With the North Coast Section playoffs starting today and Central Coast Section playoffs opening this weekend, the elite volleyball teams in the Bay Area are set to begin the most important part of their schedules.
St. Francis and Archbishop Mitty have retained spots at the top of the latest Bay Area News Group rankings.
Sacred Heart Prep has had the best form of any team outside of the top two over the last month and has slowly crept up to the third slot in the rankings.
After an up-and-down season, St. Ignatius has dropped out of the rankings, replaced by Los Altos (26-8).
On to the rankings …
Bay Area News Group Top 15
(Mercury News & East Bay Times)
(Records through Monday)
No. 1 ST. FRANCIS (27-0)
Previous ranking: 1
Update: The Lancers inched closer to an undefeated regular season with 3-0 wins against St. Ignatius and Valley Christian. St. Francis will travel to No. 2 Archbishop Mitty to close out its season.
Up next: Wednesday at Archbishop Mitty, 6 p.m.
No. 2 ARCHBISHOP MITTY (26-6)
Previous ranking: 2
Update: The Monarchs swept Sacred Heart Cathedral and Presentation to improve their WCAL record to 8-1. MItty plays host to St. Francis on Wednesday, with a chance to avenge its 3-0 loss to the Lancers from a few weeks ago.
Up next: Wednesday vs. St. Francis, 6 p.m.
No. 3 SACRED HEART PREP (21-4)
Previous ranking: 5
Update: The Gators’ winning streak is now at 15 after the team defeated Mercy and Notre Dame. Sacred Heart Prep finishes its season against Notre Dame-San Jose.
Up next: Tuesday vs Notre Dame-San Jose, 6:30 p.m.
No. 4 MONTE VISTA (27-5)
Previous ranking: 3
Update: The Mustangs played a tough slate of matches to close out the regular season. The team won matches against ranked opponents in Dublin and Amador Valley but also dropped a contest to San Ramon Valley.
Up next: Playoffs TBD
No. 5 FOOTHILL (25-8)
Previous ranking: 4
Update: After winning its eighth straight match by defeating Dougherty Valley, Foothill lost two consecutive 3-2 matches to Amador Valley and San Ramon Valley to close out the season. Foothill plays Mission San Jose in the NCS playoffs.
Up next: Today vs Mission San Jose, 6:00 p.m.
No. 6 CAMPOLINDO (22-7)
Previous ranking: 6
Update: Campolindo beat Benicia and Northgate to end its regular season on a winning note. The team’s playoff opponent is yet to be determined.
Up next: Playoff opponent TBD
No. 7 SAN RAMON VALLEY (23-7)
Previous ranking: 7
Update: The Wolves beat Livermore and a top-notch Foothill team, and then split two games against Monte Vista to finish the season with a 3-1 week. San Ramon Valley will play Deer Valley in the NCS playoffs.
Up next: Today vs. Deer Valley, 7:00 p.m.
No. 8: VALLEY CHRISTIAN (17-7)
Previous ranking: 8
Update: Valley Christian beat Sacred Heart Cathedral to start the week, but also lost to St. Francis.
Up next: Today vs St. Ignatius, 6:00 p.m.
No. 9 CARONDELET (20-10)
Previous ranking: 9
Update: Carondelet finished its regular season with 3-0 wins against Granada and California. Next up is a Wednesday playoff game against Ukiah.
Up next: Wednesday vs. Ukiah, 7:00 p.m.
No. 10 BISHOP O’DOWD (30-7)
Previous ranking: 10
Update: The Dragons finished their regular season with a six-game winning streak. Bishop O’Dowd swept Encinal and Berkeley and will wait to see who its playoff opponent will be.
Up next: Playoff TBD
No. 11 AMADOR VALLEY (22-5)
Previous ranking: 13
Update: Amador Valley took down California, got a huge win against a ranked Foothill team early in the week, and then dropped a close 3-2 game to Monte Vista. Amador Valley hosts Liberty later today in the NCS playoffs.
No. 12 BURLINGAME (24-6)
Previous ranking: 11
Update: Burlingame went 5-1 last week, with wins against Hillsdale, Carlmont, Santa Cruz, Milpitas and Wilcox. Burlingame then lost to Branham.
Up next: Today vs Half Moon Bay, 6:15 p.m.
No. 13 DUBLIN (13-6)
Previous ranking: 12
Update: Dublin lost 3-0 to Monte Vista, and then traveled to Dougherty Valley and defeated that team 3-1. Dublin plays Vintage in the NCS playoffs.
Up next: Today vs. Vintage, 7:00 p.m.
Up next: Today vs Liberty, 7:00 p.m.
No. 14 SACRED HEART CATHEDRAL (13-11)
Previous ranking: 15
Update: Sacred Heart Cathedral started its week with WCAL losses to Valley Christian and Mitty, but rebounded with wins against Harbor and Branham.
Up next: Today vs Presentation, 6 p.m.
No. 15 LOS ALTOS (26-8)
Previous ranking: NR
Update: Los Altos won 11 straight at one point, then dropped two straight against Branham and Wilcox to start the week. Los Altos then defeated Leigh to end the week. Los Altos is a team that has been teetering on the edge of being ranked the last few weeks, and it makes its inclusion thanks to a strong body of work.
Up next: Today vs Los Gatos, 6:45 p.m.
Teams eligible for the Bay Area News Group rankings come from leagues based predominantly in Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. For updated records, please email highschools@bayareanewsgroup.com.
Source: www.mercurynews.com