Four local teams make watch lists

Yes, high school baseball and softball are here, and so is the “watch list” of the most promising programs in the CIF-SS. Four teams from schools serving the Garden Grove-Huntington Beach-Westminster are on the lists.

In baseball, Huntington Beach is on the Division 1 list. The Oilers were champions of the Sunset League in 2017. On the Division 5 roster, it’s Garden Grove and La Quinta, who tied for the Garden Grove League title last season.

A total of 15 other Orange County teams were also listed.

In softball, Pacifica is in the Division 1 lineup. The Mariners won the 2017 Empire League title. Twelve other OC teams were in the lineup as well.

Ducks move into third place with a win

The Anaheim Ducks are one of the hottest teams on ice. After a 6-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks Sunday at the Honda Center, the Orange County team improved its record to 33-21-12, worth 78 points.

That placed them third in the NHL Pacific Division.  The Ducks have scored 14 points in their last 10 games. The top three teams in each division qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs. Rickard Rakell, Corey Perry (two goals), Marcus Pettenson, Jakob Silfverberg (two) scored for the Ducks, who jumped out to a 2-0 first period lead and were never caught.

In goal, John Gibson had 37 saves for the winners.

Next up for Anaheim is a game Tuesday hosting the Washington Capitals (37-21-7, 81 points) at Honda Center.

Mariners, Lions in SoCal Regionals

The girls’ soccer teams from Pacifica and Westminster lost their CIF-SS championship games last week, but their seasons aren’t over. Both teams will now advance to the CIF SoCal regionals starting on Tuesday.

In Division III action, Pacifica will host Mt. Carmel at 5 p.m. at Garden Grove High. In Division IV, Westminster will host Kingsburg.