It was a good week for the Xcellent 25 as 24 of the teams are back from last week's rankings.
The only team to exit this week is Basha, which lost in the Arizona Division 1 playoffs. Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.) moves in at No. 25.
The rest of the Xcellent 25 saw every team either win or at least advance in the playoffs. The only exception was Tomball and The Woodlands in Texas.
Tomball won its playoff round against Round Rock, but it went the distance in the best of three series. The same was true for The Woodlands in its series with Stony Point.
Since Tomball has a win over Alvin and Alvin has a win over The Woodlands, we decided to keep everyone where they were since they all advanced. That won't be the case next week, however, as Tomball and The Woodlands square off in the next round.
Another matchup to watch this week is in Florida where two defending state champions, Niceville and Eau Gallie, matchup in the Florida 6A state semifinals. Niceville won the 5A state title last year while Eau Gallie won the 4A crown. Those two teams are set to play today.
MaxPreps Xcellent 25 National Softball Rankings
1. (1 last week) Estrella Foothills (Goodyear, Ariz.), 33-0
The first two rounds of the playoffs weren't a problem for the Wolves, who defeated Snowflake 7-1 in the opening round and Empire (Tucson) 7-6 in the second. Winslow awaits in the third round on Friday.
Kasia Smith, Estrella Foothills
Photo by James Conrad
Chelsea Wilkinson made it three straight perfect games with a 10-strikeout effort in a 6-0 win over South Caldwell. She gave up four hits in the conference tournament against St. Stephens, but still won 1-0 with 14 strikeouts.
3. (3) Pacifica (Garden Grove, Calif.), 26-1
The Mariners won three more times to give them 20 straight wins. They defeated Tustin 11-1, Western (Anaheim) 7-2 and Valencia (Placentia) 10-0. They conclude league play Thursday at Cypress.
4. (4) Niceville (Fla.), 28-2
A 4-0 win over Orange Park puts Niceville into the state semifinals and a showdown against Xcellent 25 colleague Eau Gallie today.
5. (5) Topsail (Hampstead, N.C.), 23-0
Topsail's march toward an unbeaten regular season is complete after a 10-0 win over Swansboro and an 8-6 win over East Duplin (Beulaville).
6. (6) Amador Valley (Pleasanton, Calif.), 20-0
The Dons remain the top team in the San Francisco Bay Area after blanking Granada (Livermore) 8-0 and Monte Vista (Danville) 4-0.
7. (7) Keystone (La Grange, Ohio), 25-0
The Wildcats won all five games last week by shutout, giving them seven in shutouts in a row, including a 20-0 win over Buckeye (Medina), a 10-0 win over Firelands (Oberlin), a 21-0 victory over Brookside (Sheffield), a 10-0 defeat of Wellington and a 12-0 victory over Black River (Sullivan).
8. (8) Beech (Hendersonville, Tenn.), 44-1
It's 38 straight for Beech after a 16-0 win over Gallatin and a 10-0 win over Portland last week.
9. (9) Norco (Calif.), 25-2
The Cougars won three straight by shutout last week, defeating Centennial (Corona) 5-0, Poly (Riverside) 9-0 and Corona 10-0.
10. (10) Walla Walla (Wash.), 18-1
Walla Walla easily downed McLoughlin 10-0 in its lone game last week.
11. (11) Tomball (Texas), 25-3
The Cougars suffered a loss in the Texas 5A state playoffs, but they still advanced past Round Rock 5-3, 8-15, 10-3. Next up is The Woodlands on Friday in a battle of Xcellent 25 teams.
12. (12) Alvin (Texas), 33-3
Alvin advanced to the regional quarterfinals with a 5-1 win over Sterling (Baytown). Up next is Deer Park.
13. (13) The Woodlands (Texas), 28-4
The Highlanders suffered a playoff loss, falling to Stony Point 1-5 in the middle game of the three-games series. The Woodlands won the area final, however, by winning the first game 3-1 and the third game 6-0.
14. (14) Porter Ridge (Indian Trail, N.C.), 25-0
Porter Ridge won twice in the conference tournament, beating Anson (Wadesboro) 12-0 and Marvin Ridge (Waxhaw) 10-0.
15. (15) Northern (Owings, Md.), 20-0
The Patriots picked up five straight wins last week, topping McDonough (Pomfret) 1-0, Chopticon (Morganza) 9-2, Westlake (Waldorf) 21-0, La Plata 10-2 and Calvert (Prince Frederick) 7-0.
16. (16) Jupiter (Fla.), 23-6
Jupiter continues to advance in the Florida 8A state playoffs with a 5-4 win over Cypress Bay. It takes on Palmetto (Miami) this week.
17. (17) Palm Beach Gardens (Fla.), 27-3
Season complete.
18. (18) Poland Seminary (Poland, Ohio), 17-2
Poland Seminary keeps close to Keystone in Division II play in Ohio with an 11-5 win over North Allegheny and a 10-0 win over Latrobe.
19. (19) Eau Gallie (Melbourne, Fla.), 28-2
Moved into a semifinal matchup with Niceville after edging Springstead 5-2 in the regional finals.
20. (20) Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.), 23-2
The Monarchs closed in on a West Catholic Athletic League title by defeating St. Francis (Mountain View) 9-0 and St. Ignatius (San Francisco) 7-2.
21. (21) El Diamante (Visalia, Calif.), 28-1
Three more wins for El Diamante, which topped Redwood (Visalia) 1-0, Lemoore 8-3 and Hanford West 9-2 in league play.
22. (22) Sunrise Mountain (Peoria, Ariz.), 32-1
Sunrise Mountain completed the regular season with a 9-2 win over Peoria and then it won its first two playoff games with a 9-1 win over Gila Ridge (Yuma) and a 4-0 win over Greenway (Phoenix).
23. (23) Plano East (Plano, Texas), 31-3
Plano East advanced to the regional quarterfinals with a 5-0 win over Haltom. Will take on Flower Mound.
24. (24) Red Mountain (Mesa, Ariz.), 33-3
The Mountain Lions reached the end of the regular season with a 9-2 win over Mountain View (Mesa) and then won their first two playoff games over Cibola (Yuma) 10-0 and Horizon (Scottsdale) 2-1.
25. (NR) Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.), 22-1
Only loss this year is to Northern (Owings, Md.). Won its WCAC tournament quarterfinal matchup with Academy of the Holy Cross (Kensington) 10-0.
Dropped Out: No. 25 Basha.
