I have to make a minor adjustment since SHC overtook the AM in the last minutes of their game this afternoon. I took a moment to make sure that the exchange of Mitty - Sacred Heart Cathedral didn't conflict with other achievements in their seasons. This is the same ranking list with only #6 and #7 changing.We have one more game to play in this third week of WCAL action. If Sacred Heart Cathedral beats Archbishop Mitty (which might happen in this crazy week), I will come back to adjust this round of my rankings.
St. Francis beat Junipero Serra by TD tonight. There were a few that believed this would happen but I still thought JS would win out. The other surprising, really far more surprising game outcome, was Valley Christian dominating Archbishop Riordan. One or two posters called this game a tossup. But I thought AR would throttle VC via their passing game. Something has fundamentally changed for both teams.
Here's my rankings.
1. SI - No challenge from BCP and still holding the top spot. Next week, SI meets SF which should be a good game and very likely the last big test for the Wildcats.
2. SF - Tonight, the Lancers shut up critics by controlling the outcome of their win over JS. Next week, they meet SI and proponents of SF will get a chance to be vindicated.
3. JS - Serra started out the season ranked #1 but most people, including me, thought they could easily fall as low as #3. Then JS edged Folsom and it seemed the Padres were on their way to another stellar year. Two WCAL losses later, here they are #3. They play AM next week.
4. VC - The Warriors unexpectedly (at least by me) dominated AR to pull themselves back into the upper half of WCAL. At the beginning of the season, I put VC at either #4 or #5 but I thought it would be a position battle with SI, not AR. Something has fundamentally changed for the Warriors. I have my theory but still need to verify it against their roster. VC has the WCAL top three still ahead on their schedule, starting with SI next week.
5. AR - The Crusaders have hit some kind of crisis in their season this year. Many thought they would be contending for the top 3 of WCAL this year and a few thought they would contend for the top levels of NorCal. But that hope has not materialized.
6. AM - The Monarchs' game with SHC happens Saturday. AM is expected to win but expectations seem to be challenged this weekend.
7. SHC - The Irish will have a chance to improve their ranking tomorrow. If they are successful, I will come back to adjust this 3rd week of WCAL rankings.
8. BCP - Enough said.
#1. SI
#2. SF
#3. JS
#4. VC
#5. AR
#6. SHC
#7. AM
#8. BCP