There are about 150 girls' basketball programs in the Central Coast Section. Year after year, the list of top 20 girls' teams is utterly dominated by the private/parochials from two leagues, the WCAL and the WBAL Since the CIF instituted state hoops championships for girls, CCS private/parochials have captured 30 titles. The publics have one. One ray of hope, however: The new equity-based CIF playoff system (an obvious nod to the reality of the vast difference between the two athletic systems) may produce a second girls' public state crown for a CCS team at some point. But it's been 32 (soon to be 33) years since the first (and only) one was produced by Burlingame in 1988. A CCS public has not gotten to a state final since. The close of the 1980s and the decade of the 1990s also saw the distinct rise of the private/parochials. Some of the key factors that altered the landscape included:
St. Ignatius and Sacred Heart both going coed.
The arrival of Brian Harrigan as head coach at the new SHC.
The arrival of Kate Paye (and her coaching brother, John Paye) at Menlo (three straight state titles was the immediate result).
The surge of college-level talent heading for neighboring Sacred Heart Prep.
The arrival of Mike Ciardella as head coach at SHP (a record 80-game winning streak soon ensued)..
The arrival of Sue Phillips as head coach at Mitty (we all know the results).
The arrival of Doc Sheppler as head coach at Pinewood (we all know the results there too)..
The eventual creation of a girls' division in the WCAL
The eventual addition of Valley Christian to the WCAL (in 2002).
The expansion of the WBAL fueled, in part, by schools from the old GPSL.
Those are just some of the key changes that helped to tilt the balance in the section. AAU programs operated by private/parochial coaches who did not, and do not, have to worry about geographic boundaries when it comes to attracting young talent to their schools, along with administrative support at their schools, surely helped a lot too. These programs can re-load yearly. Public schools, due to their strict boundary rules, cannot. Public schools in open enrollment districts are still limited by their district boundaries. So are charter schools. The WCAL and WBAL programs are not. One prime example: The Mitty program is filled with youngsters from all over the South Bay and into the East Bay and over the hill onto the coast. It's an all-star affair that vacuums up outstanding talent from far and wide. The Mitty syndrome is so overwhelming (let's call it the Mater Dei of the North) that even some private/parochial coaches are less than thrilled. So how can the publics, especially the ones that take this stuff seriously, hope to retain promising players who live in their districts? Good luck with that.