7 LOCAL TEAMS KEEP DIVISION TITLE HOPES ALIVE.

Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Special to the Daily News

All things considered, it was a good weekend for area high school basketball teams in the Southern Section playoffs.

Four boys teams and three girls teams advanced to the second round in their respective divisions with opening-round victories Friday and Saturday.

Among the boys teams that bowed out Friday were Agoura, which fell to Hoover 76-65; Simi Valley, an 82-58 loser to Long Beach Jordan, and Calabasas, which lost to Sonora 81-52.

Westlake was the lone girls team to fall Saturday, losing to Ocean View 78-31.

The boys teams advancing are: Westlake (Division II-A), which beat Katella on Friday 75-63; Royal (Division I-AA), which topped Arroyo Grande 81-37; Moorpark (Division III-AA), which was a 85-81 winner over Dos Pueblos in double overtime; and Oak Park (Division IV-AA), a 61-55 winner over Laguna Beach.

The girls teams moving on are: Thousand Oaks (Division I-A), which beat Hart on Saturday 43-33; Simi Valley (Division I-AA), which defeated Santa Monica 69-48; and Moorpark (Division III-AA), which crushed Gladstone 82-32.

Play will resume tonight for the boys as Westlake travels to Ventura in a Division II-A game, Royal visits Victor Valley in Division I-AA action, Moorpark hosts Compton Centennial at Simi Valley High School in a Division III-AA game and Oak Park plays St. Bernard in a Division IV-AA game at El Segundo High School.

The girls will play again Wednesday.

Oak Park will have a little payback on its mind when it takes the floor against St. Bernard, which ousted the Eagles last year. It was the third straight year that Oak Park's playoff run was derailed in the quarterfinals.

"We've been in this same game four years in a row," said Oak Park coach Rob Hall, whose biggest concern is the Vikings' size and their ability to fast break off missed shots.

"I think we can beat them this time," said Oak Park guard Randy Gastwirt, who scored 10 points in the win over Laguna Beach. "They're a different team than last year, but so are we."

Gastwirt, who said the Eagles prevailed Friday despite an off night, is confident they'll be able to overcome the Vikings' superior athletic ability.

"That's probably the one thing that concerns me," Gastwirt said. "Across the board they might have better athletes. But I think we have the better basketball players. If we execute, I think things will work out for us."

Among the keys, he said, are the Eagles' success in breaking St. Bernard's pressure defense, which extends from base line to base line.

"If we can beat that initial pressure, we should be able to do whatever we want," he said.

Hall feels the type of defense that St. Bernard plays will allow for more open shots. Laguna Beach played a disciplined, man-to-man defense Friday, which limited the Eagles' looks at the basket. As a result, they shot just eight three-pointers on the night, making four of them. If Oak Park takes care of the ball, Hall expects that number to jump to 15 or 16 attempts.

"If we can make eight or nine of those, we'll be in good shape," he said. "But if we only make four, it will be a long night for us."

Westlake started off slow against Katella - trailing 9-1 to start the game - but finished strong behind Steve Aylsworth's 25 points. Jason Gaines added 19 points and center Jeremiah Nesbitt had 11 points and 15 rebounds.

Nesbitt will be a key factor against Ventura, which boasts the talented front line of Donte Lincoln and Charles Dixon, both of whom are in the 6-foot-6, 6-foot-7 range.

"Those two will pose some problems for us," said Westlake coach Gary Grayson. "But on the flip side, I think our guards will present problems for them."

Grayson is counting on contributions from guards Aylsworth, Gaines and Jake Stewart to compensate for the Cougars' inside strength.

Royal easily raced past Arroyo Grande on Friday behind Marques Pena's 22 points. Nick Flanagan had 20.

But it will be a much sterner test against Victor Valley, which took first place in the Citrus Belt League.

"No question it will be a little different," said Highlanders coach Larry Wiksell.

The Jackrabbits are quick, athletic and like to run. Royal's biggest problem this year came against teams that had those same attributes.

"There's no question we have to keep the tempo down," Wiksell said. "If we try to run up and down the court with them then we'll probably lose."

The Highlanders have two players nursing injuries - forwards Scott Schnetzler (sprained ankle) and Ryan Nielsen (pulled tight muscle). Neither played significant minutes against Arroyo Grande, but both seemed to be in better shape at practice Monday.

"I told the the guys that we don't need to play great to win the game," Wiksell said. "But we do need all our players to play well. We can't have any of our one through seven players having an off night."

Moorpark, meanwhile, will face a Centennial team which finished second in the Ocean League.

But according to Musketeers' forward Kevin Lawrence, the team got rid of all its nervousness in the game against Dos Pueblos.

"Going two overtimes in a playoff game took care of that," he said. "We had guys step up in that game and I think it will continue into Tuesday."

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Photo Oak Park guard Randy Gastwirt is confident that this year the Eagles will defeat St. Bernard to advance. Jeremy Greene/Special to the Daily News