving Canyon Springs, Liberty and Silverado, the No. 2 seed will depend on Silverado’s margin of victory over Canyon Springs. The Skyhawks must shut out Canyon Springs and win by 13 points or more to claim the No. 2 seed. Otherwise, Canyon Springs is the No. 2 seed and Liberty would be No. 3 based on its head-to-head win over Silverado.
It’s much simpler in the Sunset Region, where Arbor View and Centennial battle for the No. 1 seed in the Northwest League, and Cimarron-Memorial clinches the No. 3 spot with a victory over Bonanza. Bishop Gorman plays Palo Verde for the Southwest’s top seed, and Legacy meets Shadow Ridge for the league’s No. 3 seed.
■ SHERMAN OUSTED — Desert Oasis football coach Marcus Sherman said he was fired by the school Friday morning with two games remaining in the regular season.
Sherman, who remains a teacher at Desert Oasis, was in his first season at the school after going 8-20 in three seasons at Valley. Diamondbacks athletic director James Dinkel did not return voice mail messages seeking comment.
“The administration supported me 100 percent,” Sherman said. “But you can’t be successful if your own coaches are not loyal to you.”
The Diamondbacks (1-7, 1-3 Northwest League) play at Durango on Thursday in a nonleague game. Desert Oasis will qualify for the Sunset Region playoffs if Bonanza allows more than three points in its game against Cimarron-Memorial.
■ RECENT COMMITMENTS — Palo Verde senior Kiley Harrison to Kent State, Shadow Ridge senior Marisa Miano to Colorado Mesa, Legacy senior Gabby Rinker to Colorado Christian and Calvary Chapel junior Maddison Petrelli to Colorado Christian for softball.
Contact reporter David Schoen at dschoen@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-5203. Follow @DavidSchoenLVRJ on Twitter.
