2015, Week 8: Mission Hills Takes Over North County

Wither, Oceanside?

The 45-0 loss to Mission Hills last week shook the foundation of the dynastic program at the school overlooking the intersection of old U.S. 101 and Interstate 5.

It’s one thing to get blown out, but even in losses the Pirates have usually managed to score. Their dominance in the North County, though being challenged the last few years by onrushing Mission Hills, hasn’t been in question.

The loss marked the Pirates’ first shutout to a North County team in 130 games. Carlsbad blanked them, 28-0, in 2005. No North County squad had scored that many points in 152 games. Fallbrook ran off with a 51-28 victory in 2003.

There have been occasional whopping defeats–El Camino routed John Carroll’s 1991 team, 63-27, for example, but the highest shutout margin had been 39-0 by Carlsbad in 1979.

Margins like 45-0 haven’t been accomplished by San Diego Section teams in 89 years. There were losses to Metropolitan League rivals Coronado, 47-0, and Sweetwater, 57-0, in 1926, the Oceanside’s first football season.

The Pirates will attempt to get their swashbuckling groove on this week against 1-5 Torrey Pines. Mission Hills probably will run the table in the regular season if it gets past Rancho Bernardo.

Coach Chris Hauser’s Grizzlies close versus weak Del Norte, pedestrian Vista, and better-than-average San Marcos, a 28-10 loser to Oceanside in the opening game.

Mission Hills’ victory kept the Grizzlies atop the weekly Union-Tribune voting and they picked up two additional first place votes that had been held by Helix, which defeated Steele Canyon, 41-6.

Some shakeups above raised Mission Hills a notch to 14th in the Cal-Hi Sports state rankings. Helix follows at 15th. Cathedral, La Costa Canyon, and St. Augustine are among 30 others on the bubble.

Week 8 poll, after seven weeks of games:

#	Team (1^st place votes)	Points	W-L	Previous
1.	Mission Hills (20)	239	6-0	1
2.	Helix (4)	219	4-1	2
3.	St. Augustine	191	4-2	4
4.	La Costa Canyon	161	5-1	6
5.	Westview	123	6-0	7
6.	Oceanside	88	4-2	3
7.	Grossmont	79	6=0	10
8.	El Camino	77	5-1	5
9.	Cathedral	67	4-3	9
10.	Rancho Bernardo	31	4-2	8

NR–Not rated. Points awarded on basis of 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1.

Others receiving votes (record & points in parenthesis): Madison (4-2, 14), Mission Bay (6-0, 13), Mt. Carmel (5-1, 8), Bonita Vista (4-2, 7), Mater Dei (4-1, 5), San Marcos (4-2, 4), Valhalla (5-1, 4), Mater Dei (5-1, 3).

24 Media and CIF representatives vote each week: John Maffei (U-T San Diego), Steve Brand, Terry Monahan, Don Norcross, Jim Lindgren, Tom Saxe, Rick Hoff (U-T San Diego correspondents), Bill Dickens, Chris Davis (East County Sports.com), Steve (Biff) Dolan, (Mountain Country 107.9 FM), John (Coach) Kentera, Ted Mendenhall, Bob Petinak (The Mighty 1090), Rick Willis, Brandon Stone (KUSI-TV), Rick Smith (partletonsports.com), Jerry Schniepp, John Labeta (CIF San Diego Section), Bodie DeSilva (sandiegopreps.com), Drew Smith (sdcoastalsports.com), Lisa Lane (San Diego Preps Insider), Raymond Brown (sdfootball.net), R. Pena, C. Smith and Montell Allen (MBASports-SDFNL Magazine).

SERRA LOOKS TO SERGIO

Sergio Diaz has built a program before. He was 41-47-1 in eight seasons at Scripps Ranch, but 34-25 in his last five after a 7-22-1 start.

Diaz faces a challenge seemingly more daunting at Serra, in his first head coaching job since he left Scripps Ranch after the 2009 season.

The Conquistadors are 0-6 and have been outscored, 316-13.

QUICK KICKS

La Costa Canyon is 5-1 for the first time since 2009, when coach Darrin Brown’s Mavericks raced to an 11-0 mark before getting the big haircut from Vista, 47-7, in the Division I Section championship…Eastlake is 2-4 after a bitter-pill, 28-23 loss to Bonita Vista…the Titans were 9-0 against the Barons since 2006 and the 2-4 start is their poorest since the 1997 team broke from the gate 2-4…Westview continues to roll, its 6-0 beginning is the best since the ’08 club was 7-1 and finished 9-3….