Santa Margarita Advances, 9-6

The top-seeded Santa Margarita girls’ water polo team advanced to the semifinals of the Southern California Championships with a 9-6 victory over Montebello on Friday.

Darby Anderson scored four times and Kristen Palase had five assists and one goal to lead the Eagles (19-5), who are ranked No. 1 in the Southern Section Division I coaches’ poll. Santa Margarita goalie Stephanie Peckham had 13 saves.

Daisy Carillo had four goals to lead Montebello, which is ranked No. 5 in Division I.

Santa Margarita will play defending champion and fourth-seeded Santa Barbara at 10 a.m. today at Irvine’s William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center in one semifinal.

Kami Craig and Bridgette Bugay each scored two goals to lead Santa Barbara (20-4) to a 6-4 victory over Coronado (18-7) in another quarterfinal. The Dons played the last quarter without Craig, who was ejected with three fouls. Haley Wilson and Sarah Frost each scored once for Santa Barbara.

Second-seeded Santa Ana Foothill will meet third-seeded Newport Harbor in the other semifinal at 11:15 a.m.

The championship game is set for 3 p.m. at William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center.

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Girls’ Golf

The Southern Section’s golf advisory committee recently approved the addition of individual regionals to postseason competition.

Starting this fall, the top 45 players from each of two 65-player individual tournaments will advance to the section’s individual finals. Previously, golfers qualified through league finals.

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Miscellany

San Juan Capistrano Serra won its appeal to be placed in the Orange County Area when new leagues are created for the 2006-2007 school year, the first year of a four-year league-affiliation cycle. The Southern Section’s Executive Committee originally recommended to place Serra as a Freelance Area school.