Berths nearly locked up, but region playoffs hardly set

Only one Class 4A playoff spot remains up in the air in boys soccer.

But Wednesday’s matches could still have a major impact on potential region quarterfinal matchups.

After Monday’s action in the two Sunset Region leagues, 15 of the 16 Class 4A berths have been locked up. One spot remains available in the Northwest League, where Cimarron-Memorial has something resembling a stranglehold on the final berth, but the Spartans haven’t quite secured it.

Regional quarterfinals are scheduled for Nov. 3 at Bettye Wilson Park.

Here’s a breakdown of each league’s potential finishes. Please keep in mind that none of this is official until declared so by the Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association.

We’ll start with the league that still has a berth open.

Sunset Region
Northwest League

Who’s in: Centennial, Palo Verde, Arbor View
Who can still get in: Cimarron-Memorial, Faith Lutheran
Who’s out: Legacy, Shadow Ridge, Cheyenne, Mojave

Centennial (14-0-1 in league play) has already secured the No. 1 seed with Palo Verde (12-2-1) right behind.

Arbor View (7-5-3) has completed league play and will be either the No. 3 or No. 4 seed, depending on the outcome of Cimarron’s home match against Shadow Ridge.

If Cimarron wins, Cimarron (7-6-2) would be the No. 3 seed and Arbor View the No. 4. If the Spartans tie, Arbor View would be the No. 3 seed and Cimarron the No. 4.

If the Spartans lose, Arbor View would get the No. 3 seed, and Cimarron’s fate would be left in the hands of Palo Verde, which plays Faith Lutheran (6-6-3).

The only way the Crusaders get in is with a win and a Cimarron loss; otherwise, the final spot goes to the Spartans.

Cimarron won the season series with the Crusaders and would win a tiebreaker if both teams finish with 24 points.

Legacy’s loss to Cheyenne on Monday knocked the Longhorns out of the playoff picture as Legacy loses a tiebreaker with Cimarron on wins by beaten opponents, the second criteria used by the NIAA to break ties.

Southwest League

Who’s in: Bishop Gorman, Clark, Western, Bonanza
Who’s out: Spring Valley, Desert Oasis, Sierra Vista, Durango, Pahrump Valley

Bishop Gorman (15-0) earned the No. 1 seed here by virtue of beating ... well, everyone.

Clark (11-3-1) wrapped up the No. 2 seed with its win over Spring Valley on Monday.

Western (9-5-1) also clinched a playoff spot by winning on Monday and will be either the No. 3 or No. 4 seed. The Warriors currently lead Bonanza (8-4-3) by one point in the standings and must finish with more points than the Bengals to get the No. 3 seed.

Bonanza wins a tiebreaker with Western if the teams tie at 28 points because Bonanza beat and tied the Warriors in their two meetings.

Bonanza’s tie against Pahrump on Monday, coupled with Spring Valley’s loss to Clark clinched a playoff spot for the Bengals and ended the Grizzlies’ postseason hopes.

 

The Bengals would win a tiebreaker with Spring Valley based on beaten opponents.

Sunrise Region
Northeast League

Who’s in: Valley, Eldorado, Las Vegas, Chaparral
Who’s out: Desert Pines, Rancho, Canyon Springs, Sunrise Mountain

Four teams have played hot potato with the No. 1 spot in this league for the past three weeks, so why shouldn’t it come down to the wire?

Valley (9-3-1) has the No. 1 spot for now, but must win at Chaparral (7-3-3) to keep it.

Eldorado (8-2-3) and Las Vegas (9-4) enter Wednesday’s matches tied for second. Should they stay tied, Las Vegas — which swept the Sundevils — would win the tiebreaker.

There’s really no simple way to break down a league like this, so bear with me.

Valley gets the No. 1 seed if it wins. If it loses, Valley can likely forget about the top spot.

Las Vegas’ remaining match is with Sunrise Mountain, and it’s not likely the defending state champions would lose. A win in that match locks the Wildcats into no worse than the No. 2 seed.

Eldorado needs some help to climb up from the No. 3 seed. The Sundevils need a tie against Desert Pines and a Valley loss to win a tiebreaker against Valley (Eldorado won the season series) or a win and a Valley loss or tie to pass the Vikings outright.

Again, assuming Vegas doesn’t drop (or kick) the ball against Sunrise Mountain, the Wildcats would win and guarantee themselves no worse than a tie with Eldorado.

Chaparral, in almost every scenario, is the No. 4 seed. It’ll take a minor miracle for the Cowboys to move up.

Southeast League

Who’s in: Tech, Green Valley, Coronado, Silverado
Who’s out: Del Sol, Foothill, Basic, Liberty

This one is slightly more simple, working from the bottom up.

Silverado (6-4-3) will be the No. 4 seed. The Skyhawks can’t move up.

Coronado (7-2-4) is locked in as the No. 3 seed.

That leaves rivals Tech (10-2-1) and Green Valley (9-1-3) with the Roadrunners in the driver’s seat.

A Tech win over Liberty or a Green Valley loss at Silverado wraps up the No. 1 seed for the Roadrunners and leaves Green Valley at No. 2.

Should the teams tie at 31 points, which would be because of a Green Valley tie against Silverado and a Tech loss to Liberty, Tech still wins the tiebreaker on beaten opponents.

Green Valley has to win and hope that Tech loses or ties for the Gators to snatch the top spot.