Marina football to exit Sunset League

After playing football in the Sunset League for 54 years, Marina High is ready to say goodbye.

Vikings coach Jeff Turley said he got word from his athletic director, Michelle Spencer, on Tuesday morning that Marina is heading out of the Sunset League after this year and joining the Golden West League, as the CIF Southern Section Council denied Laguna Beach’s league placement appeal.

Marina and Laguna Beach are moving to the new eight-team Golden West Conference for football only for the 2018 and ’19 seasons. The conference would feature local schools Marina, Laguna Beach and Ocean View, along with Garden Grove, Godinez, Segerstrom, Western and Westminster. Laguna Beach and Godinez are leaving the Orange Coast League, Garden Grove the Garden Grove League, and Western the Empire League.

In sports outside of football, Marina and Laguna Beach would be in the new eight-team Sunset League conference with Corona del Mar, Edison, Fountain Valley, Huntington Beach, Newport Harbor and Los Alamitos.

With Marina exiting the Sunset League for football, CdM, from the Pacific Coast League, takes the Vikings’ place. Turley, who helped Marina end its 60-game losing streak in league last year, said he’s is happy about the change in leagues.

“It does put us in a better situation,” said Turley, whose Vikings (3-2) are ranked No. 6 in the CIF Southern Section Division 12 poll. “Now we’re playing schools that are in the same division as us. It’s much better competition-wise.”

New CIF boys’ basketball playoff divisions

With the high school boys’ basketball season right around the corner, the section released its new playoff divisions for 2017-18.

The section has gone down to 11 divisions, one less than last season. The top division will again be the Open Division, followed by Division 1, 2AA, 2A, 3AA, 3A, 4AA, 4A, 5AAA, 5AA and 5A.

The difference for some local schools is the name of the division they are in now, as Edison goes from Division 1AA to Division 1 and CdM and Huntington Beach from Division 1A to Division 2AA. Division 1 replaces Division 1AA and Division 2AA replaces Division 1A.

Below are the rest of the local programs and their 2017-18 playoff divisions: Newport Harbor (2A), Laguna Beach (3AA), Ocean View (3AA), Marina (3A), Fountain Valley (3A), Costa Mesa (4AA), Sage Hill (4A), Pacifica Christian Orange County (5AAA), Estancia (5AAA), Brethren Christian (5AA), Los Amigos (5AA) and Liberty Christian (5A).

Out of the area’s 15 programs last season, Pacifica Christian was the lone one to reach the section finals, making it in Division 6, the lowest at the time. CdM advanced to the Division 1A quarterfinals.

CdM, Edison open football league title defenses

CdM and Edison enter their respective league openers this week not having lost a league game in quite sometime.

The Sea Kings have won their past 25 games in the Pacific Coast League, and the Chargers have won their previous 10 in the Sunset League.

The last time CdM and Edison both suffered a setback in league it cost them the league championship in the regular-season finale.

The Sea Kings, who have won the last five league titles, lost to Beckman on Nov. 11, 2011, while the Chargers lost to Los Alamitos on Nov. 6, 2014.

CdM (4-1), ranked No. 4 in Division 4, opens league against Beckman at Davidson Field on Friday at 7 p.m.

Edison (3-2), No. 6 in Division 2, plays Huntington Beach (1-4) at Cap Sheue Field on Thursday at 7 p.m.

New CIF boys’ soccer playoff divisions

The new section playoff divisions for the 2017-18 season have four local boys’ soccer programs in the top division.

Edison, CdM, Fountain Valley and Huntington Beach are in Division 1.

Newport Harbor and Marina are in Division 2, while Estancia and Ocean View are in Division 3.

Laguna Beach and Costa Mesa are in Division 4, Los Amigos is in Division 5, Sage Hill in Division 6, and Brethren Christian and Pacifica Christian are in Division 7.

Sage Hill 8-man stays undefeated

Sage Hill’s 8-man football team is 6-0, producing its best record in any type of football played at the school in 12 years.

Sage Hill edged Downey Calvary Chapel 35-34 at Downey High last Saturday.

The last time the program won its first six games, the Lightning played 11-man football. Sage Hill went on to go 7-0 in 2005, until dropping its eighth game.

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Twitter: @ByDCP