REJECTED—Thousand Oaks High sophomore goalkeeper Dominic Valentino saves a shot during Tuesday’s wild-card playoff victory over Atascadero. TOHS faces Oaks Christian today at 3:15 p.m. It’s time to separate the men from the boys.

The CIF-Southern Section Division 4 boys’ water polo playoffs begin in earnest this afternoon at 3:15 with a quartet of tantalizing area matchups.

Tri-Valley League champion Oaks Christian (13-2) plays host to Thousand Oaks (17-12) in the only all-Conejo Valley showdown on today’s docket.

Thousand Oaks, a third-place finisher in the Marmonte League, defeated Atascadero 16-5 during a wild-card match Tuesday at TOHS.

Sophomore Ben Rogers fueled the Lancers’ offensive attack with five goals, while senior Dylan Ackerman contributed three goals and three steals.

Thousand Oaks sophomores Neil Forsythe and Pierce Hening logged two goals apiece, and sophomore goalkeeper Dominic Valentino had eight saves.

“We’re happy to get a game in,” Thousand Oaks head coach Mike Giles said. “For us, we just love playing. Every time we play it’s a chance to learn and improve. We’ll take it.”

Oaks Christian and Thousand Oaks haven’t played each other this season, but Rogers said his teammates understand they’ll have to perform at an elite level to knock off the Lions.

“They’re going to have the home-pool advantage,” Rogers said. “All we can do is bring our best game and do what we do.”

Thousand Oaks is without senior Christian Brock, the program’s all-time single-season leader in goals scored. He’s no longer with the squad.

The Agoura Chargers (25-4) went undefeated in claiming another Marmonte League title. AHS stays at home to face Villanova Prep (11-7), a thirdplace finisher from the Tri-Valley League.

“To be honest, at this point we’re not too concerned with who we’re playing as much as how we’re playing as a unit,” Charger head coach Dustin Litvak said. “But we have been playing some good water polo as of late.”

Agoura, the 2007 section champion, is led by a pair of standout seniors, center P.J. Iannone and utility James Altmann.

“They are the center of our team,” Litvak said. “They are our leaders, and they need to step up and handle the fact that they’re going to see the opposing team’s best defenders, sometimes even double-teams.”

The Chargers will also rely on offensive output from a pair of talented sophomore attackers, Danny McClintick and Adam Abdulhamid.

“Both players have been instrumental in some of our biggest wins this year,” said Litvak of the underclassmen.

In a battle of second-place finishers from their respective leagues, Marmonte powerhouse Royal (23-5) takes on TVL stalwart Malibu (10-6) at Rancho Simi Community Park Pool.

With the possibility of facing defending section champion Cerritos in Saturday’s quarterfinals, Highlander head coach Steve Snyder said his team’s draw is a difficult one.

“I’ve seen them all, and it’s a tough division this year,” Snyder said.

“Our road is not going to be easy whatsoever. Malibu is always tough and well-coached, and if we win that one I’m sure we’ll see Cerritos again.”

Royal beat Cerritos earlier this season in a non-league contest.

No local team faces a tougher task in the opening round than Newbury Park (12-17), which drew Bay League champion Palos Verdes (25-5), the division’s top overall seed.

The Marmonte League had a three-way tie for fourth place between Newbury Park, Moorpark and Westlake in the final regularseason standings. Moorpark eliminated Westlake in a playoff and Newbury Park followed suit by taking down Moorpark to get into the postseason bracket.

Now, the Panthers must put forth their finest effort of the season to pull off a monumental upset over Palos Verdes.

“Our motivation is that we’re playing our best water polo of the season right now,” NPHS head coach Dave Gleisberg said. “I’m telling my guys that it’s just another high school team, and anyone can beat anyone.”

Senior whole set Thomas De Lyon is the Panthers’ premier offensive playmaker. On the defensive end, Newbury Park is led by two seniors, Mitch Levin and goalkeeper Scott Griffin.

The Division 4 semifinals take place Wed., Nov. 18 at Cal Lutheran University. The section title match is slated for Sat., Nov. 21 at William Woollett Jr. Aquatics Center in Irvine.