By no means is Mira Costa overlooking the Bay League.  After all, the Mustangs are going for a three-peat.

All Coach Patty Perkinson is trying to do is get her girls soccer team to aim higher and make a deeper postseason run in the ultra-competitive CIF Southern Section Division I playoffs after two straight second-round exits.

"We have to do what we did last year, and then some," Perkinson said. "We definitely want a three-peat in the Bay League, but our goal is to have more success at CIF than we've had in years past. This is the year to do that. We have plenty of firepower this year."

To prepare for the unforgiving Division I playoffs, Mira Costa decided to enter the Excalibur Tournament over the holiday break instead of participating in the South Torrance Holiday Tournament in an effort to see more Orange County teams.

"Every game at this Excalibur Tournament is going to be tough, almost like a playoff game," midfielder Lindsay Bullock said. "That's what we need."

Mira Costa will rely on its talented trio of Bullock, senior fullback Sarah Reece and senior forward Milana Shabestari.

Bullock is one of the most dynamic players in the South Bay. The two-time Daily Breeze All-Area pick recorded 17 goals and 15 assists to earn the Bay League's Co-Most Outstanding Player award. She is headed to Long Beach State.

Reece is sturdy and unyielding and earned the league's Defensive Player of the Year award for leading a defense that recorded 18 shutouts and allowed just 12 goals in 30 matches last season. She added eight goals and seven assists.

Shabestari was one of the league's most creative playmakers and had six goals and 12 assists. The UC Irvine-bound recruit had ankle surgery two years ago and now appears fully recovered for the first time.

Sophomore Julia Barrow also returns after earning first-team all-league honors.

Lauren Stillians, who scored 12 goals last year, should provide explosiveness up front.

Goalkeepers Jackie Collins and Katelyn O'Banion will step in for the departed Tammy Lenham (UC Santa Barbara) and Kirsten Mellman.

"We're better than we were last year," Bullock said. "Last year, I remember how we were in our first game, and it was tough. We did not play as a team.

"This year is so much better. The chemistry is good and everything's flowing. There's a lot of stuff we still need to work on, but we're doing better moving the ball, we have a good touch and I'm excited about the upcoming games and about CIF."

Palos Verdes: The Sea Kings make the move from the Pioneer League and should contend for the title. Coach Suzanne Charles has nine returning starters and a talented team of speedsters. Senior Whitney Liehr, one of the state's top hurdlers who is headed to Stanford for track, won the Pioneer League Best Offensive Player award twice and had nine goals and three assists last season. Senior midfielder Lyndsay Lean is drawing heavy interest from Arizona State, Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo, Stonybrook and SMU and is a stabilizing force. Charles has her entire defense back, including junior goalkeeper Laura DiBiase, senior sweeper Neva Lundy, junior fullback Kristin Macfarlane and senior fullback Laura Stephens. Junior midfielder Katie Gwinn had five goals and one assist after missing the first eight games with a knee injury last season. Charles said junior Amanda Young (eight goals 11 assists) and sophomores Lauren Moody (three goals, nine assists) and Jordan Davidson (five goals, two assists) won't be available until league play.

Peninsula: Coach Scotte Massey's young team should challenge for a playoff berth. Senior midfielder Lauren Minami is a returning All-Area player who had 11 goals and seven assists to earn the Bay League's Co-Offensive Player of the Year award. Senior midfielders Kareena Killam and Taylor Ely and junior midfielder Michelle Crose will provide fluidity. Sophomore forward Chloe Byrne will be Peninsula's big-time scoring threat. Senior defender Morgan Baskett and freshman defender Mia Bruno will lead the defense in front of junior Casey Campanella.

West Torrance: The Warriors have six returning starters, including Cal State Fullerton-bound Samantha Stillion, a senior fullback who was a second-team all-league selection last year. Coach Jim San-Martin also returns senior midfielder Kelsey Ikemoto (first-team all-league), junior goalkeeper Brittini Salmon (146 saves, 0.75 goals-against average), junior midfielder Laura Day and junior forwards Kristen Delsigne (seven goals, 10 assists) and Megan Cunningham (five goals, one assist) to help compensate for the loss of Bay League MVP Jessica Murphy (33 goals, 20 assists), who is playing for AJAX.

Redondo: The Sea Hawks have a strange situation with forward Stephanie Hebert, one of the top talents in the South Bay. Hebert (nine goals last season) has not yet been cleared to play by the Redondo athletic department, but Redondo officials say it is not a disciplinary issue. Hebert has missed the first three games this season. While replacing Jacqui Simon (UCLA) and Hebert won't be easy, Coach Shelly Marsden has six returning starters and a super freshman in forward Jazmin Ponce, who has three goals in the first two games. Senior center midfielder Emily Palmer, a four-year starter who is headed to Sonoma State, is the leading returning scorer with six goals and five assists. Redondo also has two other four-year starters in CSDH-bound midfielder Alicia Kolter (three goals) and Southern Oregon-bound midfielder Sara Switzer (one goal). Junior forward Megan Bucci (three goals) is a scoring threat. Juniors Shannon Cleary and Dani Zavala lead the defense. Marsden said that if Redondo is to recover from last season's fifth-place league finish, it will need the help of two other freshmen -- center midfielder Danielle Matucci and goalkeeper Molly Alexovich.

Leuzinger: Second-year coach Edith Najera, a 2004 Leuzinger graduate, said the Olympians will be much more competitive and could even record their first Bay League win. Najera has a solid defense that includes goalkeeper Lisbeth Reynoso, sweeper Luz Ochoa and fullbacks Michelle Ramirez and Jeannie Najera, who are all returning starters. Midfielder Erika Gamboa and forwards Lessli Leyva and Ana Barron also return for Leuzinger.