2022 CIF Section Champions Crowned

Following another fantastic series of CIF San Diego Section Championship games, it's now time to root for San Diego as six of our seven champions prepare to represent us in the CIF State Playoffs.

Congratulations to Lincoln, Mater Dei Catholic, Granite Hills, University City, Palo Verde Valley, Classical Academy, and Victory Christian on their hard-earned victories.

Open Division Champions 

Lincoln Hornets (11-1)

Def. Carlsbad 28-24

Lincoln's 4th quarter explosion clinches Open Division Title
The resilient Hornets proved to be the top team in the county and will now travel to Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, CA) for the 1-AA State Regional Playoffs.

Division I Champions

 Mater Dei Catholic Crusaders (9-4)

Def. Mission Hills 34-28

Mater Dei Catholic (9-4) will begin their mission of back-to-back State Championships when they visit Downey (12-2) in the 2AA Southern Regional Bowl on Friday, December 2nd. To get here, the Crusaders needed to win the Division I Championship over Mission Hills in dramatic fashion. The Crusaders started the season 0-4 prior to their 9-game win streak.

Division II Champions

Granite Hills Eagles (11-2)

Def. Ramona 48-12

East County Sports: Eagles clinch first CIF championship

Division III Champions

University City Centurions (11-2)

Def. Point Loma 33-28

The University City Centurions (11-2) get set for their first State Playoff berth in team history when they travel to San Jacinto for the 3-AA State Regional Bowl. After going 0-2 in his previous championship appearances, senior QB Samuel Cooper IV made sure he wasn’t ending his prep career 0-3 as he helped lead UC to a hard-fought victory over Point Loma.

Division IV Champions

Palo Verde Valley Yellow Jackets (13-1)

Def. Fallbrook 33-14

No. 7 seed Palo Verde Valley made a huge statement, knocking off the top seed to earn their second straight section title. Xzavier Bejarano carried the ball 23 times and rushed for 157 yards and two touchdowns. The Yellow Jackets are set to host Muir (Pasadena, CA) in the CIF 5-AA State Regional Bowl.

Division V Champions

Classical Academy Caimans (10-3)

Def. Crawford 33-14

Life Pollard had the game of his first name, putting up four touchdowns to help the underdog Caimans knock off the streaking top-seeded Colts. After Crawford scored first, Classical put the game away with five unanswered touchdowns. The Caiman will host Lancaster (CA) in the 6-AA State Playoffs.

8-Man Champions

Victory Christian Knights (11-0)

Def. St. Joseph Academy 39-12

Photo Credit: Nicole Noel Photography

After falling in last season's 8-man championship game, the Knights made sure their second shot at the title was a success. Senior quarterback Tookie Davis put up 5 total touchdowns (3 passes, 2 rush).