Birmingham Charter won three straight LA City Section Open Division championships from 2021 to 2023. The run didn’t just win the program hardware, it etched itself into the history books after breaking LA Wilson’s win streak over City Section opponents, which was 39 set back in 1978.
Birmingham had the streak up to 48 straight wins, but a loss to Narbonne in last year’s Open Division semifinals snapped the streak and the Patriots’ hopes at a fourth straight City crown.
But so much has changed since last year.
Soon after Narbonne won last year’s Open Division City title, it was vacated due to CIF violations that included competing with ineligible players. Narbonne had to forfeit all its victories, too, which technically gave Birmingham a win for the semifinal loss.
Fast forward to this season: The Patriots are Open Division contenders again, and the streak is still intact at 54 straight wins over City teams.
Birmingham (7-3) is the No. 2 seed in this year’s Open Division playoffs and seems to be on a collision course with No. 1 Carson (7-3). The Patriots will start their march to LA Southwest College, where the Open final will be played (on Nov. 29), with a game at home against No. 7 Kennedy (9-1). The Cougars are making their first-ever Open Division playoff appearance.
The rest of the Open Division field looks like this:
No. 8 King/Drew at No. 1 Carson
No. 5 Garfield at No. 4 Palisades
No. 6 Crenshaw at No. 3 San Pedro
The Open Division is just eight teams. The quarterfinals will be played November 14.
DIVISION I IS WIDE OPEN
The Division I field is a toss-up. Though the Open Division playoffs have the most talent, the Division I playoffs contain the most parity.
Venice is the No. 1 seed, but local City programs like No. 12 Granada Hills, No. 3 Eagle Rock and No. 6 El Camino Real are capable of making noise this postseason.
Local matchups in Division I: No. 13 Van Nuys at No. 4 Banning, No. 12 Granada Hills at No. 5 Marquez, No. 14 at No. 3 Eagle Rock, and No. 11 Dorsey at No. 6 El Camino Real.
NOTES FOR DIVISIONS II AND III
Cleveland is the No. 1 seed in Division II and will host Legacy on Friday. After competing in the West Valley League, do not be surprised if the Cavs make a run in the DII playoffs. There’s nothing in that division they haven’t seen before.
Local matchups in DII: No. 9 North Hollywood at No. 8 Sylmar, No. 13 Panorama at No. 4 Fairfax, No. 15 South East at No. 2 San Fernando, No. 10 Arleta at No. 7 Huntington Park, and No. 14 Chatsworth at No. 3 Roosevelt.
Local matchups in DIII: No. 13 Canoga Park at No. 4 Jefferson, No. 12 Sun Valley Poly at No. 5 Contreras, No. 10 Verdugo Hills at No. 7 Roybal, and No. 11 Chavez at No. 6 Manual Arts.